Q. We recently could not reach an employee who works off-site. Then we learned he was responding to customer messages by saying he was on vacation. After we learned this, he contacted his supervisor and said he had been on vacation and would be on vacation the rest of the week. His supervisor reports that he had not requested vacation time beforehand—and our policy states that vacation time must be preapproved. This employee had been a marginal performer, and now his supervisor wants to fire him. Can we fire him for this? ...

Ohio may soon join other states in outlawing sexual orientation discrimination by private employers. It may be time for employers to rethink their employment discrimination policies and include sexual orientation. One good first step is to include anti-gay discrimination training in your regular anti-discrimination program ...

You wouldn’t dream of having informal payroll policies, right? Yet too many employers treat vacation time—a form of compensation—as a casual entitlement. Getting too informal can cost you. A sound vacation policy addresses the following five elements ...

To manage the workload, employers have to know who will be at work and who will not. After all, when an employee isn’t at work, someone else has to step in and get the work done. Of course, employees sometimes do get sick or have emergencies. A well-crafted call-in policy can help employers cope with unexpected absences ...

Good news for employers with strong anti-nepotism policies: The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected a claim based on alleged familial status discrimination. The court ruled that Title VII does not protect family members from an employer’s decision not to hire a relative when company rules bar nepotism ...

A petition supporting a state constitutional ban on preferential policies garnered more than 120,000 signatures before being passed on to the Colorado secretary of state in March ... 

Q. Is it legal in the state of Colorado for an employer to take away paid employee sick leave? If sick leave is a benefit, can the employer suddenly decide that it’s going to take it away, or does it have to pay you for the hours? Can the employer be required to freeze it for you to use if you need it? Can it be forced to pay accrued sick leave if you leave the company? ...

Q. Our HR department recently received an inquiry from another employer concerning one of our former employees who was applying for a job. The inquiry contained an authorization and release signed by the employee indicating we could share the information without liability. Should we share it? ...

If, like many employers, you honor military service with special pay arrangements for those who serve their country, take note: If you don’t follow your own handbook, you may find a court ready to punish you with big damages ...

The recently enacted Ohio Veterans Package amends the Ohio Civil Rights Act to bar discrimination based on “military status.” As a result, Ohio employers now face new legal requirements on both the state and federal fronts for how they treat military employees and their families ...

It’s considered impolite in many circles to discuss money, but don’t try to stop employees from talking about their pay. Setting a policy that prohibits employees from sharing information about hourly rates, salaries, bonuses or the terms of their employment could violate the National Labor Relations Act—even if your employees do not belong to a union ...

Need another reason—beyond harmony and collegiality—to insist that managers maintain a civil and considerate work environment? Consider this: Employers can be held liable for the defamation and assault of co-workers ...

Q. A female sales representative submitted a harassment complaint to HR about comments posted by one of her co-workers on MySpace. Our company’s Internet policy addresses only use of the Internet and personal e-mail in the office. Can we discipline the employee? ...

A Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations panel has ruled that the English-only signs greeting customers at Geno’s Steaks, the famous South Philly cheesesteak shop, do not violate the city’s Fair Practices Ordinance ...