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Arizona

Offer health benefits to all, regardless of age

05/12/2025

Under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act and the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act, it’s illegal to offer different benefits to workers ages 40 and older than you offer to younger employees. That’s true even if it costs you more to provide the same benefits to older workers.

Your choice on diabetes accommodations: Pay little or nothing now or $150K later

04/14/2025

Most disability accommodations don’t cost much at all to provide. Penalties for violating the ADA by not accommodating an employee’s health needs can be expensive indeed.

Document—and date—every step of layoff process

11/08/2024

Once the word is out, some employees may take steps they think will save them from layoffs—or set up a potential lawsuit. That’s one reason to thoroughly document your layoff-related decisions and plans, even if those plans have not yet been announced. Here’s an example of how careful documentation worked to the employer’s advantage.

Provide any form of short-term leave? Better cover military leave, too

09/20/2024

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act requires employers that provide any form of short-term leave to also grant leave to members of the National Guard and military reserves so they can take time off for training or short deployments. In doing so, the 9th Circuit joined several other federal circuits in finding that USERRA requires employers to provide such leave.

Court: Your policy can require employees to keep ‘spy cams’ turned on

05/28/2024

A federal court has upheld an employer’s handbook rule requiring full-time camera monitoring of employees. The ruling is a victory for employers who want to track the behavior of employees they can’t directly observe.

Follow EEOC’s recipe for anti-harassment training

01/22/2024

Employers in industries such as hospitality and retail often promote rank-and-file workers to supervisory roles. That may mean that front-line supervisors may not have had the formal training required for their new jobs. That means it’s up to HR to ensure new bosses understand all their responsibilities, including how to handle discrimination and harassment they witness. A recent EEOC lawsuit offers lessons on how to deliver that training.

Accused of religious bias? Brace for years of litigation

08/25/2023

Expect more requests for religious accommodations and more objections to performing some tasks. That kind of employee pushback—aided by well-financed nonprofit groups willing to litigate their cases—is already yielding more EEOC religious-discrimination complaints and federal lawsuits.

Court: Hip-hop on work PA can be harassment

06/12/2023

A federal appeals court has ruled that blasting “sexually graphic, violently misogynistic” music over a Nevada warehouse’s public address system “almost daily” for two years created a hostile work environment.

Your best practice for beating bias lawsuits: Keep accurate records of all HR decisions

03/16/2023

Here’s HR’s best employment-law bet: Assume every employee you fire will try to sue you. That means basing every termination decision on solid business-related reasons, documented in real time. Your good records will often be enough to get a lawsuit tossed out quickly.

Employers win California battle over mandatory arbitration

03/10/2023

Call it a victory for employers that use arbitration agreements to quickly resolve workplace disputes without lengthy court battles and potential runaway jury awards. A federal appeals court has overturned a California law prohibiting employers from requiring employees to sign arbitration agreements. The ruling could mean similar laws in other states may be invalidated, too.