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California

Warning! One firing can bring many lawsuits

07/03/2017
Just because you win one of several lawsuits over a termination, that doesn’t mean remaining matters will be automatically dismissed. It may not matter that one judicial decision might support your stated reason for firing the employee.

Invest in a timely, thorough investigation, or prepare to pay big damage award

06/12/2017
When employees complain about potential workplace discrimination and harassment, smart employers take it seriously. Nothing short of a thorough investigation will do. If you drop the ball and don’t take quick action, it could wind up costing your organization dearly.

What does ADA say about accommodation when employee has communicable disease?

06/06/2017
Q. We discovered that a beloved member of our kitchen staff has hepatitis A. I know that many protections exist for individuals with disabilities, but we are worried about him handling food. Can we reassign him to the front of the house as a host?

Fear of violence: Can we terminate employee who has mental illness?

06/06/2017
Q. We discovered that one of our employees has a history of unprovoked violent fits due to schizophrenia. We certainly sympathize with our employee’s struggle, but we also worry about the safety of customers and other employees. Does state law allow us to fire him for this reason?

Can a thermostat adjustment really be an ADA reasonable accommodation?

06/06/2017
Q. One of our employees suffers from arthritis and has complained that the temperature of the office triggers joint pain. She has requested that we heat the entire office to 80 degrees Fahrenheit as an accommodation of her disability. Must we do so?

How to comply with California’s new health care safety order

06/06/2017
The California Division of Occupational Safety & Health Standards Board has passed a new safety order to protect health care workers from workplace violence. It requires health care providers to develop workplace violence prevention plans, institute training programs and keep records on certain incidents of workplace violence.

Palo Alto firm pays big to settle discrimination charges

06/06/2017
Palantir Technologies in Palo Alto has agreed to settle charges it discriminated against Asian applicants who sought engineering positions at the tech firm.

Bill would raise overtime threshold in California

06/06/2017
Assembly Member Tony Thurmond (D-Richmond) has proposed raising California’s overtime threshold to the higher of $3,956 per month ($47,472 annually) or twice the state’s minimum wage for executive, administrative and or professional employees.

Lost acknowledgment won’t sink arbitration agreement

06/06/2017
A case will go to arbitration even though the employer couldn’t find a signed acknowledgment page showing an employee agreed to arbitrate disputes. Because the employer made it a standard practice to have applicants sign such acknowledgments, the court said the employee was bound by the agreement.

Carefully document how you decided to terminate

06/06/2017
The decision to fire an employee doesn’t usually happen overnight. It’s typically a gradual process. Be sure you can show exactly when and how you made the termination decision.