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Excessive absences justify firing—And bar unemployment compensation

05/01/2008
Ohio employers can fire chronically absent or tardy employees without worrying that unemployment compensation will be the reward for missing work. That’s true as long as the absences weren’t covered by the FMLA or other leave laws …

New state law adds ‘Military status’ to protected classes

05/01/2008
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 …

Mandated sick leave: Coming to a state or city near you?

05/01/2008
Washington, D.C., has become the second city to guarantee employees paid sick leave to care for themselves or a sick child. More than a dozen states are weighing legislation to mandate paid sick leave for employees …

KPMG attracts, retains employees with generous paid vacation time

05/01/2008
When global accounting firm KPMG hires a new employee, that recruit gets five weeks of paid vacation time—on Day One …

Can you force workers to take vacation time?

05/01/2008
It might be a good idea to nudge employees out the door if they’re reluctant to use their vacation time, especially if they handle your company’s finances. For example, the rogue trader who recently cost a French bank $7.2 billion in fraud reportedly never took a day’s vacation or sick leave …

New religious discrimination legislation expands NJLAD

04/28/2008
Employers, take notice: A new type of accommodation is required in New Jersey. Gov. Jon S. Corzine has signed into law an amendment to the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD) that makes it unlawful to discriminate against an employee because of a sincerely held religious practice or observance …

Seeking more information so employers can plan around intermittent FMLA leave

04/28/2008
Q. I’ve required employees seeking FMLA leave to have their doctors fill out the DOL’s medical certification form. Too often, though, the information I get from doctors is too vague to be much help. Is there any way I can get more detail in these forms? …

Pennsylvania will consider paid leave bills

04/25/2008
In the wake of New Jersey’s recent passage of family leave legislation, more state legislatures are considering bills that would require paid family leave. Fourteen states, including Pennsylvania, will consider mandatory paid family leave this year …

Legislators debate paid family leave bills

04/23/2008
New Jersey has become the third state, following California and Washington, to grant mandatory paid family leave to employees. And it looks like the idea is gaining momentum: 14 states, including North Carolina, will consider mandatory paid family leave in this year’s legislative sessions …

FMLA entitles you to request proof worker’s parent has serious health condition

04/21/2008
Do you routinely accept employees’ claims they need FMLA time off to care for an elderly parent? If so, consider a new policy. While it may be easier to approve leave than to challenge it, blanket approvals may prove costly in the long run as more and more “sandwich generation” employees find themselves having to care for both their children and their elderly parents …