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Handling HR issues in wake of the Southern California wildfires

12/01/2007

Now that the smoke has begun to clear after record wildfires swept through Southern California, employers face some smoldering pay and leave questions. What if the fires forced you to close your workplace? Do you have to pay employees who were ready and able to work? When must your organization pay employees who were forced to leave their homes? …

Salary deduction for part-Week absence doesn’t always destroy exemption

12/01/2007

Without a doubt, complying with California and federal wage-and-hour rules is difficult. For example, making deductions from the regular salary of exempt employees who are absent can destroy their exemptions and mean back pay for overtime. Thankfully, there is a safe harbor …

Military spouse on leave? Employee has leave rights, too

12/01/2007

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently signed California’s new law allowing military spouses to take leave. The law requires some employers to provide up to 10 days of unpaid leave to the spouse of a qualified member of the U.S. armed forces, National Guard or reserves. Here are employer guidelines on exactly how to administer this new entitlement …

Putting a cap on vacation time accrual

12/01/2007

Q. Our company’s vacation policy provides that once an employee earns 240 hours (or 30 days) of vacation, no additional vacation may be accrued until the balance falls below that level. Is this legal? …

One more reason to be skeptical of ‘Doctor’s notes’

12/01/2007

A growing list of web sites—such as FakeDoctorsNotes.com, MyExcusedAbsence.com and PhoneyExcuses.com—sell customizable templates of doctor’s notes, jury duty notices and even funeral announcements. The Associated Press recently highlighted one of the sites in an article that, no doubt, was forwarded to millions of otherwise unaware employees …

RSVP: Holiday party during FMLA leave?

12/01/2007

Q. An employee who is unable to work has been out on FMLA for the past few weeks. Our holiday party is coming up next week. Should I allow her to attend if she wants to? …

Employer’s mistake doesn’t extend FMLA leave

12/01/2007

It’s not always easy to calculate exactly how much FMLA leave an employee has coming. Rest assured, though: If you make a mistake, you can fix it. Just be sure to fix it as soon as you discover the error so your mistake doesn’t harm the employee …

Can we dock sick time for exempt employees?

12/01/2007
Q. Will I risk losing an employee’s exempt status if I deduct from his or her wages for full-day absences of one or more days?

Checklist: 9 Steps to Sniffing Out Suspicious FMLA Requests

11/07/2007
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Track mailing, receipt of any benefits-Change notification

11/01/2007

Employers that change benefits plans beware! Employees are entitled to know when their benefits will change under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). It’s best to make sure everyone knows about the changes before they go into effect—especially if the new plan requires the employee to do something to qualify for a benefit …