• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Compensation & Benefits

Study cites Texas as a hotbed of wage-and-hour claims

03/03/2009

A recent report offers some ominous news for Texas employers. Texas is one of eight states that saw an increase in class-action wage-and-hour cases filed in state court last year, according to the Seyfarth Shaw law firm’s new Workplace Class Action Litigation Report.

2 N.C. companies make Fortune ‘best to work for’ list

02/26/2009

Two companies headquartered in North Carolina have made Fortune magazine’s 2009 “100 Best Companies to Work For” list. The two, both headquartered in Cary, are engineering firm Kimley-Horn & Associates and software giant SAS.

What factors should we weigh when deciding whether to offer severance package?

02/26/2009

Q. We are downsizing and letting go a long-time employee. We want to help her out by giving her a severance package. What should we consider?

Challenging more unemployment claims? You’re not alone

02/26/2009

When you fire an employee for misconduct and he proceeds to file an unemployment compensation claim, how does your organization respond? In recent years, record numbers of U.S. employers have challenged those payouts.

Will I get into trouble for withholding final paychecks from soon-to-be-former employees?

02/26/2009

Q. We’re closing our doors and firing all of our employees. As president, I am considering not paying my employees their final paychecks, even though they have earned that pay. Is this a risk?

‘Will work for less!’ Be wary of reduced-comp pleas from desperate employees

02/26/2009

In this brutal economy, desperate applicants—and current workers who believe they may be laid off soon—are trying an interesting tactic: They’re volunteering to work for less pay … sometimes much less. A new court ruling shows why you should take those offers seriously.

Worth your while: Proactive review of wage-and-hour issues

02/26/2009

Nothing—not even a sexual harassment suit or EEOC investigation—will consume as much of your time as a class-action overtime lawsuit. Your best bet: Thoroughly review your pay practices to make sure you aren’t making any wage-and-hour mistakes. Do that before the litigation hits.

Minor loss of benefits doesn’t mean employee will win suit

02/24/2009

Not every little lost privilege or benefit translates into a winning lawsuit for employees. Minor changes such as temporarily losing the use of a company car aren’t serious enough to constitute an “adverse employment action.”

15 California firms make Fortune ‘best to work for’ list

02/24/2009

Fifteen companies headquartered in California have made the 2009 Fortune magazine “100 Best Companies to Work For” list. Why did so many California companies make the list? Great benefits seem to be the reason.

Rules for tough times: California’s Baby WARN Act and layoffs

02/24/2009

The downturn has hit California hard. Many stable California employers find themselves for the first time contemplating reductions in force in order to survive. If you’re considering a large-scale layoff, be prepared to familiarize yourself with California’s version of the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act.