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Compensation & Benefits

Review insurance policies for legally dangerous exclusions

10/01/2004
Issue: A poorly worded insurance policy can spark age discrimination lawsuits. Risk: If your policy excludes members of a protected class (age, race, gender, etc.)…

To cut costs, shed myths about staff returning from injury

10/01/2004
Issue: Common misconceptions exist about how to handle employees returning from injury leave. Benefit: By looking deeper into these return-to-work myths …

You can place some conditions on employees’ FMLA leave

10/01/2004
While you can’t base firing decisions on an employee’s decision to take Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave, that doesn’t mean you’re powerless to act against employees who flaunt your …

Notify ‘key employee’ right away if denying reinstatement to job

10/01/2004
Employees who take leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) are usually guaranteed reinstatement to their jobs. But one key exception exists: You can designate a class of highly …

Employees can’t claim retaliation if they’re not FMLA-eligible

10/01/2004
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) protects employees against retaliation for taking FMLA leave. But a recent court decision makes clear that employees retain these rights only if they’re actually …

Review past practices to judge FMLA leave request

10/01/2004

Q. We’re a 24/7 office. Some employees rotate shifts, but our night employees typically work the same shift. After one of our employees gave birth, she asked to be placed on the night shift. We granted her request, but now she says medical reasons require her to be off for five days in a row. We put her back into the regular shift rotation, but she claims her FMLA rights are being violated and wants all employees to rotate shifts, even the night employees. Do we have to do this? —M.L., Ohio

Require employees to show FMLA proof before their leave

10/01/2004
Issue: When must employees provide proof of their need for FMLA leave? Benefit: You can require employees to provide proof when they request the leave. Action: Don’t be …

Water-cooler politics: Limit trouble, but allow free speech

10/01/2004
John Kerry and George Bush aren’t the only people embroiled in political debates this month. So are some of your employees. And, with the country at war …

No Need to Pay Employee for Home-to-Seminar Drive

10/01/2004

Q. In determining when to pay for travel time, what if an employee drives his own car to a seminar that’s two hours away? Should he get paid for his driving time to and from the seminar, even if he leaves from home and drives straight home afterward? —R.M., North Carolina

Calculating paid ‘On-Call’ time an art, not science

10/01/2004

Q. We have a maintenance employee who we will soon put “on call” for various shifts (occasionally at night) to fix equipment. How should we handle his on-call pay? —E.P., Rhode Island