Employment Contracts

Electronic signatures: What HR professionals need to know

03/13/2014

For centuries, a signature at the bottom of a piece of paper has meant someone agrees with what the document says. But now many of our documents are made of electrons instead of wood pulp.
Can keystrokes carry the same legal weight as strokes of the pen?

Using day labor? Keep relationship contractual

03/06/2014

If you sometimes need temporary help, you probably turn to companies that hire and manage day laborers. Keep the relationship strictly professional to avoid potential liability as an employer. Instruct supervisors to defer any questions on pay, hours and potential hiring to the temp agency and remind them not to promise anything.

Noncompete buried in benefit plan? Admin sets the terms

02/28/2014

Are some of your benefits—such as bonuses or other merit payments at retirement or departure—contingent on complying with a covenant-not-to-complete? Chances are the benefits plan administrator—not a federal court—will be interpreting the terms.

Noncompete agreements for new and existing employees

02/19/2014

Q. We recently merged with a smaller company, taking on several new sales people. Most of our existing sales staff are long-time, loyal employees, so we haven’t previously used noncompete agreements. However, we’re now reconsidering this. Can we require all of our sales staff to sign noncompetes?

Employee Handbooks: Overview

02/10/2014

HR Law 101: Employee handbooks are extremely valuable business tools. But if you’re not careful, your handbook could land you in court. In particular, employees are increasingly suing for wrongful discharge, pointing to a handbook they claim guaranteed them employment indefinitely …

Alternative Dispute Resolution

02/01/2014

HR Law 101: In recent years, various forms of alternative dispute resolution have gained popularity. Mandatory arbitration in particular is attractive to employers because employees who sign arbitration agreements forfeit their right to sue in federal or state court …

Seeking enforceable arbitration agreement? Be certain it’s not tilted in your favor

01/24/2014

Want to arbitrate employment disputes rather than drag them out in state or federal court? Then make sure the arbitration agreement you use is fair to both sides and doesn’t include any obviously one-sided clauses favoring the employer.

5th Circuit rejects NLRB D.R. Horton decision on class-action waivers

01/07/2014

In a major win for employers, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the highly controversial D.R. Horton decision from the NLRB.

Age Discrimination: ADEA/OWBPA

01/05/2014

HR Law 101: Under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, employers with 20 or more workers can’t engage in personnel practices that discriminate against individuals age 40 and older. Most age discrimination cases grow out of wrongful discharge and mandatory retirement policies, but they can involve any adverse change in working conditions …

Negotiating union contracts: Seek attorney’s help when drafting arbitration clause

12/24/2013

While having a union in the workplace may not be ideal, having a union contract in place clarifies many of the work rules your employees must follow, as well as how your disciplinary process must work.