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Labor Relations / Unions

You can block staff from bringing co-workers to disciplinary meetings

08/01/2004
Good news: Employees in nonunion workplaces no longer can insist on co-workers joining them during investigatory meetings. You can legally deny such employee representation requests thanks to a new National Labor …

You now can bar ‘friends’ from discipline inquiries

08/01/2004
Issue: When you interview employees about potential misconduct, can they bring a co-worker to the meeting? Benefit: A federal labor panel …

You can land in trouble for trying to stop harassment

08/01/2004
Issue: Can you encourage employees to report on-the-job harassment from union organizers? Risk: Your efforts may be viewed as an illegal union-busting …

Don’t let employees bully you into dictating their employment terms

07/01/2004
You don’t need to let an employee set a bad example by trying to force concessions from you that aren’t required in a collective-bargaining agreement or employment contract. Turn the tables …

New OT rules: countdown to compliance

06/01/2004
The long wait is over. Now it’s time for you to act.
More than a year after proposing changes to the rules that define which employees are eligible for overtime …

Federal contractors: Post ‘Beck’ notice in workplace

06/01/2004
The Labor Department issued final rules last month requiring federal contractors to post notices that inform employees of certain union rights under the Supreme Court’s Communi-cation Workers v. Beck case. Essen-tially, …

Steer the interview back on track if applicant strays

05/01/2004
You know that certain questions are off-limits in a job interview. Just one wrong query, say about a candidate’s marital status or ethnicity, could run afoul of federal sex, age, race, religious, disability or national origin discrimination laws. But what do you do when a candidate volunteers such personal information?

Can you land in trouble for trying to stop harassment? Yes

04/01/2004
You know what they say about good intentions. As the following case shows, if your anti-harassment efforts are seen as an attempt to squash a union-organizing bid, you could be slapped …

Beware labor’s pitch to create union sympathizers

02/01/2004
As AFL-CIO union membership continues to decline, it’s trying another tack: creating an army of nonunionized workers to rally support for its causes. Rather than organizing individual workplaces, this program, dubbed …

Hidden risk: Do your staff committees violate labor law?

01/01/2004
Consider these two scenarios:
1. At the suggestion of a project manager, your organization starts an employee committee to provide workers a voice in safety issues. Management and the safety …