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Employment Law

Aggressively defend against even the flimsiest lawsuits

06/09/2010
Employees who lose their jobs often think the reason just has to be discrimination. Their first stop after receiving their pink slips: a lawyer’s office. If the resulting lawsuit is meritless, push hard for dismissal.

Beware demanding 100% recovery–it could mean you’re violating the ADA

06/09/2010

Employers are naturally concerned about employees who hurt themselves at work and collect workers’ compensation benefits. One of those concerns is that an early return, before the employee is ready, may cause a reinjury. That attitude, however, can come back to hurt if you insist on a 100%-healed requirement before the employee can resume work.

Transfer isn’t reasonable accommodation if it violates another employee’s labor rights

06/09/2010
Disabled employees may be entitled to transfer to an open position as a reasonable accommodation. But if that open position is subject to a collective-bargaining agreement, and another employee should receive the job under that agreement, the transfer would be unreasonable.

Ensure workers understand waivers before signing

06/09/2010

The idea behind alternative dispute resolution is that cases will take less time and cost less money to litigate. But that may not always be true. Often, employees who have signed arbitration agreements and promised to use an alternative dispute-resolution process end up suing in federal court to try to get the agreement thrown out. Courts often oblige.

Getting ‘silent treatment’ isn’t adverse action

06/09/2010

When someone gets fired because a co-worker complained about discrimination, other employees may get upset. Frequently, they don’t know the back story and may ostracize the employee who originally complained about discrimination. That’s especially true if the terminated employee was well liked. However, courts generally won’t consider it an adverse employment action if workers give the complaining employee the “silent treatment.”

Fed contractors must post labor rights notice starting June 21

06/08/2010
In two weeks, you must begin posting a new notice of employees’ rights under the National Labor Relations Act if you’re a government contractor doing $100,000 or more in business with the federal government or a subcontractor with contracts worth more than $10,000.

Have a no-fault attendance policy? Beware the FMLA liability trap

06/08/2010
Lots of employers have no-fault attendance policies, which allow a certain number of unexcused absences without any documentation and then punish employees who go beyond allowable limits. No-fault policies are fine … as long as they don’t penalize workers for taking time off that’s protected under the FMLA.

How accessible are your electronic HR files?

06/08/2010

With 70% of all corporate records now stored electronically, HR must make sure their organizations’ systems are set up to retrieve critical information on demand. That’s essential if your organization is sued. Long delays in providing evidence can lead to needless litigation costs—and crush your chances in court.

Austin fire department prevails in gender bias lawsuit

06/07/2010
Following two days of deliberation, a Travis County jury has ruled against an Austin firefighter who accused the Austin Fire Department of discrimination.

New federal safety program starting in June increases enforcement, fines on repeat offenders

06/04/2010
If your organization has been hit with OSHA safety violations in the past, consider yourself on double-secret probation. The agency’s new Severe Violator Enforcement Program starting in June will call for “a more intense examination” of work sites where previous safety violations have been found.