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Employment Law

EEOC charges Mount Gilead modular builder with race bias

10/26/2009

According to an EEOC complaint, Professional Building Systems has subjected African-American employees at its headquarters in Mount Gilead to harassment that included drawings depicting the workers and members of the Ku Klux Klan.

How one missing poster doomed an Atlantic City hotel

10/25/2009

Outdated workplace posters aren’t just a minor mistake that, at worst, could trigger only a small fine. As a new court ruling shows, poster mistakes can actually breathe new life into supposedly dead employment lawsuits …

10 minutes well-spent: Audit your employee bulletin board

10/23/2009

When was the last time you reviewed your company’s bulletin boards in the break room or alongside the time clock? Do they show the correct, updated federal- and state-law posters? A little time spent seeing what’s there—and what’s missing—will keep you in compliance with state and federal laws.

Pay attention to spontaneous bias complaint

10/23/2009

Employees who complain about alleged discrimination engage in what is commonly called “protected activity”—and that means they can’t be punished for doing so. Thus, it’s illegal to retaliate against an employee who goes to HR to report possible discrimination. But what about employees who never come forward on their own, but who simply respond to a supervisor’s question about equal treatment? Are they also protected?

Track older workers’ training opportunities

10/23/2009

Technology changes fast, and so do the skills employees need to succeed in their jobs. But some employees don’t feel comfortable taking the steps needed to adapt. If those employees happen to be older and you end up having to replace them, you could face an age discrimination lawsuit. You can avoid such lawsuits with a good skill-building plan …

You can punish employees for improperly sharing salary information—in some cases

10/23/2009

By federal law, employees have the right to discuss salaries and benefits with one another. Plus, in North Carolina, members of the public also have the right to specific information about public employees’ salaries. That does not mean, however, that public employers can’t reprimand employees who break rules against distributing that information in a way that creates conflict or animosity.

State claim can’t piggyback on employee’s FMLA suit

10/23/2009

Employees who sue under the FMLA for alleged interference with the right to take covered leave can’t throw in an additional claim for wrongful termination under state common law. That’s because North Carolina allows wrongful termination claims only in very limited circumstances …

Race bias lawsuits alive and well

10/23/2009

 We all like to think we’ve moved beyond race discrimination, but the number of race bias lawsuits being filed suggests otherwise. That’s why employers need to make sure their hiring and discharge practices don’t discriminate. 

Refusal to hire non-Hispanics sparks EEOC lawsuit

10/23/2009

Propak Logistics, an Arkansas-based freight management company, has drawn the ire of the EEOC, which is suing the firm for refusing to hire applicants who weren’t Hispanic for nonmanagement positions at its plant in Shelby.

Independent contractor or employee? How to make the call

10/23/2009

Sometimes, it makes financial sense for companies to engage workers as independent contractors rather than as employees. It can have advantages for workers, too. But whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor has nothing to do with the desires of the organization or the worker. Not even a written contract can make someone an independent contractor if that status isn’t legitimate.