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Employment Law

The HR I.Q. Test: May ’09

04/17/2009

Test your knowledge of recent trends in employment law, comp & benefits and other HR issues with our monthly mini-quiz …

How to respond to an EEOC complaint: 10 steps to success

04/17/2009

The EEOC and state and local agencies have been filing more administrative charges in recent years. As the recession deepens and more people lose their jobs, that trend is likely to continue. Because administrative charges can be precursors to discrimination lawsuits, it’s critical for you to handle them properly. These 10 tips will help you prepare to respond:

Secretly recording co-workers: A firing offense?

04/17/2009

Q. Some employees discovered that a co-worker has been secretly recording conversations with them and a supervisor. They’re complaining about the invasion of privacy. The company president’s first reaction was to have the employee arrested, but I’m not sure he broke any laws. Should we contact police?

The impact of partial-day absences on exempt status

04/17/2009

Q. We have a policy that allows exempt employees to take partial days off and have the balance of the day charged against their accrued vacation time in two-hour increments. I have concerns that this arrangement—despite the fact the exempt employees are getting their full salaries—could appear that they’re being treated as hourly employees, thus jeopardizing their FLSA exemption status.

Must we call back laid-off workers first?

04/17/2009

Q. Are we required to call back an employee who’s been laid off? The person wasn’t a responsible employee and called off often. Are we obligated to call the person back to work if we have an opening, or are we eligible to hire someone else?

Can we pay hourly staff comp time instead of OT?

04/17/2009

Q. I’ve heard conflicting answers: Is it legal for our company to pay our hourly employees comp time instead of paying time-and-a-half for overtime worked?

Ignore privacy protests: You can review detailed call records from company cell phones

04/17/2009

Steelcase Inc. gave employee Patrick Morrissey two cell phones: one for business and one for personal use. Both billing statements went to his boss because Steelcase paid both bills. But the boss confronted Morrissey when he reviewed the bills and noticed Morrissey had made personal calls on company time …

Cheer up: Lawyers are getting sued, too!

04/17/2009

If misery loves company, let’s start the party. An article on Law.com notes that insurers anticipate a surge in legal malpractice lawsuits as the economy tanks. (It seems employers aren’t the only deep pockets plaintiffs will try to raid during hard times.)

Chicago sit-in employees will be called back

04/15/2009

The 250 Republic Windows and Doors workers who staged a sit-in at the Chicago plant last December will be called back to work over the next few months as part of a bankruptcy proceeding. The workers started the sit-in after Republic owner Rich Gillman closed the unionized plant and opened a nonunion plant in Iowa days later.

Unholy trinity: 3 employees for the price of one

04/14/2009

Religious accommodation went up against business necessity recently when the "Three Faces of Eve" butted heads with an employer in court. Find out how many winners there were.