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Employment Law

‘Offering’ chance to quit may still be constructive discharge

07/01/2008
Employers commonly give employees a chance to resign rather than be fired. And employers often believe that as long as they get employees’ signatures on the “voluntary” resignation letters, they’re in the clear. That’s simply not true …

Don’t let trumped-Up excuses prevent sacking bad worker

07/01/2008
Employees who fear their jobs are in danger often try to find some way to protect themselves from being fired. For example, the employee will suddenly report sexual harassment, take FMLA leave or claim he or she has a disability that needs accommodation. Don’t dismiss those claims without an investigation …

Ensure employees know how to complain about retaliation

07/01/2008
You know that employees who complain about harassment or discrimination shouldn’t suffer retaliation. But do you have a mechanism in place that prevents such retaliation? If not, it’s time to come up with one. Nipping retaliation in the bud is far cheaper than defending it in court …

In hospitals, have evidence union messages upset patients

07/01/2008
Generally, employees have the right to wear union insignia in the workplace. But in some limited circumstances in health care settings, employers can restrict that right if the restriction is “necessary to avoid disruption of health care operations or disturbance of patients” …

Tech writers’ wage-Hour suit gets class action status

07/01/2008
A California judge recently certified a class of about 250 to 300 technical writers employed by Sun Microsystems and SeeBeyond Technology who claimed they were misclassified as exempt from overtime pay and denied meal breaks …

Inter-Con security guards strike at Kaiser Permanente facilities

07/01/2008

Building security officers employed by Inter-Con Security Systems and seeking representation by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) staged a series of one-day strikes in May at 23 California Kaiser Permanente medical facilities …

How should we pay exempt employee who was terminated midway through the week?

07/01/2008
Q. We recently terminated an exempt employee halfway through a workweek. Given the Fair Labor Standards Act requirement that exempt employees must be paid on a salary basis, are we required to pay the employee for the entire week?

Can we replace a worker who is out on pregnancy disability leave?

07/01/2008

Q. One of our employees is on pregnancy disability leave. We are a small company and it will be difficult for us to keep her position open. May we hire another worker to replace her based on this hardship? …

Make sure bosses tell employees how to report harassment

07/01/2008
Have your supervisors and managers kept up with the changes by regularly reminding all employees—new and old—how they can report alleged sexual harassment? If not, you need to set up a training schedule. It’s the best way to ensure no employee will come out of left field with a sexual harassment complaint, take it to court—and win …

Balance ADA rights when worker returns from FMLA leave

07/01/2008
An employee who takes FMLA leave is entitled to return to her former job when she recovers. But what if she still needs more time to fully recover and can’t do her old job? Can you refuse to reinstate the employee? Before leaping from that litigation-prone ledge, consider whether the employee may be covered by the ADA …