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Employment Law

To beat the union heat, avoid 7 deadly management sins

08/01/2002
Why do some employers manage to operate their company in a union-free environment, while others in the same industry and city have a unionized work force? The reasons fit into …

Payroll records: Fine-tune exempt, nonexempt timekeeping

08/01/2002
THE LAW. Federal wage-and-hour laws don’t require you to have a time clock, but they do require you to have a reliable system to keep track of employees’ hours and pay …

When to Pay for Rest Breaks

08/01/2002

Q. What’s the deal on paying workers for rest breaks? —J.S., California

English-Only Rule Is Legal in Rare Circumstances

08/01/2002

Q. Is it legal for our company to require employees to speak only English at work? —B.K., Idaho

Tread Carefully With Drug Test, Psychiatric Help

08/01/2002

Q. Can we suggest psychiatric help for an employee who we suspect may be having trouble with substance abuse? And can we require a random drug test? —H.J., Texas

Don’t Rely on ‘Same-Actor’ Defense

08/01/2002

Q. If an employee claims she was discriminated against by the same supervisor who hired and fired her, does the employer have a defense to the discrimination claim? —S.D., New Jersey

Stick to facts with mental fitness tests

07/01/2002
Don Jackson, a county utility worker, got quite a shock one night when a psychologist called to confirm an appointment in two days. Jackson hadn’t made the appointment, his employer had. …

Use new weapon to fight class-action wage suits

07/01/2002
It’s no secret that wage-and-hour class action lawsuits, in which mobs of employees sue for unpaid overtime, have skyrocketed. They can be enormously expensive. But a California appeals court ruling gives …

Employees can use vacation time toward one-year FMLA eligibility

07/01/2002
Robert Ruder began working in management at a Maine hospital on Jan. 5, 2000. Exactly one year later, he left work for unspecified medical reasons. His employer denied his request for …

Include temp workers in anti-harassment policy

07/01/2002
Nearly 70 women who worked as temporary on-site telemarketers at a Chicago car dealership filed a class-action lawsuit in federal court, claiming widespread sexual harassment by the dealership’s management. Most of …