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Employment Law

Jury smells a rat in firing of disabled man

01/01/2000
A regional manager’s decision to fire a mentally disabled janitor cost the Chuck E. Cheese’s pizza chain plenty of dough. A jury awarded the janitor back pay and damages of more …

Firing ex-mistress is OK

01/01/2000
If need be, you may be able to fire your ex-mistress. In one New York case, the guy decided to reconcile with his wife but she didn’t want him to work …

17 steps to protect your trade secrets

01/01/2000
Protecting your company’s trade secrets is important for two reasons: You’ll make it less likely that confidential information will be misappropriated. It will be easier for you to …

Tell employee of subpoena for personnel file

01/01/2000

Q. We recently received a subpoena to produce the contents of an employee’s personnel file in connection with a lawsuit. The employee is a party to the lawsuit, but the company is not. Do we have to comply with the subpoena? Should we tell the employee about the subpoena? —K.H., District of Columbia

Prepare managers for EEOC inquiry

01/01/2000

Q. A former employee recently filed a complaint against my company with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) alleging race discrimination. As part of its investigation, the agency will be coming to our offices to interview employees. Do I have to make these employees available? Can I sit in on the employee interviews? —D.N., Colorado

You may not need an affirmative action plan

01/01/2000

Q. Are all employers required to have affirmative action plans? —T.S., Maryland

Don’t assume you can’t accommodate workers’ religious objections

01/01/2000
When a manager checked Hillel Hellinger’s references for a pharmacy job, a former supervisor told the manager that Hellinger, an Orthodox Jew, refused to sell condoms in his previous job.
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Don’t rush into affirmative action hiring

01/01/2000
When the Resorts International Hotel in Atlantic City needed a full-time light and sound technician, the choice appeared simple. The two top candidates were equally qualified but, knowing that the casino …

Let managers know they may be held personally liable for bias

01/01/2000
Wendy Vivian didn’t just sue her employer for racial and sexual discrimination. She went after her supervisor to hold him personally liable and the state Supreme Court gave her the green …

Ability to use noncompete clauses is shrinking

01/01/2000
Doing business at the speed of the Internet may trim the time you have to restrict former employees from working for competitors. Mark Schlack signed an …