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Employment Law

Problems discovered during protected leave? Document history and details of deficiencies

07/30/2018
Sometimes, managers or supervisors don’t realize the extent of a subordinate’s poor performance until the employee is out on leave and someone else has temporarily taken over the job. If that happens in your organization, be sure to carefully document the deficiencies before you take action.

Weigh several disability accommodations

07/30/2018
The ADA requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations so disabled workers can perform the essential functions of their jobs. If a worker sues, he has an opportunity to conduct discovery and come up with other possible accommodations that were never considered before.

Bay-area IT firm agrees to H-1B visa settlement

07/30/2018
Cloudwick Technologies in Alameda County has settled allegations by the U.S. Department of Labor that it violated H-1B visa requirements when it paid workers much less than the law requires.

Go beyond harassment best practices: Add respect to your culture

07/26/2018
This current wave of harassment accusation appears to be a fundamental climate change in how our culture handles power and ethics. Your organization has two choices—be reactive and live in fear of it happening to you, or be proactive and get ahead of it.

Department of Labor sues Minneapolis flooring company

07/24/2018
Minneapolis-based Luxury Floors Inc. and its chief executive officer face a U.S. Department of Labor lawsuit after investigators from the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division concluded the company broke the law by paying its workers straight time when they should have received overtime pay.

Prefer federal court venue? Prove what’s at stake

07/24/2018
Often, employers prefer to be sued in federal court instead of state courts. To move a case from state court to federal court, you must show that the matter in controversy is worth $75,000 or more.

8th Circuit reiterates: Employees who sue have no right to free legal assistance

07/24/2018
The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals had reaffirmed that former employees who are poor and who are struggling to represent themselves aren’t entitled to the help of an attorney at no charge.

Warn supervisors: Never delete texts and emails related to employee’s complaint

07/24/2018
Be sure to warn supervisors and managers that if an employee has filed an EEOC or internal complaint or a state or federal lawsuit, deleting texts or emails related even tangentially to the underlying complaint can be risky.

Even with FMLA, enforce no-show/no-call rule

07/24/2018
Employers can and should set reasonable standards for how employees let their bosses know they won’t be coming to work. Those rules can require calling in before the start of a shift if the employee is ill or has a medical emergency, even if it may be covered by the FMLA.

Administration rescinds rule that required naming anti-union advisors

07/24/2018
The Department of Labor on July 17 officially rescinded a controversial “persuader rule” enacted in 2016 by the Obama administration, a formality because the rule never took effect.