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Employment Law

What should we do about executive’s offer of special leave allotment?

09/30/2013
Q. The daughter of one of our executive assistants was recently diagnosed with an illness that will require extensive treatment. Her boss offered her “a few extra weeks of paid vacation” to care for her daughter. He told her this before HR had an opportunity to talk to her about options for time off. We don’t think the special treatment would be received well by staff outside of the executive wing. Do we have to provide what he promised even if it’s against company policy? Is it even legal?

What are the rules on paying for time spent putting on protective gear?

09/30/2013
Q. Our company policy states that employees are not compensated for the time spent changing into their uniforms, which includes special protective wear. A new employee was surprised to find out he couldn’t clock in before getting geared up. Are we required to pay ­workers for that time, or is it up to the discretion of each individual company?

Restaurateur tries the ‘I yell at everyone’ defense

09/30/2013
The subject of an EEOC gender discrimination lawsuit claims he berates all his employees, not just the women. The owner of Ricardo’s Restaurant in Erie said so in a response to a sexual harassment suit filed against him by a former employee.

Company that provided, then pulled FMLA faces trial

09/30/2013
Forward Air may have to go to court after it granted but then denied a request for FMLA leave from an employee at its Harrisburg air freight facility.

Filing a grievance isn’t protected speech

09/30/2013
Government employees can’t be punished for exercising their First Amendment rights. But that rule has important restrictions. One of those is that, ordi­­narily, filing an internal grievance isn’t protected speech.

11th Commandment: If employee truly believes, thou shalt accommodate

09/30/2013
When an employee cites her religion as a reason she can’t abide by a company rule or requirement, it’s not up to the you to judge the validity of that belief. As long as it’s a sincerely held belief, employers have to look for a reasonable accommodation that meets the employee’s needs.

When employee has difficult pregnancy, don’t get creative with FMLA, ADA

09/30/2013
Not everyone has an easy pregnancy, birth and recovery. Em­­ployers that refuse to recognize this reality and don’t offer accommodations for unusual circumstances face potential liability under both the FMLA and the ADA. What’s more, HR professionals and supervisors may find themselves personally liable for mistakes they make along the way.

EEOC cheesed over pay, hours at Philly fast-food franchise

09/30/2013
Market Burgers, which owns a Checkers fast-food franchise in West Philadelphia, faces charges it pays women less than men and doesn’t let women work as many hours as men.

Using contractors won’t stop race bias claims

09/30/2013
Don’t assume that just because a worker is an independent contractor, he can’t sue you when his contract isn’t renewed. While he may not be able to sue under Title VII for various forms of discrimination, he can still sue for alleged racial discrimination.

Check eligibility before OK’ing FMLA leave

09/30/2013
Always double-check that an employee who has requested FMLA leave is actually eligible. It’s crucial if you operate out of several states or have multiple offices, since some locations may not be large enough to require FMLA coverage.