• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Employment Law

How much FMLA left? It’s your job to track it

12/22/2011
Eligible employees can take up to 12 weeks of FMLA leave during each 12-month period. But lawsuits often hinge on one question: Which 12 months? It’s the employer’s duty to let employees know how much leave they’re entitled to or have al­­ready taken.

Can we tamp down political discussions?

12/21/2011
Q. The sexual harassment accusations brought against presidential candidate Herman Cain have been generating quite a bit of controversy in our office. What can we do to ensure that our employees do not use these conversations as the basis upon which to bring a sexual harassment claim?

Faster union elections on the way following NLRB action

12/21/2011

On Nov. 30, 2011, the National Labor Relations Board voted 2-1 in favor of changing the union election rules to speed up the process of securing union representation in workplaces nationwide. The new rule shortens the time be­­tween the filing of an election petition and actual voting, making it easier for unions to win elections and more difficult for employers to communicate with employees before the vote.

Lovejoy girls hoops coach sues for discrimination

12/21/2011
A former Lovejoy High School girls basketball coach has filed a lawsuit against the Lovejoy Independent School District alleging that administrators discriminated against her on the basis of her age, race and gender.

What are they drinking at the TABC?

12/21/2011
The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission—already rocked by allegations of gay-bashing and sexual assault against underage, undercover agents—now faces a sexual harassment lawsuit from one of its officers.

Mandatory retirement policy costs manufacturer $60,000

12/21/2011

A Houston manufacturer will pay $60,000 and provide other relief to settle an EEOC age discrimination lawsuit. According to the EEOC, Metallic Products Corp. had an unlawful mandatory policy that required em­­ployees to retire when they reached age 70.

Take every lawsuit seriously, even those that seem weak

12/21/2011
Employees with flimsy cases sometimes decide to sue anyway, acting as their own attorneys. No matter how frivolous such a lawsuit seems to be, face it head on and fight for dismissal.

Special work arrangement? Ensure worker’s at-will status

12/21/2011
Occasionally, you may decide to create alternative work arrangements based on written agreements. How you do that is crucial to retaining at-will status.

Beware ill-chosen words, which–all by ­themselves–can sometimes launch lawsuits

12/21/2011
Sometimes, a single poorly chosen phrase can generate large legal bills, as the following case shows.

It’s got to be more than a hunch! Courts nix unsupported bias claims

12/21/2011
Good news for employers fighting off discrimination claims: Courts are losing patience with lawsuits based on little more than the argument that “it must have been discrimination.”