• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly
Connection failed: SQLSTATE[HY000] [2002] No such file or directory

Florida

Can employee on workers’ comp who has already changed doctors now pick out a specialist?

03/09/2009

Q. One of our employees who is receiving workers’ compensation benefits and receiving treatment for a work-related accident already changed his primary care doctor once. He now wants to change to an orthopedic physician. Is he entitled to another physician in a different medical specialty?

Can we prohibit salary talk?

03/09/2009

Q. As an alternative to layoffs, our company has cut employee wages. We decided to do that instead of reducing their hours. While the employees have agreed to this (hopefully) temporary measure, supervisors have received reports that workers have been discussing their new wages and salaries with one another. Our executives want to direct all employees not to discuss their wages and salary information with others. Is it legal to enforce such a rule?

Coping with seriously ill employees and inquisitive co-workers

03/06/2009

It’s sad enough when an employee becomes seriously ill. What makes it tougher is that work doesn’t stop. Responding to these challenges requires tact, sensitivity and flexibility. Mistakes can mean not only hurt feelings but also potential legal liability problems. The key is balance …

Stacks of résumés are no excuse for sloppy hiring practices

03/06/2009

Despite the daily economic lamentations, some employers are still hiring. Those employers may think they are in the catbird seat because they may have hundreds of applicants for each position. But a bonanza of applicants is no excuse for shoddy hiring practices. You must make sure they comply with state and federal laws.

New economic stimulus law includes HR-related provisions

02/24/2009

The economic recovery and stimulus bill President Obama signed Feb. 17 features several provisions affecting HR. Most require federal agencies to write new administrative rules, so it’s difficult to predict now exactly how they will work on an everyday basis. Here are some key provisions in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Preach zero tolerance for any harassment

02/12/2009

Employers are responsible if they know or have reason to know about a hostile work environment created by employees and do nothing to fix it. As a practical matter, what employers hear and see may be just the tip of the iceberg. Smart employers immediately attempt to get the whole picture and then correct the harassing behavior.

Acute but temporary illness isn’t disability

02/12/2009

Don’t jump to the conclusion that, just because a sudden illness or condition requires emergency medical care or even surgery, the employee who falls ill is disabled. The standard ADA test still applies.

Mayors’ forecast: Miami job losses among nation’s worst

02/12/2009

According to a forecast by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the Miami area will suffer some of the largest job losses in the nation in 2009. Miami is expected to lose about 85,000 jobs this year. The city’s unemployment rate may exceed 10%.

Black employees have 4 years to file Section 1983 lawsuits in Florida

02/12/2009

As an employer, you may be used to cases moving quickly through the EEOC and on to court. That’s because employees must file EEOC complaints within 300 days of the alleged discrimination. They then have 90 days after the EEOC dismisses the complaint to file a federal lawsuit. But black employees can also file a lawsuit under another section of the Civil Rights Act.

Set an example: It’s OK to punish managers more harshly than subordinates

02/12/2009

Impressions do matter, and employers are free to demand more of supervisors and managers than of those who sit lower on the company totem pole. All else being equal, you can treat it as a more serious violation when someone in authority breaks the same rule as an underling.