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Hawaii

Clearly spell out performance expectations

07/31/2017
Make sure your managers and supervisors clearly and formally communicate their performance expectations. A performance review that criticizes alleged poor work based on expectations that weren’t clearly communicated can become the basis for a lawsuit.

Tell bosses not to gloss over performance deficiencies

07/12/2017
Some supervisors hate including negative feedback in performance reviews of good employees. But nearly everyone has some room for improvement. It’s up to HR to insist on accurate evaluations, including negative feedback when warranted.

Discipline ASAP if boss targets older workers

07/12/2017
It happens all too often: A bully boss yells, berates, pushes and prods older employees more than other staff members. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has concluded that resigning under such circumstances is a reasonable response and amounts to a constructive discharge.

9th Circuit: Equal Pay Act allows past pay as excuse for current pay differences

06/06/2017
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has concluded that employers are free to use past pay as the starting point for a compensation offer as long as they can justify the practice as having a legitimate business purpose. That’s true even if using past pay ends up perpetuating past pay discrimination.

Court: Some unauthorized breaks can be unpaid

04/24/2017
Federal law requires paying employees for short breaks. That doesn’t mean employees can take as many breaks as they want and expect to be paid for that time.

Economic test hits brakes on taxi drivers’ contractor claims

04/24/2017
A group of taxi drivers lost their bid to be reclassified as employees. They remain independent contractors.

Your best protection against bias lawsuits: Let he who hired be the one who fires

04/24/2017
If the manager has moved on, all is not lost. You can still argue that the worker was hired knowing his status and that it makes no sense to then have fired him for that characteristic.

Orientation program may not have to be paid

04/24/2017
Generally, you must pay employees for the time they spend in training. But that’s not always the case for initial orientation programs.

Class-action members must share common grievance

03/29/2017
When a worker files a lawsuit seeking class-action status, he must show the court that other workers are similarly situated to join the group.

New hire wasn’t qualified? Disability is irrelevant

03/29/2017
A disabled worker has to prove that he would be otherwise qualified.