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Minnesota

Police officers’ age bias case reinstated

05/13/2016
A Minnesota appeals court has given the go-ahead for an age discrimination lawsuit filed by three police officers against the city of Richfield to proceed to trial.

Employee quits, then emails docs to herself? That’s not theft, but may be something more

05/13/2016
A federal court has rejected an employer’s claim that by emailing a series of documents to herself before quitting, a former employee committed theft.

Flexibility makes for good accommodations–and a good strategy for winning ADA lawsuits

05/13/2016
Employers that exercise patience and remain flexible over the long term are best positioned to win an ADA failure-to-accommodate lawsuit filed by a disabled employee.

Document each step of every investigation

05/13/2016
As soon as you hear a supervisor complain that an employee isn’t performing well, start keeping detailed records of your efforts to investigate.

HR Minnesota Legal Briefs

05/13/2016
Merely being obese is not a disability under the ADA, a panel of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled.

Did ‘no policy’ policy force off-the-clock work?

04/21/2016
A federal court has rejected a novel employee argument that an employer’s lofty sales goals and lean staffing amounted to a silent policy that required off-the-clock work.

Not contesting unemployment: legal or illegal?

04/14/2016
Q. We have a challenging employee who is not really a poor performer, but is generally disliked by her co-workers. She is a gossip and games the system on our attendance policy. She seems to needlessly start minor squabbles with other employees. Recently, this employee approached HR and offered to resign if the company would agree not to fight her request for unemployment. We feel like this is a good opportunity to get rid of a problem employee without terminating her, and unemployment benefits would be a small price to pay. Is there any reason why we shouldn’t accept her resignation and agree to not challenge her unemployment claim?

Alcohol in accounting: Can we insist on testing for possibly intoxicated employee?

04/14/2016
Q. We have an employee in our accounting department who, a few times over the past month, has come to work smelling of alcohol and displaying signs of intoxication. For several years this employee was a solid performer, but lately she’s missing deadlines and has been somewhat belligerent to co-workers. We are worried about her health, of course, but also her performance and any potential liability related to her conduct while she’s under the influence. When asked by co-workers, this employee has denied having a drinking problem or being intoxicated at work. Since she’s in denial, can we ask her to submit to a test for alcohol the next time she appears to be intoxicated at work?

When do we need to deliver a final check?

04/14/2016
Q. If we decide to terminate an employee for poor performance, can we provide his final paycheck on our next regular payroll date?

$7,500 to cop who urged violence against protesters

04/14/2016
A former Minnesota police officer who issued a social media post urging motorists to run over protesters will not face criminal charges. In fact, he’ll get some extra cash.