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New York

Consistency the key to good hiring practices

08/05/2010

Courts don’t like to meddle in hiring decisions unless they see something obviously wrong with the hiring process. The key is to treat all qualified applicants alike—and then document that you did so. For example, hiring managers should ask the same questions of everyone they interview and use the same scale to rate each applicant.

Suspect employee crime? Call the cops already!

07/23/2010

Managers may be reluctant to report potential employee theft to the police, assuming that if they are wrong, they could be sued. But chances are that, if an employer acts in good faith, it won’t be liable—even if it turns out the employee is innocent.

You don’t always have to be right–as long as you act in good faith

07/23/2010
Here’s good news for supervisors who are afraid of making the wrong disciplinary decision: Employers don’t have to be right every time about the underlying reasons for disciplinary action. Instead, what counts is acting in good faith.

When investigating sexual harassment, consider all the evidence–including nonsexual threats

07/23/2010

You no doubt take sexual harassment complaints seriously and promptly try to learn the facts. But which facts should you consider when deciding whether the conduct creates a hostile work environment? Look at the totality of the circumstances. For example, comments that aren’t directly sexual can still contribute to a hostile environment if the context indicates that the comments are related to others that are sexual.

Commercial pilots claim FAA retirement plan broke state law

07/08/2010

When Congress raised commercial pilots’ mandatory retirement age from 60 to 65, not all pilots were pleased. Pilots who had been forced to retire under the 60-years-of-age rule weren’t grandfathered into the new system. The pilots are seeking back pay and lost wages under state laws and the Federal Tort Claims Act.

EEOC wrings $500,000 out of Everdry in harassment settlement

07/08/2010
Everdry Marketing and Management, a waterproofing firm, has paid more than $500,000 to satisfy a judgment won by a group of 13 women who filed sexual harassment claims against the company.

Don’t sweat a little confusion when worker returns from FMLA

07/08/2010

If an employer has to move people and equipment around to cover an employee’s work during FMLA leave, it may be difficult to reintegrate the returning employee right away. That’s OK. Minor delays aren’t enough to support an interference-with-FMLA-rights lawsuit.

Co-worker’s single slur isn’t enough to justify lawsuit

07/08/2010
Here’s some common sense from the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals: A co-worker’s isolated idiotic comment isn’t enough to support an entire discrimination lawsuit.

Include federal jury service protection in your employee handbook and policies

07/08/2010
Make sure your employee handbook covers federal jury service and that supervisors don’t punish employees who serve on federal juries. Employees who are called to serve on juries in federal courts are protected from discharge because of their service.

Courts more reluctant to extend employee deadlines for filing lawsuits

07/08/2010

You should be able to rest easy after an employee misses a deadline to file a lawsuit. In the past, courts have been lenient when it comes to those deadlines, especially if the employee doesn’t have an attorney. But now the tide seems to be turning. Courts are beginning to get stricter about deadlines.