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New York

Concerns during a harassment investigation

02/01/2008

Q. If we start an investigation about sexual harassment, is there anything we need to worry about while conducting the investigation? …

Are we liable for a car accident our employee had on the way to a meeting?

02/01/2008
Q. If an employee is involved in a “fender bender” en route to a work-related meeting in his or her personal vehicle, is the employer liable?

An age-Old problem: ‘Stray remarks’ have a way of coming home

02/01/2008

Conventional wisdom has been that isolated or “stray” remarks alone by an employer do not prove discriminatory intent. Conventional wisdom may be wrong. A recent 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals case (Tomassi v. Insignia Financial Group, Inc., 478 F.3d 111, 2007) has clarified what it deemed a misconception of the true meaning of the term “stray remarks”  …

Hiring friends, family not illegal—Unless race factors in

01/01/2008

Technically, favoring friends and family members for jobs and giving them plum assignments isn’t illegal. But if nepotism results in an all or mostly white work force, applicants or employees from other protected categories (e.g., race, gender, national origin) can still sue, claiming illegal discrimination …

Settle quickly if you’re worried overtime case will expand

01/01/2008

Overtime collective actions represent a growing nationwide trend. These are cases in which one employee claims his employer misclassified him as exempt and owes overtime. The employee also claims to represent everyone else similarly situated. If such a case goes forward, it may mean the employer must pay out thousands of dollars in unpaid overtime. Employers have only one chance to make the case go away …

Act fast on harassment claims, even if employee delayed

01/01/2008

If a victim of alleged sexual harassment waits months—or even a year or more—before complaining, you may wonder how serious her claim is. Don’t let your doubts affect how you handle the case. In fact, the best way to protect your organization is to act quickly on all harassment complaints, no matter how improbable, minor or tardy they may seem …

Require use of vacation time if you know FMLA doesn’t apply

01/01/2008

Employers don’t have to allow employees to take sick or FMLA time just because they claim minor health problems. If you are certain that an illness or injury doesn’t amount to a serious health condition as defined by the FMLA, then there is no reason to run the time against FMLA or sick time …

Track discipline to quickly counter lawsuit claims

01/01/2008

No employer is immune from employee lawsuits. But there is a lot you can do to lessen the impact of lawsuits that do occur—before they cost huge expenditures of time, effort and money. One of the best ways to ensure the quick dismissal of frivolous claims is to have information at your fingertips, especially disciplinary data …

Retiring instead of facing discipline doesn’t constitute constructive discharge

01/01/2008

Employees who retire to avoid facing internal disciplinary charges can’t turn around and claim they were constructively discharged. That’s why employers might want to consider offering retirement in such cases as an option in lieu of discipline …

Have a sick leave bank? Make it accessible to all who qualify

01/01/2008

If, like many employers, you maintain a sick leave bank for employees who exhaust their available leave time, remember this: You’ll risk a retaliation lawsuit if you deny the use of banked time to an employee who has filed a discrimination claim …