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North Carolina

You can mandate respectful behavior, discipline violators

11/01/2007

It’s a stressful world out there, and workplace tension can make matters worse. That’s one reason you may want to consider instituting a civility code at work. Then, if an employee is rude, overbearing or downright offensive, don’t hesitate to discipline her …

Keep old handbooks to back up discipline decisions

11/01/2007

Are you relying on company rules or the employee handbook to justify a disciplinary action such as a suspension or termination? If so, make sure you keep a copy of the handbook as it existed at the time of your decision. This is particularly important if you maintain the handbook in electronic form …

Think twice before doing anything to discourage employee lawsuit

11/01/2007

When an employee is threatening to file a lawsuit against your organization, it’s natural to feel angry, betrayed or even hurt. But don’t react. Instead, tell him that the decision is his, and you’ll treat him just the same as you always have—lawsuit or no lawsuit …

Keep track of termination notice date

11/01/2007

North Carolina employees have 180 days to file discrimination complaints with the EEOC. Those who don’t meet the deadline lose their rights to sue. But the date that really counts is not the actual termination date if the employer informed the employee earlier that she would lose her job …

Boone tree farmer tells Congress about H-2A visa problems

11/01/2007

Boone Christmas tree farmer Harry Yates testified before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture in an October hearing to review the labor needs of farmers. Yates offered his insights into the federal H-2A worker visa program …

Morehead City firm hit with age discrimination suit

11/01/2007

The EEOC has filed suit against Smithfield-based Guy C. Lee Building Materials, alleging the company refused to hire a boom truck operator because of his age. The plaintiff, 53-year-old Andrew Moore, applied to the company’s Morehead City facility …

Fired DMV watchdog files whistle-Blower suit

11/01/2007

A former examiner for the state Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has sued under the state’s whistle-blower act, claiming he was fired for trying to prevent illegal immigrants from getting licenses …

Recommendation to drop charges in Ag-Mart pesticide case

11/01/2007

Administrative Law Judge Joe Webster has recommended that the state drop all but 17 of the 369 charges of pesticide application violations against Florida-based Ag-Mart, reducing the company’s fines to $6,000 from nearly $185,000.  Ag-Mart was cited in 2005 for a slew of worker safety violations …

Moyock’s Blackwater USA under fire for Iraq shootings

11/01/2007

A congressional committee recently reported that Blackwater USA, the Moyock-based firm that provides security for U.S. diplomats in Iraq, fired 122 employees over the past three years for violations ranging from the misuse of weapons to alcohol and drug violations, inappropriate conduct and violent behavior …

UNC women’s soccer harassment suit heads to trial

11/01/2007

The sexual harassment lawsuit against Anson Dorrance, women’s soccer coach for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is headed to trial after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the case …