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North Carolina

Boss’s past misbehavior doesn’t automatically make employer liable for future misdeeds

09/24/2010
Under North Carolina state law, employers can be held liable for wrongs committed by employees under some limited circumstances. But what if the employer simply knows the supervisor discriminated against a pregnant employee in the past? Does that mean that anytime a subordinate is pregnant, her employer can be liable because it should have known the supervisor would discriminate against another pregnant employee?

Worker quits in a huff and sues? Court: Employers need chance to fix problem

09/24/2010

Courts are starting to toss out lawsuits brought by employees who quit at the first sign of trouble without at least trying to work out a solution. Judges aren’t as willing as they were in the past to accept quitting as just another form of termination. Instead, they seem to be telling employees they need to give their employers a chance to fix problems before resorting to litigation.

If you have doubts about FMLA eligibility, don’t hesitate to seek a second medical opinion

09/24/2010

Back in August, we told you how a federal court had dismissed a case involving a woman who had taken her child out of day care for the summer and asked for FMLA leave so she could care for him until school started. (See “School’s out for summer! But the FMLA doesn’t cover day care”.) Now the same court has reinstated the lawsuit after taking another look at the facts.

Depression no excuse for missed EEO deadlines

09/24/2010

Federal government employees have tight deadlines for initiating discrimination complaints. In most cases, they must do so within 45 days of the alleged discriminatory act. Miss the deadline, and the case ends. But there are exceptions. For example, if an employee is severely incapacitated, she may be exempted from contacting an agency’s EEO office within 45 days. However, as a recent case shows, mere suffering from depression and anxiety isn’t enough to extend the deadline.

Don’t assume temps are independent contractors

09/24/2010
Some temporary agencies and employee-leasing firms sell their clients on the idea that temp workers won’t be employees of the client. Instead, they will be either independent contractors or employees of the temp agency. Those claims may not hold up in court, because North Carolina has strict tests for who is an employee and who isn’t.

North Carolina outpaced in best cities for working moms

08/30/2010

Charlotte landed near the bottom of Forbes magazine’s top cities for working mothers—placing 48th out of 50—while Raleigh came in 33rd, higher than many Southern cities. Forbes rated the cities against criteria that considered women’s income, cost of living, availability of pediatricians, safety, employment opportunities and spending on education.

EEOC sues Safelite Glass for sexual harassment

08/27/2010
Safelite Glass’ windshield replacement operation in Enfield faces charges it failed to stop an HR manager from sexually harassing a female employee.

Santa hat leads to lawsuit against Raleigh Belk store

08/27/2010
A Jehovah’s Witness was fired from her job at a Belk department store in Raleigh after she refused to wear a Santa hat while wrapping Christmas gifts. She told her supervisors that wearing the Santa hat would violate her religious beliefs. The EEOC asserts Belk violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act by refusing to accommodate her religious beliefs.

Lawsuit: Trucking firm owner harassed, then retaliated

08/27/2010
The EEOC has filed sexual harassment and retaliatory discharge complaints against Mount Airy-based Mountain River Trucking after what an employee says was nearly daily sexual harassment by the company’s owner.

Check medical restrictions when injured worker returns

08/27/2010
It’s expensive to keep employees on workers’ compensation, especially if you’re self-insured. But you can’t just offer an employee any old job to get him back to work. The offer must be compatible with his medical restrictions. Always check those when making an offer.