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Firing

If absenteeism not disability-related, feel free to discipline

11/01/2010

You should hold disabled employees to the same behavioral standards as other employees, unless there is a good disability-related reason to deviate from the rules. For example, if you set strict time limits for lunches and authorized breaks, there is no reason to give disabled employees more time unless allowing more time is a legitimate reasonable accommodation.

East Texas nursing home gets a pregnancy checkup

11/01/2010

The EEOC has sued an East Texas health care company for firing a housekeeper after learning she was pregnant. The federal agency sued Murphy Healthcare, which operates Frankston Healthcare Center, for firing Myesha Kerr, allegedly because it was concerned that she would be required to perform heavy lifting and be exposed to toxic chemicals.

Tell bosses: Never urge workers to retire

11/01/2010
If an older employee has to be terminated, the fact that a boss had hinted that the worker should retire will make it easier to persuade a court that age was the real motivating reason for the discharge.

Use absenteeism points to avoid favoritism

11/01/2010

When employees are fired for absenteeism, they may be quick to point to unequal treatment, saying other workers kept their jobs but were absent more often. One way to avoid such claims is to install a point system to punish absenteeism, terminating employees who accumulate too many points.

Roselle employee’s lawsuits double-down against borough

10/29/2010
A former public works department employee has filed sex discrimination charges against the borough of Roselle—and now she’s added a breach-of-contract lawsuit that offers lessons for HR professionals.

Warn managers about dangers of commenting on worker’s age

10/29/2010

Managers and supervisors sometimes do stupid things—such as making statements older workers may interpret as ageist. But ill-chosen words don’t guarantee a successful age discrimination lawsuit. That’s especially true if the comments were made many months before the employee was terminated or otherwise suffered alleged discrimination.

Calculate FMLA eligibility based on date leave begins

10/28/2010
Some workers decide to provide notice that they’ll need FMLA leave long before they’re even eligible for coverage. When you get such a request, don’t reject it out-of-hand.

Dillard’s faces age bias charges after firing in Cary

10/26/2010

Dillard’s department stores will have to answer in court to charges it discriminated against former area sales manager Virginia Keene because of her age. Working in Cary, Keene was 61 years old at the time the company fired her and replaced her with a 24-year-old with only four months’ experience.

New employee a dud? Boss who hired should fire

10/26/2010

Someone who harbors animosity against a protected class isn’t likely to hire someone he knows belongs to that protected class. If a manager picks a black man as his preferred candidate for an opening and offers the job, he probably isn’t a racist. If that same manager finds out the new employee isn’t as qualified as he sounded or looked on his résumé, he should be the one to make the termination decision.

Employee became disabled? Adjust expectations

10/15/2010

If a good employee has a sudden medical emergency and returns to work with lingering physical challenges, take his reintegration slowly and with compassion. Now is not the time to push him to perform exactly as he did before he became disabled. Otherwise, you may end up with a disability discrimination lawsuit on your hands.