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Firing

Don’t guess about a worker’s condition; test and inquire

02/01/2006

If you treat employees as if they’re disabled, they’ll garner ADA protections even if they’re healthy as horses. Wait for skills testing and medical results to determine an employee’s condition; don’t make snap judgments …

State law decides if workers can see personnel file

02/01/2006

Q. Are we required to let terminated employees come in and view their actual personnel files, or can we copy the information and send it via mail? One of our fired employees has hired an attorney and wants to see her file. —T.M. California

Female worker replaced by a female may still pursue sex bias case

01/01/2006

You may think that your organization is immune from a sex discrimination lawsuit if you hire a female employee to replace a fired female. But such "free passes" don’t automatically exist … and your supervisors should know it …

Two doctor visits during incapacity period define a serious condition

01/01/2006

Don’t assume that an employee’s three-day absence and two doctor’s visits will automatically equal a "serious health condition" that qualifies the employee for FMLA leave. A new court ruling says it matters when those two doctor’s visits occur …

Alert Supervisors to Little-Known Association-Bias Law

01/01/2006

By now, your supervisors know it’s illegal to discriminate against someone because of his or her disability. But do they also know about a less obvious part of the ADA that makes it illegal to discriminate against people because they have an association with a person who has a disability? …

Avoid Impromptu Job Reviews; It’ll Look Like a ‘Paper’ Job

01/01/2006

Warn your supervisors that if they quickly schedule negative employee reviews—particularly after an employee files a complaint—they could appear to be papering the employee’s file in advance of a retaliatory firing, which won’t look good in court …

Don’t give up on accommodations too early; show a ‘good faith’ effort

12/01/2005
When faced with a disabled employee, you must actively negotiate possible accommodations in good faith. That may seem obvious, but employers are constantly …

Long delay seldom sinks lawsuits; retain records until case is resolved

11/01/2005

If you know an employee has filed a complaint with the EEOC or state anti-discrimination agency, don’t trash any relevant records until you receive official notification that the case has been resolved and won’t be appealed …

Turn to Last-Chance Agreements for Legal Leverage

10/01/2005

Many employers use "last-chance agreements" to give employees one final opportunity to turn around attendance, productivity and attitude problems. Here’s good news if you use last-chance agreements on employees with drug and alcohol problems: The ADA and many state laws give you the leverage to keep employees clean … and fire them if they’re not …

Drug-test cheating on the rise; fight back with random tests

10/01/2005
Can you trust negative drug test results anymore?
The Internet is flooded with products, more than 400, according to a Business Insurance report, that help employees and job candidates cheat …