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Terminations

Frequent firings may indicate personality conflicts, not bias

08/13/2009

Companies that fire lots of employees get sued for discrimination by many of the castoffs. But all those terminations may be an indication of employee/management personality conflicts, not discrimination.

Normal pregnancy difficulties aren’t ADA or MHRA disabilities

08/13/2009

Pregnant women have many legal protections under Title VII’s sex discrimination provisions, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and the FMLA. They rarely, however, qualify as disabled. That’s because normal pregnancies may create temporary difficulties, but they’re not severe enough to count as substantial limitations …

Are early retirees eligible for the COBRA subsidy?

08/13/2009

Q. We recently offered employees the opportunity to participate in an early retirement program, and several employees elected to take us up on the offer. Are they eligible for the new 65% COBRA subsidy?

ADA: Driving could be a major life activity

08/11/2009

Most federal appeals courts have concluded that driving is not a major life activity under the ADA. Thus a disability that simply impairs the ability to drive isn’t covered under the law. But what if the inability to drive prevents someone from holding a wide range of jobs? Does that mean the individual is substantially impaired in the major life activity of working? According to one federal trial court considering a Florida case, the answer is yes.

What plaintiff’s lawyers don’t want HR pros to know

08/11/2009

Want to know how to get under the skin of the lawyers who represent employees? Ask one. They won’t all cop to what sinks their cases, but attorney Whitney Warner did. Learn what she fears most when staring down an employer in court.

Use formal process to promote from within

08/11/2009

While courts seldom want to second-guess employment decisions, sometimes employers provoke that scrutiny. That can happen, for example, when companies rely on the “old boy network” to promote from within instead of using a more formal, organized process.

Tell bosses: Check anti-military bias at door

08/07/2009

Employers must deal with employees being called to military service, even if that forces them to do more work with fewer people during the current economic crunch. The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act and the FMLA grant special rights to employees who also serve in the armed forces. Some managers may resent the burden the laws cause. Too bad.

Check severity of harassment allegations when facing hostile environment claim

08/07/2009

Fortunately, courts don’t have the time or inclination to guarantee that every workplace is free of irritations or minor problems. Those can include what some employees may interpret as sexual harassment. One relatively innocuous pass isn’t usually enough for an employer to lose a case in court.

Solid discharge reason trumps retaliation claim

08/07/2009

When an employee is discharged shortly after returning from FMLA leave, she may charge retaliation. The timing alone may be enough to send the case to trial. If an employer has a solid reason for the firing, however, it can win.

Downside of providing a recommendation on an employee’s social media page?

08/07/2009

Q. An employee has asked me, as his direct supervisor, to provide him a recommendation on his LinkedIn page. He’s a good employee and I don’t see any harm in granting his request. Are there any risks?