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Terminations

Always investigate harassment before firing

06/05/2009

If you have ever been tempted to fire an alleged harasser just because you suspected the alleged victim might sue, consider this: The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals has concluded that fear of being sued is no excuse for firing a suspected harasser without investigating.

State pays $300,000 to the photographer Paterson fired

06/05/2009

When Gov. David Paterson was Senate minority leader in 2003, he fired a white photographer and replaced him with a less qualified black one. Now the state has agreed to settle the original photographer’s lawsuit for $300,000 while admitting no wrongdoing.

Beware influence of biased supervisor when making termination decisions

06/05/2009

Here’s a way to guarantee a race discrimination case will go to a jury trial: Let a supervisor with an obvious racial bias participate in the decision to terminate an employee who belongs to the protected class the supervisor dislikes. Even if you have a seemingly legitimate reason to terminate the employee, the supervisor’s involvement will taint the entire process.

Suspect worker isn’t disabled? See if he’s working elsewhere

06/05/2009

Some employees have minor medical conditions they claim make it impossible to perform some aspect of their jobs. They want accommodations, assuming they will meet the ADA disability definition. If you want to challenge such a disability claim, check to see whether the employee is working elsewhere.

Use progressive discipline—or prepare to pay unemployment even if conduct was outrageous

06/05/2009

Ohio employees who are discharged for just cause aren’t entitled to unemployment compensation payments. But Ohio courts frequently hesitate to cut off unemployment benefits for one-time conduct that may be outrageous—as long as the employee doesn’t have a history of past disciplinary problems and the employer has a progressive discipline program it didn’t use.

Control costs with furlough strategy that’s flexible, fair

06/05/2009

If your organization is limping through the economic downturn, you’ve no doubt considered cutting down your labor burden to save money. Before you resort to radical surgery—in the form of layoffs—consider a more benign cure that increases the odds of a full recovery. Furloughs—requiring staff to take unpaid time off—can reduce payroll costs without inflicting long-term damage.

Must we pay out unused vacation days when we fire employees or they quit?

06/01/2009

Q. Is an employer required to pay workers for their unused vacation days when they resign or are terminated?

Beware vengeful boss’s shadowy retaliation

06/01/2009

Even if someone else in the management hierarchy actually terminates an employee, a supervisor who’s seemingly had it in for the employee can still cause a world of legal headaches for the employer. This is the so-called “cat’s paw” legal theory, which holds that employers are liable if they approve a recommendation that is based on illegal motives such as retaliation.

‘Same’ offense? Document why discipline differs

06/01/2009

If you punish two employees differently for what looks like the same rule violation or mistake, you’d better be prepared to explain why. If you are later challenged, you should be able to show that the two weren’t “similarly situated” and prove you didn’t favor one over the other.

Houston strip club’s youth movement draws EEOC suit

06/01/2009

The EEOC recently filed suit against AHD Houston, claiming that Mary Bassi, a waitress at Cover Girls strip club, was fired because of her age. The federal agency brought suit against the strip club’s parent company, arguing that Bassi was fired and replaced by younger servers even though she was popular with customers …