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Terminations

State worker claims he was fired for airing dirty political laundry

06/11/2008
Matthew Magalis sued the Illinois Department of Human Services (DHS) and the Civil Service Commission (CSC), claiming he was fired for reporting corruption. Magalis admitted that in October 2006, he gave the Chicago Tribune a report about a co-worker doing political work on state time for Gov. Rod Blagojevich …

Expunged convictions set hidden trap for Illinois employers

06/11/2008

If you are an Illinois employer with 15 or more employees and your application asks job-seekers to detail their criminal histories, expunged criminal records pose a hidden trap for you …

FMLA and termination for failing to submit certification

06/11/2008
Q. Our company has an employee who has taken FMLA leave to care for his sick child. His attendance record has been poor, but we have not documented our warnings as well as we should have. Our company has a rule that an employee has 15 days to have the treating doctor sign and return a form certifying the medical condition of the family member who is sick. We never received the signed form. The employee says that his doctor sent it. Can we terminate the employee? …

When worker complains, find out if she’s a ‘Serial sue-er’

06/10/2008
Sometimes, you can tell how seriously to take an EEOC or other discrimination complaint by checking to see if the employee (or applicant) has filed other discrimination lawsuits in the past. If the complaint turns into a court case, an employee’s pattern of frivolous litigation may become powerful evidence a judge or jury will want to consider …

Mission Foods fires Muslim women over dress code

06/10/2008
Mission Foods of New Brighton dismissed six Somali women for refusing to wear uniforms instead of their traditional loosefitting skirts and scarves. The women refused to comply with a new dress code requiring trousers and shirts, which are considered immodest by Islamic standards …

Arbitrator upholds MnDOT firing in aftermath of bridge collapse

06/10/2008
Sonia Morphew Pitt “abused the latitude accorded her” when she stayed on the East Coast for nearly two weeks after the August 2007 collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge, an arbitrator found …

Little things can add up to discrimination and harassment

06/10/2008
Do your managers and supervisors understand that ostracizing an employee can backfire? Do they make diligent efforts to train everyone equally and include everyone in work-related social events? If not, it’s time to remind them …

Building case for firing employee is OK—If it’s legitimate

06/09/2008
By all means, supervisors and managers should build a strong case for discharging a poorly performing employee before issuing a pink slip. However, they must make sure their motivations for compiling a record of poor performance are legitimate—not just fishing expeditions designed to look for excuses to fire …

Tell managers and supervisors: Absolutely no comments on pregnancy, parenthood allowed

06/09/2008
Nothing builds a circumstantial sex discrimination case like needless pregnancy and parenthood comments. Explain to all managers and supervisors that their subordinates’ childbearing plans are absolutely none of their business …

Equal enforcement keeps juries from wondering about bias

06/06/2008
Employees who lose their jobs after committing some infraction often look for reasons to sue. Don’t give them an excuse to drag you into court! The best way to immunize your organization from lawsuits: Equitably and fairly enforce your work rules …