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Terminations

New worry serves as reminder to document discipline

05/28/2008
Publicly traded companies have a new worry: Employees can use the whistle-blowing provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) as another way to get back at employers when they are disciplined or fired. SOX makes it illegal to discipline an employee who complains that the company may be violating the Securities Exchange Act.

Public employee free speech: Only statements of ‘Public concern’ protected

05/28/2008
The U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment protects public employees from being fired for engaging in some forms of free speech—but that protection is quite limited. For example, the right to free speech doesn’t mean that public employers can’t sack employees who maintain explicit or offensive web pages …

An introduction to North Carolina Employment Security Law

05/28/2008
 The North Carolina Employment Security Law provides unemployment compensation benefits for some employees who lose their jobs. To qualify, unemployed workers must have registered for work and periodically report to an unemployment office. Occasionally eligibility disputes find their way into court …

What does N.C.’s civil rights act provide?

05/28/2008
Q. Does North Carolina have a state civil rights act that applies to private employers? …

Be prepared to prove reorg or cost cutting as layoff reasons

05/28/2008

Gone are the days when employers didn’t have to justify reorganizations or layoffs. Now—given the prevalence of electronic communications—you can expect a court to ask you to produce just about every piece of information used to determine who lost their jobs and who kept them …

It’s absolutely essential to treat all employees equally

05/28/2008
A newly released North Carolina Court of Appeals opinion makes it clear that employers have to make absolutely sure they are treating all similarly situated employees alike …

Letter carrier preferred not to

05/28/2008
U.S. Postal Service (USPS) investigators have discovered 100,000 pieces of undelivered mail at an Apex postal worker’s home. The mail, which was stacked on the letter carrier’s back deck, dated back as far as six years …

Objective evaluations get lawsuits dismissed

05/27/2008
The quality of your performance evaluation process—whether it is objective or subjective—can determine how a discrimination lawsuit turns out. Handle evaluations improperly, and a case can linger for months. Do it the right way, and the case may be dismissed immediately …

Township of Monroe will stand trial for racial discrimination

05/27/2008
A jury will decide whether a black senior employee of the Township of Monroe in Gloucester County lost his job because of racial bias. Elvis Gooden was appointed the town’s chief financial officer and director of finance in 2001 …

Warn employees: No FMLA certification, no excused absence

05/23/2008
If employers take a lackadaisical approach to medical certifications, they might be issuing an invitation to abuse FMLA leave. Remind your employees that they must provide FMLA certifications—and that refusing to cooperate will result in the time off being counted as unexcused absences. The consequence: possible termination …