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Terminations

Religious bias: No special exceptions to union pact

06/01/2002
Trucker David Virts refused to work with women during “sleeper runs” because of his religious beliefs. After his first refusal, he was warned. After his second refusal, the company fired him. …

Court can enforce flextime, ‘quiet time’ as accommodations

05/01/2002
A file clerk who suffered from obsessive-compulsive disorder, a recognized disability, was easily distracted and had trouble completing her work. As an accommodation, she asked for permission to do some …

‘Past-tense’ pregnancy isn’t enough

05/01/2002
A federal district court tossed out a case brought by an office manager who claimed she was harassed during her pregnancy and fired eight months after she returned to work. Reason: …

Workers’ Comp Fraud Is Legitimate Reason to Fire

05/01/2002

Q. While on unpaid leave, one of our staffers applied for and was granted workers’ compensation. This person has not expressed any interest in returning to work. She may even be working for someone else. Can we terminate her? —A.L., New York

Draft bulletproof waiver deals with 6 court-approved benchmarks

05/01/2002
Courtney Melanson suffered two years of unwanted sexual advances by her supervisor at Browning-Ferris Industries (BFI). She took medical leave due to the stress and, when she returned, BFI assigned her …

Employee’s resignation stops your FMLA obligation

05/01/2002

Q. One of our managers resigned a month ago, but she applied for FMLA leave a day before her resignation. Are we under any obligation to return her to a position she resigned from? Are we obligated to offer her a job when FMLA expires? —T.K., Massachusetts

Don’t refuse to pay commission just because salesperson quits

04/01/2002
Timothy McCabe worked as a sales rep and was paid a salary plus commissions. He resigned after a year-and-a-half, but he didn’t collect some $32,000 in commissions owed him for sales …

Don’t use nepotism policy as smoke screen for bias

04/01/2002
Paul Yancey Sr. began working for the railroad in the 1960s and rose to the position of general maintenance foreman. In 1993, his son, Paul Jr., started working there, too. But …

You don’t have to accommodate bogus religious beliefs

04/01/2002
David Cruz claimed that his religious belief as a Seventh-day Adventist prohibited him from joining a union. He complained to his employer about union practices and was fired at the union’s …

Assume that hostile work environment claims under ADEA will fly

04/01/2002
A collector for a financing firm, who was over 40, complained about age-related remarks made by her manager. Nothing was done and the collector was fired, even though she had received …