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Wisconsin

Demand concrete evidence of employee’s disability

04/01/2008
Sometimes employees look for ways to get out of performing work they find unpleasant. Some play the disability card—asking for tasks to be removed from their job descriptions as reasonable ADA accommodations. Before you give in and assign duties to more cooperative employees, decide whether the employee in question really is disabled …

Time off for binge drinking doesn’t qualify for FMLA leave

03/01/2008
Employees who are alcoholics may be disabled under the ADA and are entitled to reasonable accommodations for treatment. That treatment also qualifies the employee for FMLA leave. But it doesn’t mean you have to tolerate or forgive unauthorized absences to indulge an alcoholic binge …

You can’t eliminate job because others filled in during FMLA leave

03/01/2008
The work doesn’t stop just because an employee takes FMLA leave. As a practical matter, the employer must redistribute the absent employee’s work among the remaining staff. If that goes well, you may be tempted to cut the position entirely. Before you eliminate that position, consider the following case …

Listen for code words when evaluating discrimination complaints

03/01/2008
The law protects employees from retaliation for complaining about alleged job discrimination. That doesn’t mean, however, that employees have to state specifically that their concerns involve sex, race or some other protected characteristic. Something as simple as complaining about “the glass ceiling” may be enough to at least raise the specter of sex discrimination …

No longer adrift: Illinois retaliatory discharge claim applies on water, too

03/01/2008
Illinois law makes it retaliation to fire employees because they report dangerous or illegal activities at work—even if they are otherwise at-will employees who can be fired for any legal reason. That holds true even if those employees work on a river barge otherwise governed by federal admiralty laws …

Winning lawsuit no slam-Dunk when firing follows romance

03/01/2008
You will probably never be able to eliminate the downside risks of sexual relationships at work, no matter how many policies you draft. So what should HR do to prevent turmoil once a relationship has ended? Generally, the best policy is to leave well enough alone …

Even a pay increase can lead to discrimination charges

03/01/2008
Don’t think because an employee receives a raise, he or she can’t sue for discrimination. The fact is, an “inadequate” or “unequal” raise can be the basis of a discrimination lawsuit—if other employees outside the affected employee’s protected class got bigger and better raises …

No longer adrift: State employment laws may apply on water, too

03/01/2008
Employees who work on Indiana waterways are still protected by some Indiana employment laws. That holds true even if those employees work on a river barge otherwise governed by federal admiralty laws …

Maintain HR oversight on all termination decisions

02/01/2008

The only thing between your organization and a discriminatory discharge verdict is the HR office. An impartial and cool-headed HR professional must oversee the process every time an employee is terminated. Keep careful track of exactly how the decision-making process moves forward in every case, and insist that HR have the final word on termination …

Managers: Never presume ‘What’s best’ for employees

02/01/2008

Few things spur a discrimination suit as fast as a manager’s misplaced paternalistic comment. Remind supervisors that employees should choose for themselves what promotion or training opportunities they want to pursue. Presumptions about what they might prefer or would be comfortable doing don’t belong in the workplace …