This article is from the May 2012 issue.
By Mindy Chapman, Esq.
Hopefully, you know to avoid questions on your job applications about applicants’ “disabilities” or “medical procedures.” And as this case shows, you won’t be able to avoid liability by using an outside recruiting firm to hand out the application. There’s only one standard when it comes to medical inquiries … the legal one.
Case in Point: Barbara Katz applied at a New York City investment firm for executive assistant positions. Katz received a paper job application … Read the rest
This article is from the May 2012 issue.
Do you have an employee out on intermittant Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave? Intermittent leave creates great challenges for managers: the employee can have difficulty predicting when a chronic health condition will flare up, and managers must cover assignments and schedules with little to no notice. But HR Specialist cautions that intermittent FMLA leave is a right, not a privilege, and an employer who interferes with FMLA leave, or punishes an employee for taking that leave, is open … Read the rest
This article is from the May 2012 issue.
New National Labor Relations Board rules that will dramatically shorten the union election process in U.S. workplaces went into effect on April 30. Simultaneously, the NLRB issued a memo detailing how its regional offices will referee disputed union elections under the new rules. The election rules shorten the time between the filing of an election petition and actual voting, making it easier for unions to win elections and more difficult for employers to communicate with employees before the vote. If you have a union workplace, this is required reading.… Read the rest
This article is from the February 2012 issue.
Don’t know your RECA from your INA? Do you think Davis-Bacon is a brand of breakfast meat? Never fear – the U.S. Department of Labor offers a summary of the department’s major laws, providing links to info on wages, workers’ comp and family leave legislation. … Read the rest
This article is from the January 2012 issue.
The National Labor Relations Board has agreed to postpone the effective date of its employee rights notice-posting rule at the request of the federal court in Washington, DC, after hearing a legal challenge regarding the rule. The Board’s ruling states that it has determined that postponing the effective date of the rule would facilitate the resolution of the legal challenges that have been filed with respect to the rule. The new implementation date is April 30, 2012.
This marks … Read the rest
This article is from the January 2012 issue.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that you must purchase certain government forms and posters from private companies. Some private ‘.com’ sites sell government documents using official-looking sites. However, most of the documents that you need to post in your workplace can be found free on government websites. You can find them at the Workplace Posters site. The Department of Labor has also designed the elaws Poster Advisor to help employers comply with the poster requirements of several laws administered by … Read the rest
This article is from the December 2010 issue.
On (Work in Progress), the Department of Labor’s official blog, Secretary Hilda Solis expresses her disappointment that the Senate did not invoke cloture for, and thus did not discuss or pass, S. 3772, the Paycheck Fairness Act.
“The issue of pay equity is far too important to give up. I remain committed to the fight for this commonsense reform,” says the Secretary of Labor, “and my department will redouble its efforts to ensure America’s women are not treated as … Read the rest
This article is from the August 2010 issue.
By Kelly A. Hayden, JD, Assistant General Counsel
Reprinted with permission from the Management Association of Illinois’s Web site, www.hrsource.org. The article was posted Aug 2, 2010.
A police department entered into a contract with a paging service whereby it paid a flat fee that allowed a certain number of text messages to be sent each month. When many of the officers exceeded the limit for several months in a row, the police chief ordered transcripts of the text … Read the rest
This article is from the June 2010 issue.
By Jamie Bragg
A May 24 Supreme Court ruling expands the circumstances in which petitioners may challenge the effects of a discriminatory policy. The unanimous ruling held that the petitioners of Lewis v. City of Chicago may raise a disparate impact lawsuit even when the statute of limitations has passed on the establishment of the discriminatory policy itself.
For more information, read the Supreme Court’s ruling, or an analysis by appellate lawyer Carl Cecere on his firm’s blog, SCOTUSblog… Read the rest
This article is from the May 2010 issue.
By Jamie Bragg
On April 1, a South Carolina appeals court ruled that an employee may be considered a supervisor even if that employee lacks the “authority to fire, promote or demote, or otherwise make decisions that had an economic effect on” other employees. The ruling follows a sexual harassment lawsuit brought by Clara Whitten against her former employer Fred’s, Incorporated; according to the ruling, an employee is a “supervisor” if s/he controls the schedule of, and has the authority … Read the rest
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