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Bipolar disorder as a disability: What are employer’s obligations?

With the ADAAA’s final regulations, new physical and mental impairments are considered disabilities, including impairments related to an employee’s mood and emotional state. Bipolar and other mental disorders are now specifically listed in the statute and in the accompanying regulations. Even if it weren’t listed in the statute as a disability, bipolar disorder would clearly […]

The irony of irreparable harm

By Bruce Grist Conventional wisdom suggests that because a nonsolicitation clause is more likely than a noncompete clause to be enforced by a Canadian court, why bother including a noncompete clause in an employment agreement? The British Columbia Court of Appeal’s decision in Edward Jones v. Voldeng suggests that there is still value in including […]

Want Benefit Savings? Take a Close Look at Your PBM

Looking for healthcare savings? (Who isn’t?) Start with a look at your prescription drug costs, says Scott Haas, CLU, RHU, vice president of Wells Fargo Pharmacy Consulting. Haas and his colleagues sought a way to get drug costs down for clients. They peered beneath the surface and didn’t like what they found, Haas said in […]

Deaf Lifeguard Was Entitled to Accommodations, Says 6th Circuit

A reasonable jury could conclude that an employer violated the Americans with Disabilities Act when it failed to hire a deaf lifeguard, said the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, overturning a lower court’s decision. The case, Keith v. County of Oakland (2013 WL 115647, No. 11–2276 (6th Cir. Jan. 10, 2013)) involved Nicholas Keith, […]

Top 10 trends in background checks for employment

Should you conduct background checks for employment? California employers are understandably wary, with recent lawsuits alleging that background checks can have a disparate impact on protected groups. However, background checks can be a great resource. They provide an opportunity to learn more about potential employees and to investigate whether applicants have lied, stolen, or otherwise […]

The Return of the Nard Dog

Litigation Value: $0. Though there is all sorts of questionable stuff going on, none of it should expose Dunder Mifflin itself to any claims or liability. In tonight’s episode, “Couples Discount,” no one really covers themselves in glory.  You’ve got The Office denizens seeking to goof off one last time before Andy returns, and pretending […]

Guns do not belong in the workplace

by Al Vreeland In these pages, we try―often ham-handedly―to infuse a little humor into the very real workplace dilemmas you face on a daily basis. When we first conceived this article, obvious redneck gun jokes were, well, obvious. But the recent massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, has left us humorless, while recent events in several state […]

PBGC Presages Solvency Trouble for Multiemployer Plans

There’s consternation about the future solvency of multiemployer plans and concerns about whether plan sponsors should expect higher insurance premiums as a result of three new reports from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. On Jan. 29, PBGC sent to Congress reports on the status of multiemployer pension plans it insures, the current effects of pension […]

Retirement Benefits 2013—What’s Really Happening?

Retirement benefits, always a challenge to manage—and to fund. What’s happening with pensions and 401(k)s in 2013? What are your competitors up to? Help us find out! Please participate in our brief survey and see how your retirement benefits stack up against those of other successful companies. We’ll get answers to these questions and more: […]