Archives
Arbitration Agreements: Why California Court of Appeals Invalidated Class Action Waiver
Alternative Workweeks, Part 2: Setting Up Flexible Schedules for Healthcare Employees; What You Should Know
Wage and Hour Lawsuits: Court Limits Time for Suing for Waiting-Time Penalties on Unpaid Wages; Lawsuit-Avoidance Tactics for Employers
Employment Tests: New EEOC Fact Sheet Highlights Avoiding Bias When Screening Job Candidates and Employees; Five Best Practices
Selecting the best person for the job—be it a new hire or a candidate for promotion—is crucial to any organization’s success. But if you’re using tests and other selection procedures to help you make sound employment decisions, it’s important to be aware of how federal antibias laws limit the use of screening tools. To that […]
Are Baby Boomers Driving Us Toward Health Care Collapse?
By BLR Founder and CEO Bob Brady Are there so many boomers that the healthcare system will collapse? Our CEO—and chief boomer—shares his thoughts on this potentially crippling challenge. In December 2007, the EEOC issued regulations allowing employers to offer lower health insurance benefits to retirees age 65 who are eligible for Medicare. This was […]
Overtime: What Do We Do with Employees Who Work Extra Minutes?
We have several employees who punch in early or late, anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes at either end. They say they are “getting their workstations ready” or “finishing up.” Their supervisors have informed me that the overtime is not authorized and should not be paid. But I think I have to pay it if […]
Employment Law Tip: A Simple Precaution Against the ‘Superbug’ at Work
While staph infections have long been linked to hospitals and other healthcare settings, with increasing frequency a super-drug-resistant staph strain—known as MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus)—has been spreading in other communal locations, such as schools and workplaces. During a recent audio conference, experts Jeffrey Hageman, an epidemiologist at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, and Dr. […]
Wage and Hour: Over $220 Million in Back Wages Recovered by DOL in 2007; Highest Amount Ever
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has announced that in 2007, its Wage and Hour Division recovered $220,613,703 in back wages, the highest amount ever, on behalf of 341,624 workers. These back-wage collections exceeded the previous record levels from 2003 by 3.8 percent. In addition, the division assessed over $10.3 million in penalties in 2007.
California Employers Can Fire Workers Who Use Medical Marijuana
California employers can breathe a deep sigh of relief: The California Supreme Court has just ruled that workers who use medical marijuana aren’t protected by the state’s disability bias law or the Compassionate Use Act.