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Many employers have no-fault attendance policies, which call for discipline or termination after an employee has a certain number of absences – regardless of the reason for the time off. But as one employer recently found, these policies may conflict with the family leave laws. We’ll look at what happened and offer other alternatives for […]
The Department of Labor and the Department of Health and Human Services have issued guidelines explaining how to comply with the Women’s Health and Cancer Rights Act’s annual notice requirement. The notice explains that mastectomy-related services must be covered under health plans. It can be sent alone or with the summary plan description, a newsletter, […]
How do you deal with an employee who’s disruptive and can’t get along with co-workers? The obvious answer may be a warning or other discipline. But the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal says employees like these may have a mental disability protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and that instead of disciplining […]
Last year, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal ruled that, in most cases, an employer doesn’t have to make an exception to an established seniority system to provide an accommodation to a disabled worker. Now, the same court has clarified its original ruling, going even farther in protecting seniority policies. The case involved a disabled […]
IBM¹s recent announcement that it was converting from a traditional pension plan to a cash-balance plan triggered angry employee protests and age discrimination allegations. Now, government agencies and federal legislators are vowing to take a closer look at the impact cash-balance plans have on older workers. Unlike traditional pension plans in which workers earn most […]
A new measure signed by Governor Davis expands existing law that permits employees to take unpaid time off from work to serve on a jury or act as a witness. The new law specifies that an employee who is a victim of domestic violence or other crimes may also take time off to attend court […]
Your voluntary separation incentive plan may involve even more paperwork and expenses than you think. According to a new federal government opinion, severance programs that aren’t directly linked to retirement can still be considered pension plans covered by detailed ERISA compliance requirements. 400+ pages of state-specific, easy-read reference materials at your fingertips—fully updated! Check out […]
Lucky Stores faced a typical problem. An employee who was injured on the job wanted to return to work even though his doctors had imposed restrictions on his duties. The supermarket carefully considered the employee’s work limitations, extended his disability leave more than once and eventually offered him a part-time job he was qualified to […]
Health care premiums are predicted to rise as much as 12% in the coming 12 months, according to a new survey by the human resource consulting firm Buck Consultants. Although managed care has come under attack recently for failing to live up to its promise of keeping health care costs in check, health maintenance organizations […]
As we reported last month, major changes in overtime and other wage and hour rules will take effect on January 1, 2000. Because you’ll likely need to revise your policies and procedures to be sure you’re in compliance, we’ve prepared a 10-point checklist you can use to get a head start. The HR Management & Compliance […]