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Employee Free Speech: Court Rules Employee Can’t Be Fired For Outburst About Affirmative Action; What Are Your Rights?

A white male employee has a confrontation with a Hispanic female co-worker in a deserted corridor. He grabs her by the lapel, shakes her, and tells her he is ‘tired of this Hispanic s—: us white guys are tired of being looked over.’ Clear grounds for termination? His employer thought so. But in a surprising […]

How Do You Recharge Your Battery?

I hope you enjoyed a long Labor Day weekend. The passing of this national holiday signifies that summer is over. The kids are back in school and it seems like ages since your summer vacation. The pace has quickened noticeably as we move into the fall season. So the changing of the season and the […]

"Satisfactory" really means "poor," Your Honor.

There’s nothing quite like an untrained manager’s documentation. Yesterday’s Advisor presented attorney Allison West’s first four principles of “bulletproof documentation.” Today, we’ll see steps 5 through 7 of the bulletproofing process, and take a look at a unique new training program. West shared her seven principles for bulletproof documentation during a recent BLR® audio conference. West […]

Employees Fired for Facebook Postings

By Maria Giagilitsis It’s becoming more and more clear that an employee’s use of social networking websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace may lead to justifiable discipline by an employer. On October 22, 2010, the British Columbia Labour Relations Board released its decision in West Coast Mazda (d.b.a. West Coast Detail & Accessory Centre) […]

Interview Tactic: Bring Seafood into the Mix

We recently ran an SBT on a Glassdoor survey about weird interview questions. Among the top were, “How many cows are in Canada?” and “Pick two celebrities to be your parents.” We asked readers to share their own odd interview inquiries. Here’s one that is definitely original: “I like, ‘What’s your favorite fish?’”   “The […]

Disabled Employees: Seniority Policy Must Give Way To Accommodations; What To Do Now

Most employers know they must explore the possibility of making a reasonable accommodation requested by a disabled worker. But what if an employee wants an accommodation that conflicts with your seniority system? And how far do you have to go in working with the employee to accommodate their request? In a surprising reversal of its […]

Premium Subsidy Extension Becomes Law

Trade legislation that also extends premium subsidies for health coverage under the Health Care Tax Credit (HCTC) program was signed into law by President Obama Oct. 21. The HCTC was enacted as part of the Trade Act of 2002. As originally enacted, it provided a 65-percent tax credit for qualifying health coverage (including COBRA continuation […]

Mental Health Parity Changes Take Effect January 1, 2010

It’s time for employers to examine their health benefits to see if they’re in compliance with the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Act of 2008, which takes effect on January 1, 2010. The law applies to most employers with more than 50 employees. It requires covered employers that offer a health insurance plan with mental […]

Holidays, OT, and the 12-Month Choice

FMLA hassles never seem to end. Some of the most confusing issues revolve around holidays, overtime, and the 12-month method. Today’s Advisor will clarify these tricky points. What Happens When a Holiday Occurs During FMLA Leave? The fact that a holiday may occur within the week taken as FMLA leave has no effect, and the […]

An Internship of Olympic Proportions!

A University of Connecticut journalism student had an exciting and successful internship at the Winter Olympics thanks to her own research, her college experience, great communication by her employer, and a job description that said “expect the unexpected.” After completing an internship at the NBC affiliate in Hartford two summers ago, senior UCONN journalism student […]