Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
by Stuart R. Buttrick Although the types of misconduct that employees can engage in is unlimited, some disciplinary issues occur over and over again. Among the most common — and difficult — issues for employers to handle are drug and alcohol use, insubordination, and workplace searches of company or employee property. This article will offer […]
We’ve got a fork truck driver whose hearing is so bad that he can’t hear people shout at him, and he can’t hear warning honks. We think he’s a real danger to other workers. What can we do? — Joel, HR Manager in Merced
We have a large workforce, and many people operate machinery, fork trucks, etc. Plus, many handle hazardous substances. We now think that some employees have medical conditions that may cause them to lose concentration, and we have some other employees who may be taking medications that might affect their ability to work safely. How do […]
(Updated October 2008) A federal appeals court affirmed the dismissal of a disability discrimination claim based on perfume sensitivity. It found that the employer reasonably accommodated the employee by taking various measures, including prohibiting perfume in the workplace. HR Guide to Employment Law: A practical compliance reference manual covering 14 topics, including the Americans with […]
… and the ADA’s other key term, “undue hardship,” made less unduly hard to understand. What foreign language did you take in school? French or Spanish, perhaps? Well, apparently, there are some pretty talented editors who took legalese … the ability to translate government regulatory jargon into understandable English … and they majored in it. […]
You’re sitting in your favorite HR juke joint, crying into your beer over the pain and heartache your employees have caused you this week. After a few cold ones, solving the world’s HR problems begins to look simple. Then, as you near that moment of perfect clarity, the lights come up and the bartender shouts, […]
Not unlike an annual employee performance evaluation, an HR or employment law audit provides an objective means to measure the effectiveness of HR functions with respect to productivity, efficiency, and morale, among others. As a risk-management tool, an audit can identify obsolete or ineffective practices and flag compliance issues. In fact, employment practices liability insurance […]
Depression, anxiety, and other mental conditions in the workplace have both legal (ADA) and human implications. Here are two programs to help deal with them. The recent violence-driven emphasis on dealing with mental health issues in the workplace has again put HR on the spot. How does a company deal with disabilities that are frequently […]
The recent spate of workplace violence has employers wondering what the ADA has to say about workers with mental illness. The answer is … it depends. It’s been a month since the horrific shootings at Virginia Tech and a less-publicized, but equally relevant to employers, hostage situation at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. In […]
The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers California, has released a controversial new opinion suggesting that the Americans with Disabilities Act protects misconduct stemming from a disability as part and parcel of the disability itself. The case involved Stephanie Gambini, an employee of Total Renal Care, Inc, who suffered from bipolar disorder. Gambini […]