Tag: Employment law

6th Circuit: Failure to Pay Employee Salary Removed his ‘Exempt’ Status

An exempt employee must actually be paid in order to retain that exempt status, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently held. The case, Orton v. Johnny’s Lunch Franchise, involved a salaried employee who sued his employer for wages and overtime when, after beginning to experience cash flow problems, the employer stopped paying his […]

Supreme Court Set to Decide Future of Health Care Reform

The U.S. Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments regarding a challenge to the massive health care reform law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), enacted in March 2010. The Court revealed how important it considers this case by hearing around six hours of oral arguments over the span of three days, when it […]

Religious Time-Off Requests: Accommodation vs. Productivity and Fairness

Despite a trend toward employers embracing flexibility in the workplace as a way to improve work-life balance, most employers have expectations related to their employees’ schedules. In some workplaces, rigid schedules aren’t necessary as long as the work gets done. In others, shifts are firm and when someone needs time off, a request is made […]

Another New Leave of Absence for Canadians?

By Ralph N. Nero and Fida Hindi Canadian employees are entitled to all sorts of leaves – maternity leaves, parental leaves, sick leaves, emergency leaves, leave for the disappearance of a minor child, and the list goes on. Now Ontario may be joining Quebec by creating yet another new category of leave of absence for […]

Whoa Nellie!

Litigation Value: None, though as a practical matter, Dunder Mifflin may have to make good on all those raises Nellie promised. As tonight’s episode is a rerun, I thought I’d go back and review the March 15th episode (“Get the Girl”) that we managed to miss somehow. (For a recap of tonight’s repeat, “Mrs. California,” check out […]

EEOC Guidance on Whether High-School-Diploma Requirement Violates ADA

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has published new guidance addressing whether an employer violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by requiring a high-school diploma for a job. The guidance was issued in response to an informal discussion letter in which the agency stated that the requirement may violate the ADA if (1) it […]

Wasting Time at Work: Do You Try to Stop the Madness or Just Go with It?

It’s March — the culmination of a long and productive season for the country’s top college basketball teams. It’s also the beginning of a less productive season in the workplace. March Madness may serve to sharpen the focus of the athletes playing in the college championship tournament, but the Big Dance often has the opposite […]

When FMLA Intermittent Leave Leads to Suspicious Attendance Patterns

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows leave to be taken “intermittently” in certain situations. Intermittent leave often presents both logistical and employee relations challenges for employers, which must minimize the effect of intermittent leave on operations and address possible employee abuse while ensuring legal compliance. This article will discuss intermittent FMLA dilemmas and […]

Good, Bad, and Just Plain Weird Interviewing

Ever been caught off guard by a job interview question? Most people have because many employers have resorted to asking applicants questions that could be considered offbeat or even off the wall. Thomas Edison reportedly had a list of surprising queries he used when interviewing job applicants. Among his stumpers, as reported on the Mental […]

Why You Need a Retaliation Prevention Policy

Employee retaliation claims are skyrocketing, and in 2011 these claims were the number one complaint to the EEOC. As a result, you need to know how to prevent retaliation claims from happening. At SHRM’s legislative conference in Washington, D.C. earlier this month, California employment attorney Jody Katz Pritikin, presented tips on how to prevent and […]