Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Recently, an employee argued in an association discrimination claim that he was fired because his employer feared he would be distracted at work by his wife’s disability. That excuse didn’t pan out, because in fact the employer was just fed up with the individual’s poor performance, making it a legitimate employment termination. So in a […]
I feel like I’m trapped in sitcom purgatory, stuck between The Office episodes of yesteryear and the glorious Scranton Promised Land where James Spader reigns supreme as the new branch manager. If you are like me, and find the combination of August heat and reruns to be oppressive at times, I have the following suggestions. […]
On May 31, the Eleventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s decision awarding $923,656 in back pay to a terminated employee of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), an agency of the U.S. government. The decision shows the damages available to employees that prove retaliation based on the filing of an Equal Employment […]
“Should employers be allowed to screen job candidates based on their online behavior even if their actions are not pertinent to t he listed job?” That was the query today from Washington Post financial columnist Michelle Singletary. For human resources (HR) staff, this is not a theoretical question; it’s a very real struggle. The brave […]
In these times of serious belt-tightening, especially in the public sector, everyone is looking for ways to save money. Some are willing to take the risk of breaking the law to do it, and some of them get caught — and waste a lot more money as a result. The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) took […]
If Superman had to get government approval on at what point the removal of his Clark Kent suit turns him into a superhero, he might end up feeling like he hit a wall of Kryptonite. That’s likely how many employers feel as they try to deal with conflicting regulatory and judicial opinions on when an […]
by Sylmarie Arizmendi of Arizmendi & Sanfilippo Often U.S. employers doing business in Puerto Rico assume that certain basic elements of the employment relationship are the same in Puerto Rico as they are stateside. That leads employers to expose themselves to liability because of differences in the employment laws. This article highlights four essential differences […]
By Karen Sargeant You give your employee almost 32 weeks’ pay after terminating his employment without cause. He gets another job two weeks later. You’re off the hook, right? Maybe not. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Brito v. Canac Kitchens, a Division of Kohler Canada Co. has recently said no. Instead, you may […]
It’s official. James Spader’s uber-intense character, Robert California, is going to be the new big boss on The Office. My colleague, Kristin Gray, excitedly revealed this news in her post two weeks ago. Kristin, its seems, was a fan of Spader’s character on Boston Legal, which I applaud her for admitting on the Internet. For […]
by Mark I. Schickman Across America, California employment laws are considered very liberal, too far left. But, in England, the employment law of every American state is viewed as only a cut above indentured servitude. Their legal establishment is disdainful of America’s “regressive” employment laws, and many tribunals will simply refuse to enforce our “barbaric” […]