Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
by Toby Tiner, Jr. Editors’ note: This week we feature a guest article. The editors of Maine Employment Law Letter think you will benefit from the practical insights of their colleagues. They have worked alongside Toby on many tricky employee-relations cases, and his ability to find the truth while treating employees respectfully has impressed them. […]
Employment law attorney Michael Maslanka reviews Chip Heath and Dan Heath’s book Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard, finding it both interesting and useful. Maslanka particularly focuses on the authors’ idea of fighting “the negative” by focusing on “bright spots.” In the book Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard, […]
By Ingrid Anton and Isabelle Dongier In our January 4 article, we discussed the usual process for getting a work permit for a foreign employee entering Canada: obtaining a Labour Market Opinion (LMO). The LMO process can be complex, lengthy, and very demanding for employers. Fortunately, several exemptions exist that can provide you with a […]
Litigation Value: No liability (or sales leads) “per se.” However, the seeds of workplace discord have been planted, leaving open the possibility that they will take root and blossom into future legal problems. Sales personnel are lording it over their non-sales counterparts; protégés are maligning their once-valued mentors; and even the simple act of borrowing […]
The Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals (which covers Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee) recently addressed whether an employer could terminate an employee who met the requirements for Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave but, by virtue of his behavior during the leave, revealed that he actually was able to work.
Employment law attorney Robert P. Tinnin, Jr., answers an HR practitioner’s question about improving a flextime program that has become unmanageable.
By Sara Parchello Overtime class actions in Canada aren’t dead. If you thought that last year’s court decision refusing to certify the class action against one of Canada’s largest banks, CIBC, meant the death of such lawsuits in Canada, think again. These lawsuits — in which one or several employees act as a “representative plaintiff” […]
Litigation Value: Probably neglible, seeing as no one seemed to be offended by Michael’s Irish jokes, and Michael himself looked slightly flattered by the long hug with Todd “PacMan” Packer and Meredith. Who knew that St. Patrick’s Day was such an important holiday at Dunder Mifflin? This week on The Office, we saw our favorite regional […]
by Sam R. Fulkerson The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced in January that 93,277 workplace discrimination charges were filed nationwide during 2009 — the second-highest level ever — and monetary relief obtained for victims totaled more than $376 million. The 2009 data show that private-sector job bias charges alleging discrimination based on disability, religion, […]
by Jonathan C. Sterling Because one of the most difficult tasks HR professionals face is determining whether their employees are exempt, each time a decision is issued on the topic by an appeals court, it’s worth noting and taking guidance from. The latest decision from the Second Circuit relates to the administrative exemption, which applies […]