Curbing Intermittent Leave Abuse in California
For employers, one of the most frustrating aspects of family and medical leaves is guarding against employee abuse of intermittent and reduced-schedule leaves.
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Mo’ Money! Statutory Termination Can Lead to Common Law Damages
By Marisa Victor and Sean McGurran Following a recent decision by Ontario’s highest court, employers across Canada may now be on the hook for more termination pay when nonunion employees are laid off for an extended period. In the recent decision of Elsegood v. Cambridge Spring Service (2001) Ltd. (Elsegood), the court concluded that when […]
Early Retirement Offers: Win-Win IF You Follow Rules
ERIPs (Early Retirement Incentive Plans) achieve a “win-win” for both employer and employees, say attorneys Chris Anderson and Sarah C. Maxwell, but there are legal pitfalls when the rules aren’t followed exactly. ERIPs are a win-win, the attorneys say, because: Employers benefit from reducing wages and other costs associated with senior workers, and avoid the […]
Caught Red-Handed and Breastfed
Last night’s episode, Jury Duty, involved scandalous improprieties, shrewd cover-ups, relentless investigations, and dramatic public confessions. Agatha Christie would have been proud, although Scranton’s twist on these themes might have left her a little confused. It took Dwight only a few minutes to dismantle Jim’s lie about having been on jury duty for a full […]
Protect Your Data: Identity Thieves Hit from Where You Least Expect
A 39-month prison sentence was handed down Feb. 1 for an Alabama woman who had pleaded guilty to stealing more than 4,000 patient records from a Birmingham hospital. A federal district court sentenced Chelsea Catherine Stewart to 15 months for wrongfully obtaining individual health information in violation of HIPAA, along with an unrelated bank fraud attempt […]
American Airlines in Bankruptcy Threatens to End $1B in Pensions
When American Airlines and its parent company, AMR Corp., filed for bankruptcy in November, many industry watchdogs dismissed the event as a chance for the airline to restructure and bring down costs. Which is why the developing skirmish between the #3 airline carrier and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) since then has been like […]
IRS Wants to Offer RMD Relief for Longevity Annuity Contracts in 403(b)/457, Other Retirement Plans
Guidance on how longevity annuity contracts purchased under 403(b) and eligible 457 retirement plans — as well as certain other retirement plans — can comply with the required minimum distribution (RMD) rules under Code Section 401(a)(9) was proposed Feb. 3 by the IRS. Code Section 401(a)(9) prescribes rules for a qualified trust under which the […]
EEOC Finalizes Employer Recordkeeping Rules Under GINA
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has long required employers subject to Title VII and the Americans With Disabilities Act to retain employment records, and now the same is required for those subject to the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act. In final rules released Feb. 3, the commission amended its recordkeeping regulations to include employers covered by […]
Welcome Home, Soldier: Your Obligations to Returning Troops and Their Families
There are two primary laws that will come to bear, the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), the subject of this article, and Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the subject of a future article. Besides those legal responsibilities, many employers will also consider that they have a broader ethical obligation to those […]
TSA Gears Up to Collect ‘Threat’ Data from Commuter Train Operators
Many commuters may not know it, but the Transportation Security Agency (TSA) purview extends to passenger trains, even the light rail cars you may take to work. Next time the conductor looks at you funny, it might be that he or she is collecting “threat” data to transmit to the TSA. The TSA, that ubiquitous […]