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New Mexico: First Female Governor Elected

by Robert P. Tinnin, Jr., Tinnin Law Firm New Mexico voters have elected the state’s first female governor, Republican Susana Martinez. Republicans gained several seats in the New Mexico House of Representatives, but Democrats maintained control of the chamber. There were no contests for seats in New Mexico Senate, where Democrats hold a substantial majority […]

Employee Free Speech: Court Rules Employee Can’t Be Fired For Outburst About Affirmative Action; What Are Your Rights?

A white male employee has a confrontation with a Hispanic female co-worker in a deserted corridor. He grabs her by the lapel, shakes her, and tells her he is ‘tired of this Hispanic s—: us white guys are tired of being looked over.’ Clear grounds for termination? His employer thought so. But in a surprising […]

Disabled Employees: Seniority Policy Must Give Way To Accommodations; What To Do Now

Most employers know they must explore the possibility of making a reasonable accommodation requested by a disabled worker. But what if an employee wants an accommodation that conflicts with your seniority system? And how far do you have to go in working with the employee to accommodate their request? In a surprising reversal of its […]

Risk Is Your Business

It’s March. Chances are there’s an NCAA men’s basketball tournament pool being conducted in your office right now. If you’re in it, good luck! There are a number of them here in our office. (You want to see my picks click here.) It’s estimated that $2.5 billion changes hands over this single event. That’s quite […]

Ignoring the Basics Can Lead to HR Failures

In yesterday’s CED, we offered tips for managing the basics of HR legal issues. Today, the rest of the tips and an introduction to a California-specific resource for your employee handbook policies. Once again, a tip of the CED hat to attorneys John K. Skousen and Christopher J. Boman, partners at the Irvine office of employment law […]

FLSA Lawsuits Show Steep Learning Curve for Employers Offering Unpaid Internships

Employers using unpaid interns need to be wary as lawsuits challenging the structure of these unpaid jobs continue to crop up. In recent years, several high-profile lawsuits — primarily in the publishing and entertainment industries — have highlighted the exposure employers can face. Plaintiffs generally allege they were doing the work of employees and were […]

Provincial labor force differences across Canada

by Brian P. Smeenk Canada is a diverse country. Its ten provinces and three territories are endowed with varying natural resources and have developed their own industrial infrastructures and labour markets. Nevertheless, education is always a major factor in the ability to find a job. So commences a very interesting, recently published study by Statistics […]

More Overtime Changes Coming: Update On IWC Wage Order Hearings

Come July, you can expect several changes in the wage and hour regulations. That’s because the new daily overtime law gives the California Industrial Welfare Commission until July 2000 to review the current overtime rules and come up with new regulations and wage orders. At stake are modifications to a variety of wage and hour […]