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Employee Leaves: What Should I Do When Managers Don’t Want to Reinstate Employees Who Went Out on FMLA/CFRA Leave?

We’re having problems with people coming back from FMLA/CFRA leave. Two particular situations worry us. In one case, the manager says, “I’ve redistributed the work and there’s no job anymore.” And in the other, the manager says, “We’ve hired a temp who is much better—we don’t want the person back.” Don’t we still have to […]

U.S. Supreme Court Building

Supreme Court Sets High Bar for Class Certification

by Brad Williams, Holland & Hart LLP The U.S. Supreme Court’s Dukes v. Wal-Mart decision is enormously consequential for employers, particularly those facing “bet-the-company” class actions involving allegations of widespread discrimination. In essence, the Court answered a number of outstanding procedural and interpretive questions involving the federal class-action device in such a way as to […]

DOL: New Overtime Rules Expected This Spring

The U.S. Department of Labor will likely propose changes to its overtime regulations this spring, Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez told lawmakers March 18. President Obama last March instructed DOL to simplify its rules and raise its salary threshold defining which workers are exempt from overtime. To be considered exempt from the minimum wage […]

New COBRA Notices You Must Use by 2/17

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) was enacted in February 2009. Among other things, the ARRA provides a COBRA premium subsidy for employees who are laid off or terminated. The subsidy requires employers to pay for 65 percent of a separated employee’s COBRA premium, which the federal government then reimburses to employers.

Business Strategy: Is Yours the Right One?

I’ve been thinking and reading a lot about strategic planning lately. I guess when all hell is breaking loose, as it has been for many businesses of late, it becomes real easy to question the strategic direction of the company. When sales are falling or profits are eroding, when new ventures are struggling to gain […]

EEOC Finally Defines ‘Race’ and ‘Color’ in Connection With Discrimination Suits

Ever since 1964, discrimination based on race or color has been illegal. EEOC has finally told us what those terms mean, says HR Manager’s Legal Reporter. The recent Supreme Court ruling that greatly expanded the definition of retaliation (Daily Advisor, 9/25/06), showed how important it is for HR people to keep track of happenings in […]

Sex Discrimination: Employer To Pay High Price For Glass Ceiling

In recent years, government agencies and female employees alike have increasingly focused on shattering the corporate glass ceiling. Now, a new California Court of Appeal decision demonstrates that failing to review your promotion practices before a gender-bias complaint surfaces can be an expensive mistake.

Court’s decision solidifies NLRB’s ‘quickie’ election rule

A June 10 ruling by the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals dealt a blow to employers hoping to escape the constraints of the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) rule speeding up union representation elections. The Associated Builders and Contractors of Texas and the National Federation of Independent Business filed the challenge to what many […]

The 3 Worst Mistakes Your Managers Are Making Right Now

Maybe you’ve heard the old saw about the perfect business being one with no managers, no supervisors, and no employees. Unfortunately, your business isn’t perfect — if it is, we’d love to hear about it! — and you have to deal with managers and supervisors who are probably making these common, risky mistakes right now.

Revisiting General Releases

In brighter economic times, most employers say goodbye to employees only following individual resignations or terminations. But as more and more employers are becoming acquainted with the new “L” word—Layoffs—employees are departing in larger numbers and for different reasons. This makes now a good time to revisit those general releases that employees are asked to […]