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The Courtroom Shouldn’t Be Recordkeeping’s First Test

Litigation is the ultimate test of the adequacy of an employer’s recordkeeping practices, says attorney Allen Kato of the San Francisco office of Fenwick and West LLP. Of course, the courtroom isn’t the best place to find out that records are inadequate, incomplete, or nonexistent. Record retention is a daunting task for employers because there […]

Timing of Backaches Justifies Firing, Negates FLMA and ADA Claims

Some people complain about “rheumatism,” backaches and other physical ills when the weather shifts. For a Southwest Airlines employee, his backaches — and resulting requests for Family and Medical Act (FMLA) leave — seemed to follow the same shift as holidays and vacation time. Southwest determined that this was not the whim of nature but […]

7 Strategies for Improving Engagement during Open Enrollment

With many employers making changes to their health insurance plans, including accelerated adoption of high-deductible health plans, it’s more critical than ever for companies to strengthen their efforts to engage employees during their open enrollment periods, according to Chris Hill, CEO of Spotlite.

News Flash: Federal Contractors Pay Out Record Discrimination Penalties

According to a new U.S. Department of Labor report, thegovernment collected a record $41 million from federal contractors last year for victims of discrimination. This was up from just over $35 million in 1998. The report also discloses the DOL’s plans to increase the number of government contractors in compliance with equal employment opportunity laws […]

HOT LIST: New York Times Bestselling Hardcover Business Books

The following is a list of the bestselling hardcover business books as ranked by the New York Times on June 23. 1 The One Minute Entrepreneur: The Secret to Creating and Sustaining a Successful Business, by Ken Blanchard, Don Hutson and Ethan Willis. A fictional parable incorporating real-life advice on how to start a business. […]

‘Hi, I Need Copies of All Your Files’: Taming Discovery in the Age of the E-File

“Hi, I just need to see every electronic file and e-mail relating to Steve Smith and his employees, colleagues, bosses, and customers from the last year, please.” Arrrgh! Discovery should be easy in an age of electronic wizardry, but it’s a nightmare. If your company is sued over an employment (or any legal) matter, the […]

Overtime Calculation: Do You Have to Include Benefits Opt-Out Payments?

By BLR Editor Kate McGovern Tornone The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals—which covers Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington—has given employers another thing to worry about in light of the new overtime regulations. In a  case of first impression, the court ruled that when an employer pays an employee cash […]

Employer’s Obligation to Make Inquiries in the Duty to Accommodate Confirmed

By Mark Colavecchia The duty to accommodate is one of the most difficult issues Canadian employers regularly face. While courts across the country have attempted to define the scope of an employer’s legal obligations with a workable degree of certainty, the practical application of the duty to accommodate remains complex and problematic. The issue is […]