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Hurricanes, Floods, and Other Disasters Don’t Stop Employers’ Legal Obligations in the Workplace

Just because a disaster affects your organization doesn’t mean your legal obligations in the workplace are put on hold. With (1) Hurricane Earl barreling toward the East Coast and at least two more hurricanes behind it, (2) another oil rig accident in the Gulf of Mexico, and (3) a terrible hostage situation at the Discovery […]

May: Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month

In 1978, a joint congressional resolution established Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week. The first 10 days of May were chosen to coincide with two important milestones in Asian/Pacific American history: the arrival in the United States of the first Japanese immigrants (May 7, 1843) and contributions of Chinese workers to the building of the transcontinental railroad, […]

A Harassment Investigation That Worked: What The Employer Did Right

To defend yourself against a lawsuit by an employee terminated for sexual harassment or other misconduct, it’s essential to thoroughly investigate the accuser’s complaint, as the accompanying story illustrates. Here are the key steps Lucky Stores took which led the court to find it had acted properly before discharging the employee accused of harassment:

California Court OKs New Way to Bring Bias Suits

A California appeals court has ruled that an employee who claimed he was the victim of workplace bias and violence can sue his employer under California Civil Code sections 51.7 (the Ralph Civil Rights Act) and 52.1 (Bane Civil Rights Act), which provide individual protections against discriminatory violence and denial of civil rights by means […]

Expense Reimbursements: IRS Raises Mileage Rate for 2008

The Internal Revenue Service has increased the standard mileage rate commonly used to reimburse employees for business use of a car to 50.5 cents per mile, up from 48.5 cents in 2007. The new rate will apply to miles driven beginning Jan. 1, 2008. Employers who use the IRS standard mileage rate to reimburse employees […]

The Top 10 Most Popular Articles on HRDailyAdvisor.com this year

The HR Daily Advisor community of over 200,000+ HR professionals has spoken.  Here are the most popular articles on the HR Daily Advisor website in the last year just in case you missed them. With State Family Leave laws, Brace Yourself for Double Dipping If your state has its own family and medical leave (FML) […]

California Same-sex Marriage Ban Unconstitutional, 9th Circuit Says

Employers and plan administrators in California should continue to watch the pendulum regarding same-sex marriage in the Golden State, which has swung again. A three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 on Feb. 8 in Perry v. Brown, Nos. 10-16696, 11-16577, that Proposition 8, the ballot initiative that amended the […]

Reasonable Accommodation: Ninth Circuit Says Employee “Regarded As” Disabled Not Entitled to Accommodation; Practical Impact

Suppose an employee’s medical condition prevents them from performing their job. Instead of exploring whether a reasonable accommodation is available, you terminate the employee. And, not surprisingly, you wind up with a disability-bias lawsuit on your hands. But what if it turns out the employee wasn’t disabled in the first place? Can you still be […]