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For the first time, the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has broken down clergy pay by gender, and the surprising results—that there is a gender pay gap in this occupation—is causing much comment in the religion-based media.
Competitors luring away workers is an increasing concern these days. In a recent case, Jeff Sposito, a managing broker with Jon Douglas Co. in Walnut Creek, quit less than a week after Coldwell Banker acquired his company. He immediately joined a rival and, allegedly within a day, persuaded more than 100 agents and office staff […]
Want to learn more about the use of leave as an accommodation under the Americans With Disabilities Act? The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity will discuss the topic at a meeting next week. In implementing and enforcing the ADA, the commission makes clear that leave may be a required workplace accommodation for employees with disabilities. In […]
The Industrial Welfare Commission has eliminated certain exemptions from minimum wage requirements while retaining others. The changes take effect Jan. 1, 2001, as does the new minimum wage of $6.25 per hour. The IWC did away with existing exemptions for state and local government employees, full-time carnival ride operators, actors, personal attendants in private homes, […]
Karla Schikore, a Bank of America employee, resigned and requested a lump-sum payment of her retirement benefits. She swore that she’d mailed the bank a form electing to receive lump-sum benefits more than a year before, as required under the terms of the bank’s retirement plan. Unfortu-nately, the bank said it had never received the […]
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has clarified when and how screening out job applications without high school diplomas may violate the Americans With Disabilities Act. The commission made clear that such a requirement could violate the ADA in an informal guidance late last year, but clarification was necessary after “significant commentary and conjecture,” it said […]
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is reducing penalties for late payment of premiums in an effort to reduce regulatory costs and make it easier for plan sponsors to maintain traditional pension plans.
The U.S. Supreme Court will take up several workplace-related cases this year. In one, the court will review a Ninth Circuit ruling regarding the type of evidence a terminated employee can use to prove job discrimination when an employer has both legitimate and illegal reasons for the discharge. Other cases on the court’s docket involve […]
A new fact sheet summarizing federal employment-related laws is available from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. It’s geared toward smaller businesses, but contains a helpful overview of legal obligations that could be of interest to all employers. It covers subjects such as which employers are subject to federal employment laws, how employees are counted for […]
If you have a nondiscretionary bonus plan that is awarded to nonexempt employees at intervals greater than each week (for example, on a quarterly, semiannual or annual basis), you are required to retroactively calculate the bonus into the employee’s “regular rate” of pay.