Tag: Employment law

Benefit plans: upcoming compliance deadlines and year-end planning

by Bret Busacker and Bret Clark Now that fall is in the air and school has started, we thought it would be a good idea to summarize some of the key health and welfare benefit deadlines that are approaching.  November 5 Health plan identifier. All self-insured large group health plans (i.e., plans with annual costs […]

Gone Lawsuit

[Note: Major spoilers ahead. If you have not seen/read Gone Girl, and wish to do so, please do NOT continue.] This past weekend my wife and I got to see David Fincher’s latest film Gone Girl. While I am a fan of Fincher’s work, I had not read the novel Gone Girl and had successfully […]

Quebec employers can’t waive notice period provided by resigning employee without providing notice

by Mohamed Badreddine Most employers in Quebec know that under Quebec’s Act Respecting Labour Standards (ALS) and the Civil Code of Québec (CCQ), an employer who wishes to terminate an indefinite contract of employment without serious reason must provide notice or pay in lieu of notice. Employees who wish to resign must also give their […]

Be wary when employees ‘volunteer’ to work through lunch

When workers volunteer to attend work-related meetings during their lunch break, are they dedicated employees eager to go the extra mile, or do they signal a legal problem? That’s an issue recently put to a group of attorneys who focus on employment law matters. Their advice: Be careful.  The attorneys were asked what to do […]

Office politics: why you shouldn’t care who likes Ike

by Timothy M. Barber With another round of contentious elections upon us, employers should brush up on federal, state, and local laws related to political affiliation discrimination.  The political season Fall in America: football, brightly colored leaves falling, and another cycle of contentious elections. Recent elections have involved important issues affecting businesses and employees—issues that […]

Did I say that?

Satya Nadella’s job was tough enough from the start. He followed Microsoft lifer Steve Ballmer and founder Bill Gates into the CEO role at a time when the company is looking to keep its businesses rolling in the face of a changing industry, slower PC sales, and serious pressure on its bread-and-butter Windows and Office […]

Workplace communication: It’s more than just talking

Everybody knows the importance of effective communication in the workplace. Achieving it, though, can be tricky. Some people speak without listening. Others find themselves too distracted to understand what someone else is trying to say. Written communication often gets bogged down in jargon and misinterpreted. And those are just some of the problems that can […]

Conciliate First, Court Tells EEOC as it Tosses out Lawsuit

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission may not sue an employer unless it has engaged in pre-litigation conciliation — even for pattern or practice claims — a federal district court has held. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Oct. 7 dismissed an EEOC suit alleging that CVS Pharmacy’s separation agreement violated […]

Bullying in the Workplace: New Laws or Stronger Employer Policies?

Bullying in the workplace is an issue that 72 percent of Americans are aware of, according to a 2014 survey by the Workplace Bullying Institute. However, the institute believes not enough is being done to fight this problem because workplace bullying is not considered protected discrimination under federal employment law. So through its Healthy Workplace […]