Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
A recent decision by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals highlights the importance of tracking employees’ hours. That court reversed a district court’s judgment against a New York high school English teacher who claims he was denied tenure in retaliation for taking seven days of leave following gallbladder surgery — FMLA leave for which […]
by Rosalind H. Cooper Employers and others are generally protected by actions against them that occur outside of limitation periods. That applies to charges under Canadian occupational health and safety legislation, too. But when do those limitation periods begin to run? A recent decision of the Ontario Court of Justice in R. v. Corporation (City […]
by Julie A. Arbore One of the most effective ways an employer can shield itself from liability when faced with an allegation of discrimination is to be able to support the legitimacy of the challenged employment decision with documentation. While this advice may sound simple and obvious, all too often an employee’s personnel file fails […]
by Ralph N. Nero and Keri L. Bennett Many of our recent articles have focused on decisions involving employees’ breaches or threatened breaches of restrictive covenants. Including restrictive covenants, such as nonsolicitation and noncompetition covenants, into employment contracts is important for employers to protect their business interests. In order to be enforceable, however, such covenants […]
In honor of the Olympics, I have decided to hand out some well deserved medals to our Dunder Mifflin friends for keeping us laughing all these seasons. I’ll only be handing out gold medals, because that’s the only color on my yogurt lids and I have run out of paperclips for the chains. Without further […]
Seen any viral videos lately? Maybe a more pertinent question is: Fired anyone over a viral video lately? Videos and other social media posts run the gamut from cute kittens to dancing wedding parties. Sometimes, though, they delve into more serious subjects and become statements on political and social issues — issues that can embarrass […]
by Mark I. Schickman There have been many lawsuits limiting the introduction of religion into the workforce. Employees who insist on a God-given right to bash gays at the workplace are subject to termination ― despite their right to express their religious beliefs. An employee whose religion opposes taking orders from women will lose his […]
by Lorene Novakowski In a recent Alberta arbitration award, the arbitrator awarded damages to employees for a breach of their privacy rights, in the amount of $1,250 each. The grievance arose after the province of Alberta conducted background credit checks without consent on 26 government employees. The employees worked in an area–maintenance enforcement–that gave them discretion in […]
As back to school time looms, employers may be assessing their experiences with summer workers — those brought in for seasonal work as well as college interns learning the ropes in their chosen profession. Now is a good time to examine which employer practices are sound and which ones may be iffy. Employers need to […]
With the Olympics in full swing this summer, reruns of The Office have been replaced with reruns of the Olympics (OK, tape-delayed events, but you get the idea). I can only assume this means that every workplace in the entire world is now hosting its very own office-themed Olympics with events ranging from office-chair races to Flonkerton. (In Season 2, […]