Tag: Employment law

Breastfeeding Employee Entitled to Equal, Not Preferential, Treatment

The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans recently addressed a case in which the employee alleged violations of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA). The dispute arose when the employee claimed she was given insufficient break time to express breast milk following the […]

Document Employee Behavior Today to Avoid Lawsuits Tomorrow

by Eric B. Topel Charles “Slip” Shod has been employed by your company for more than two years, during which time you have received repeated complaints from vendors about his performance. In your capacity as a member of human resources, you begin reviewing the other matters on which Slip has been working and determine that […]

Might Doesn’t Make Right, Dwight

This week’s episode — “The Promotion” — had nothing to do with advancement in the workplace. In fact, the only thing it promoted was how to get fired. When the episode ended, I identified five Scranton employees whom David Wallace should discharge if he wants to minimize potential liability: Dwight. He opened the episode fantasizing about placing Jim […]

Office Romance: Do You Need a Workplace Dating Policy?

by Anna A. Cohen As the holiday season and the new year approach, many people are either looking for love or ending relationships. Many relationships begin and end in the workplace. A recent survey revealed that almost half of employees have been involved in an office romance, and 20 percent admit to having met their […]

More Amendments to Human Rights Legislation in Canada

by Katie Clayton and Farrah Sunderani Over the past couple of years, human rights legislation across Canada has undergone a period of transition. This comes as a response to growing dissatisfaction with outdated statutes and the lengthy processes in place to resolve complaints. Amendments to the British Columbia Human Rights Code were proposed in 2002 […]

Can an Employer Deny FMLA Leave After Mistakenly Telling Employee He Is Eligible?

by Daniel B. Gilmore If an employee is admittedly ineligible for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) but his employer mistakenly informs him that he is eligible before he takes leave, should the employer be prevented from denying his request? The Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently addressed that question and […]

Responding to Employees’ Personal Social Networking

Imagine that one of your employees has her own webpage. One day, you find out that she’s posted a satirical picture poking fun at the company on her site. Then you learn that another employee sounded off about his supervisor on his blog after he received a negative performance evaluation. Can you do anything about […]

Dueling Complaints

LITIGATION VALUE:  $50,000 (in litigation costs on Darryl’s claims); damages continuing to pile up on Oscar’s claims. In tonight’s episode, “The Meeting,” we watched as Michael interfered with Jim’s attempt to obtain a promotion and falsified documents in Jim’s personnel file (clearly a problem, but not the most interesting problem in this episode). We also watched […]

Control the Office Thermostat to Save Money, Environment

Although some parts of the country still feel like summer, this week we officially begin the fall season. The Farmers’ Almanac recently released its winter forecast for 2009-2010 predicting that three-fourths of the United States will experience colder than normal temperatures on average. When temperatures plunge, what can human resources do to reduce energy bills […]

What’s Reasonable Notice for Short Service Employees?

By Derek Knoechel and Lindsey Taylor One of the principle features of Canadian employment law that strikes many U.S. employers as unique is the concept of an employee’s common law right to reasonable notice of termination when an employee is fired without cause. Compliance with the minimum statutory requirements for notice, termination pay, and/or severance […]