An employer’s award of a bonus based on a percentage of overtime earnings didn’t require any extra overtime payments, ruled a federal district court in California. The decision illustrates how a dispute over 12 cents can literally turn into a federal case. During one particular workweek, an employee earned $4.745 in overtime.…
Read More…Q: What should we do when a fired employee makes a threat on the way out? During a termination meeting with this employee, he promised that “he would get us all for firing him.”
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ADA accommodation may require showing rather than telling An employee in Illinois will move forward to a jury trial on her disability discrimination claim alleging that her employer failed to provide a reasonable accommodation for her learning disability. Although supervisors told her how to complete her timesheets, the employee claims that…
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Question: We recently instituted a no-beard policy to ensure that men can securely wear their required safety masks. However, one of our Muslim employees refused, citing the Prophet Muhammad. I’ve studied the Quran, and I know that it doesn’t require beards. Can we discipline or fire him for not shaving?
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Question: Our company policy prohibits employees from supervising their family members or people with whom they have a romantic relationship. I believe a female supervisor is romantically involved with one of her direct reports. Can I ask both employees about the relationship and require that they disclose the nature of their relationship? And if either or both of the employees refuse to answer, can I take disciplinary action?
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Finding no evidence of discrimination under California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a railroad terminated a train engineer because of his poor attendance, not his diagnosed sleep disorder. Although this case was brought under FEHA, the analysis was the same as it…
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Question: One of our employees seriously injured his hand at work after just a couple of days on the job. Based on the nature of his injury, it seems obvious that he must have committed a safety violation. Can we fire him?
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Question: There’s been a lot of talk in our workplace about the Google engineer who was fired for circulating an anti-diversity memo. What about free speech?
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In a rare case, an unmarried teacher recently won a victory against her employer by applying Oregon’s law protecting individuals from discrimination based on marital status. The teacher worked at a Christian university, which required her to adhere to a certain moral standard. When she revealed that she was pregnant, unmarried, and living with her boyfriend, her employer gave her the options of ending her cohabitation, marrying the father of her child, or losing her job. When she declined the first two options, the university terminated her employment.
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Question: We just got a call from a business that wants to check on a former employee. They faxed a release the former employee signed waiving liability for information we share. Are we safe telling them what a bad employee she was?
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