Ask the Attorney Archives

Employee claiming ‘anxiety’ wants to go part-time. Must we comply?

11/23/2009

Q. "We have employee who is claiming anxiety when she reaches the workplace. She now wants to work part time for three months to see if the anxiety will diminish. If she has anxiety at the workplace, how is two days off a week going to help? Is the company required to give her part-time work and let her set her own days and hours?"

Must we lay off ‘least senior’ employees first?

11/16/2009

Q. We have to lay off some employees soon. Is there any law that requires us to lay off people based on their seniority level?

Are the smallest companies exempt from paying overtime?

11/10/2009

Q. Our CPA told us (a dental office) that "you do not have to pay overtime if you have less than 15 employees." This does not sound correct to me, but our DDS has not been paying overtime based upon his information. We also know other DDS’s who use the same CPA and were given the same information. This is not accurate, right?

Does an employee’s bankruptcy affect whether we can terminate him?

11/02/2009

Q. I recently discovered that an employee who handles my company’s accounts receivable has filed for bankruptcy. Can I discharge this employee?

Are ‘use it or lose it’ vacation policies legal?

10/26/2009

Q. "Our company has a use-it-or-lose-it policy for vacation leave. Is it lawful for employees who have not taken their vacation at the end of the calendar year to lose it if notice has been given of such consequences?"

Must we allow (or stop) Bible study at work?

08/20/2009

Q. An employee sent a companywide e-mail inviting employees to attend a morning prayer and Bible study prior to work that will be held on the company premises. Do we have to allow this (or do we have to shut it down)?

Are we liable for injuries to the cleaning crew?

08/20/2009

Q. We employ a husband/wife team to clean our office. We pay them on a monthly contract basis and provide a Form 1099 at year-end. Would we be liable for an injury they might suffer while cleaning?

For FMLA purposes, who’s a ‘key employee’?

07/17/2009

Q. On the U.S. Department of Labor’s Form WH-381 (Notice of Eligibility and Rights & Responsibilities), there is a line that asks if the worker is a “key employee” as defined in the FMLA. I don’t want to offend any of our employees, so I always check the “yes” box. Am I doing the right thing?

Are there ADA implications if we ask applicants to take personality tests?