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Compensation & Benefits

Keep your workplace safe for pregnant employees

11/01/2001
Verona Meyer was about 35 weeks pregnant when she slipped while working at a Burger King and struck her lower abdomen on the corner of a table. The baby was born …

Independent contractors, others can be plan beneficiaries

11/01/2001
J.L. Hollis worked as a sales rep for Hendrick Graduate Supply House for more than 10 years. Then he signed an agreement that reclassified him as an independent contractor. He still …

Use peer job reviews to fight rising bias claims

11/01/2001
Adding a peer review element to your performance reviews can help prevent claims that negative evaluations stem from discrimination. More companies are doing it. Twenty-eight percent of companies now have …

Temp Employee May Trigger FMLA Rights

11/01/2001

Q. Do employees paid through a temporary agency count toward the 50-employee eligibility number for the Family and Medical Leave Act? —M.S., New Jersey

Keep Control Over Comp-Time Accumulation

11/01/2001

Q. We have an exempt supervisor who’s accumulated more than 400 hours of comp time over the past year. It’s almost impossible for her to take 400 hours of comp time and do her job. What is our obligation to pay for this comp time? How can this issue best be resolved? —G.H., California

Egg on their faces: Mistakes in paying cooks cost $2.8 million

11/01/2001
Employers who misclassify workers as exempt continue to be hit with big-dollar court awards. In a recent decision, a federal court ordered owners of more than 100 Waffle House restaurants …

Exempt or not? ‘Primary duty’ isn’t a time test

11/01/2001
Michael and Constance Baldwin agreed to manage an RV park for a joint salary of $2,400 a month, plus on-site housing. They were on call 24 hours a day. After …

You Can Change Workers’ Hours on Short Notice

11/01/2001

Q. Can we change employees’ work hours on short notice by altering their schedules? Also, we have a part-time employee who’s been employed for a few months working 32 hours a week. She’s preparing to return to work after recovering from a car accident. Can we reduce her work hours? —J.L., Maryland

Giving a bonus can cost you in discrimination case

10/01/2001
Lisa Russell was rated “excellent” and received a bonus of $807. So what’s her gripe? An African-American co-worker received a higher rating of “outstanding” and a bonus of $1,355. Russell, who …

Sweeten Deal to Retain Worker After Training

10/01/2001

Q. We just covered the entire cost for an employee to complete nurses’ aide training. We intended to draw up an agreement before the training so that this employee would be available to our business for six months before she could seek other employment, but we failed to discuss the agreement before the training. Can we have her sign such an agreement now? —C.E., Ohio