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Discipline / Investigations

Got wind of harassment? Fast action can cut liability

12/01/2007

We all would like to believe harassment and discrimination can’t happen where we work. Of course, we’re dreaming if we do. Ordinary people sometimes fall back on old stereotypes or react strongly to newly perceived dangers by inappropriately striking out at a group or nationality. Fortunately for employers, isolated acts of harassment, if stopped dead in their tracks, won’t come back to haunt them years later …

Beware managers who participate in drive to unionize workers

11/01/2007

When union-organizing efforts target a business, managers usually sit on the sidelines. But managers may have sympathies with either side, and their actions could cause problems for either the employer or the union. Your best bet is to rely on professional negotiators and labor counsel …

Spirit of anti-Harassment policy more important than details

11/01/2007

Chances are your anti-harassment policy includes instructions for reporting any problems. That’s not enough—you also must make sure the policy is implemented. But don’t worry if circumstances require you to veer slightly from the policy …

Employer must show reasonable basis for ‘Honest belief’

11/01/2007

Employers don’t have to be perfect decision-makers—just honest ones. That means that disciplining or even firing someone because you believed the employee violated a rule is OK even if you turn out to be wrong about the violation. Be prepared, though, to prove to a court that your belief was based on particular facts, not just guesses …

You’d think they’d know better

11/01/2007

It seems everybody’s a comedian at the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT), where off-color e-mails have been flying. Unfortunately for ODOT, not everyone in the audience is laughing. One incident involved an equal employment opportunity officer in the department’s Lima office, who sent an e-mail to a number of ODOT employees featuring a picture of a woman with large breasts and a caption …

Casino Queen faces race discrimination lawsuit

11/01/2007

Twenty-two current and former workers for Casino Queen of East Saint Louis filed a federal lawsuit alleging the casino disciplines black workers more harshly than white workers and favors white employees in giving job assignments and promotions …

Attendance abuse and the FMLA

11/01/2007

Q. Our company has certain employees who we believe abuse our absentee policy. We use a “no fault” system, but we do excuse FMLA absences. Typically, when employees get close to discipline or termination, they begin the paperwork for an FMLA absence. Do you have any suggestions on how we could better police the FMLA process to limit abuse? …

Green light to discipline managers who doctor time cards

11/01/2007

In today’s litigious environment, it doesn’t take much for a disgruntled employee to launch a class-action overtime lawsuit. In fact, such litigation is sweeping the country—and costing employers millions of dollars. That’s why conscientious employers act fast to stamp out a dangerous and illegal practice: managers altering pay records to avoid paying overtime. If you catch managers cooking the payroll books, punish them promptly …

Will Isiah Thomas verdict open sex harassment floodgates?

11/01/2007

You probably heard about last month’s big $11.6 million sexual harassment verdict against former basketball star and New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas. The bad news: Your employees heard about it, too … and it planted a seed in their minds. Will they see your organization’s pockets as the path to a similar windfall? …

Drawing the line on tardiness: the legal risks

11/01/2007

Q. We’re having tardiness and absenteeism issues with our employees. If we place an employee on probation for an excessive number of times tardy and days absent, can we require no absences at all during the probation period? —C.V., New Jersey …