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Employment Law

Crawfish étouffée: $143,000

07/21/2008
The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) has agreed to pay more than $143,000 to settle sexual harassment complaints by Mary Harris, a GDOT secretary, and Carrie Hart, who staffs the front desk in the commissioner’s office …

Employee in the hot seat loses claim he was falsely imprisoned

07/21/2008
Zachary Shannon began working for OfficeMax in January 2006. When the company hired him, Shannon signed a standard agreement that he would not photocopy pornographic materials. On Jan. 14, an employee found pornographic photocopies on one of the store’s copiers …

How employers can stick to their guns under the BSEPA

07/21/2008
Georgia’s Business Security and Employee Privacy Act (BSEPA) took effect July 1, 2008. The law expands employees’ rights to transport lawfully registered firearms in their vehicles even if they are traveling to work. The law will not turn the workplace into shooting galleries, but it will limit employers’ rights to search employees’ vehicles …

Avoiding reference-Related retaliation claims

07/21/2008
Q. How should we handle giving references about a former employee who was involved in litigation against the company or filed an administrative charge with a government agency, such as the EEOC or the DOL? Should we include that information in response to the reference? Or should we not provide any information at all? …

‘Utilization review’ is exclusive way to challenge treatment

07/18/2008
The California Supreme Court has ruled that there is only one way for employers to challenge the medical treatment injured workers and their doctors want to pursue. All challenges must use a process created by the California Legislature called “utilization review.”

Set—And enforce—Text messaging and paging privacy policy

07/18/2008
Public employers may have to revise their cell phone, e-mail and text messaging policies in light of a recent 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision. If you handle HR for a government agency, make sure you have a strong privacy policy that spells out your right to read text messages transmitted over employer-paid services …

Patience, paperwork: The right way to fire serial complainers

07/18/2008
Sometimes, employees who are having performance problems think that filing discrimination complaints will help protect their jobs. Word has gotten around that employees can win retaliation cases even if the discrimination claims they make are flimsy. But employers won’t lose a retaliation case if they can show that the employee really did deserve the discipline that followed the discrimination complaint …

Holiday premium isn’t the basis for overtime calculation

07/18/2008
Good news for California employers that pay their employees time-and-a-half for holiday work: You don’t have to cough up additional pay for overtime hours worked on a holiday …

Pair of cases shows how you can legally use arbitration, but standards are high

07/18/2008
Two recent cases involving arbitration clauses in employment demonstrate the danger of relying on arbitration agreements to avoid litigation. Federal courts decided one case, while California’s appellate courts decided the other. Both found unconscionable the arbitration agreements employers used. Therefore they were invalid …

Santa Clara firm fined for not accommodating lactating mom

07/18/2008
A Silicon Valley security services company has been fined $4,000 for failing to provide a private space for one of its employees to express breast milk. California regulators fined International Security Services, based in Santa Clara, after receiving a complaint from a new mother …