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Employment Law

Bonus plans don’t erase your overtime obligations

07/01/2003

Q. We plan to roll out an incentive plan for all employees. The incentive would be calculated monthly but paid quarterly in addition to regular pay. As part of the plan, we are eliminating overtime. Can we still have employees punch in to monitor attendance or can that come back to haunt us if they work extra hours to reach the incentive threshold? —J.B., New Jersey

Cosmetic surgery usually won’t qualify for FMLA leave

07/01/2003

Q. One of our employees is having cosmetic surgery and plans to take leave. Would that fall under the FMLA, or would it be a leave of absence? —K.H., Connecticut

Employee behavior change can count as FMLA ‘notice’

07/01/2003
Issue: You may need to somehow decipher employees’ need for FMLA leave from a “sudden behavior change.”
Risk: Dramatically expands employees’ protection under FMLA.
Action: Warn managers to notify …

Don’t make promises the company might not keep

07/01/2003
Issue: Courts will make your company follow through on oral promises you make about benefits.
Risk: You or an ill-informed manager could inadvertently force your company to provide benefits it …

Learn the legal risks of viewing school records

07/01/2003
Issue: Using school transcripts to screen applicants can lead to discrimination claims.
Risk: Without guidance, hiring managers can inadvertently use school records …

Pursue claims, even if complaining worker backs off

07/01/2003
Issue: Courts place the burden on employers to complete investigations of sexual harassment complaints, even in the face of reluctant complainants.
Risk: Failing to pursue complaints actively will come back …

Investigating workplace harassment: 10 steps to success

07/01/2003
Issue: Responding to employee harassment complaints is a high-stakes venture.
Risk: A botched investigation can damage employee moral and spark a lawsuit.
Action: Make sure you (or any manager …

Rewrite policy to prevent moonlighting during FMLA leave

07/01/2003
Issue: Unless your policy prevents it, employees can work a second job while out on medical-related FMLA leave.
Risk: Reduced productivity as employees “work” the system.
Action: To prevent …

Keep data on employees’ race separate

07/01/2003

Q. We have all new employees fill out a data sheet. Is it OK to ask for race on this form? —J.M., Nevada

Don’t dock exempt worker for partial-Day absence

07/01/2003

Q. If an exempt employee has no more paid leave left, can he take a couple hours off without pay? We’d just manually adjust his salary to reflect this. —A.D., Pennsylvania