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Employment Law

Impartial discipline: The best defense against bias claims

02/20/2018

Treat all employees impartially and you’ll rarely end up on the losing end of a discrimination lawsuit.

No slack for employees who take FMLA, then get caught breaking your rules

02/20/2018

Employees who take FMLA leave are not immune to discipline discovered while they are out on FMLA leave or after they return to work.

Court: GrubHub drivers are contractors

02/16/2018

A federal judge in California has issued a ruling that should delight gig economy businesses.

Graco alone now opposes Minneapolis minimum

02/14/2018

The Minneapolis ordinance requires large employers (those with $500,000 or more in gross annual revenue) to pay $15 per hour by July 1, 2022.

Note 90-day deadline after EEOC right-to-sue letters

02/14/2018

Employees who receive their EEOC right-to-sue letter have just 90 days to file a federal lawsuit. Advice: Note that deadline as soon as you receive your copy.

Requesting religious accommodation isn’t protected, but that doesn’t kill lawsuit

02/14/2018

Employees who engage in so-called protected activity under Title VII cannot be retaliated against for doing so. But the definition of protected activity is narrow.

Employees have up to two years to file FMLA interference lawsuits

02/14/2018

Employees have up to two years after a request for FMLA leave is denied to file an FMLA interference lawsuit unless the violation was willful.

OK to add more reasons for termination, as long as they’re consistent with first rationale

02/14/2018

Some former employees who sue over alleged discrimination try to discredit their employers’ explanations for discharge. Even so, employers have a great deal of flexibility about how they explain the reason an employee was fired.

MHRA doesn’t require interactive process

02/14/2018

Disability protections under the Minnesota Human Rights Act differ from those set by the ADA. Employers covered only by the MHRA and not the ADA are free to reject a reasonable accommodation request without consulting with the employee.

Work romance ends? Separate the former lovers

02/14/2018

When a sexual relationship between a supervisor and a subordinate ends, there’s likely to be trouble in the workplace. If the subordinate is complaining about how her former lover is treating her at work, the only safe course of action is to remove the supervisor entirely.