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Employment Law

Asian food vendor in hot water over hiring practices

12/13/2011
The Nishimoto Trading Co., which sells Asian foods to various defense department facilities, has agreed to pay $400,000 in back wages to women who alleged the company illegally refused to hire them. Nishimoto operates a facility in Miramar.

Rough reentry for Space Coast firm that defied fed auditors

12/13/2011

United Space Alliance, a cooperative venture between aerospace giants Lockheed Martin and Boeing, has refused to turn over payroll records from its Cape Canaveral facility to federal investigators. The request follows a 2009 investigation of the company’s affirmative action program by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.

Don’t fear legit discipline after employee complains

12/13/2011

Some employees try to use an EEOC complaint as a shield against criticism and discipline. They hope their employer will think twice before disciplining them for fear of a retaliation suit. Yes, a lawsuit is possible. That doesn’t mean you can ignore poor work.

Beware schedule changes that lower pay! They could trigger discrimination lawsuits

12/13/2011
When an employee’s workload is reduced and her pay declines because she’s working fewer hours, she may be able to sue. The pay reduction qualifies as an adverse action, which can trigger litigation.

The easy way to stop most bias lawsuits: Enforce all rules evenhandedly

12/13/2011
It’s impossible to know if a termination will lead a former employee to sue for discrimination. That’s why it’s crucial to enforce all your rules equitably. You don’t want an employee to be able to say that someone else broke the same rule without receiving harsh punishment.

Use formal application processes to ward off failure-to-hire/promote lawsuits

12/13/2011
You might assume that, before suing for failure to hire, job seekers and employees going for promotions would have to actually apply for the jobs they didn’t get. Unless your company has a robust, easy-to-use posting and application process, you could be wrong.

New Florida FMLA status: Pet abuse victim?

12/13/2011
State Sen. Mike Fasano has proposed an amendment to Florida’s Family and Medical Leave Act that would allow workers to take time off to protect their pets from potential domestic abuse.

FMLA: No reinstatement guarantee for trial job

12/13/2011
Here’s a twist on the FMLA’s requirement to restore an employee to her previous job after she returns from leave: If an employee has been provisionally promoted but takes intermittent FMLA leave, she’s not necessarily entitled to the new job when her leave expires.

Keep full records on length of try-out stints

12/13/2011
Some employers prefer to offer employees a trial run before making a new promotion official. There’s a danger, though: If you end up keeping the employee on “training” status longer than you did others who don’t share his protected class, he may claim discrimination.

OSHA issues new rules on investigating violence

12/13/2011
OSHA has issued its first written en­­force­­ment instructions regarding incidents of workplace violence. Officials will use the directive to decide whether allegations of workplace violence warrant an investigation.