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Employment Law

Do you recommend anti-harassment training?

11/23/2011

Q. Our company is considering anti-harassment training for all employees. Some managers and executive are concerned that this will stir up lawsuits. Do you recommend such training?

Court eliminates one strategy for ending class-action litigation

11/23/2011

Resourceful defense attorneys have tried a few legal tactics to help em­­ployers defend against wage-and-hour class-action lawsuits. One strategy is to “tender an offer of judgment” to the named plaintiff before the case gets to the collective-action certification stage. Unfortunately, the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals has removed this arrow from defense counsels’ quiver.

EBSA says employer took liberties with retirement funds

11/23/2011

The U.S. District Court for West­ern Pennsylvania has ordered Kevin T. Weir, chief executive officer of Liberty-Pittsburgh Inc., to repay $67,138 to his employee’s 401(k) plan. The settlement resulted from an in­vestigation by the U.S. Depart­ment of Labor’s EBSA.

Harrisburg-area town mulls sexual orientation protection

11/23/2011
Dauphin County’s Susquehanna Town­­ship is considering an ordinance barring employment and housing discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. If enacted, the suburban Harrisburg township would form a volunteer board to investigate any claims that arise.

Update in works for FLSA computer professional exemption

11/23/2011
A bipartisan group of U.S. senators wants to update the definition for computer professionals under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Computer professionals who earn more than $27.63 per hour are currently exempt from the FLSA. But the bill’s sponsors claim the state of computer technology has rendered outdated old definitions of the IT profession.

EEOC: Brownsville butcher sexually harassed subordinates

11/23/2011
The EEOC is suing Country Fresh Market and Fredericktown Produce for sexual harassment after several women who work there filed complaints against the store’s head butcher.

Part-time after childbirth? Careful how you figure pay

11/23/2011
Here’s an unexpected factor to consider when an employee requests part-time work following childbearing leave: How you set her pay rate may create Equal Pay Act problems.

Is employee being set up to fail? Beware boss’s criticism of ‘soft’ skills

11/23/2011
Discrimination can creep into the workplace, even if on the surface there’s nothing blatantly offensive going on. There are still supervisors who treat subordinates poorly because of race or some other protected characteristic. That’s why HR should exercise caution before authorizing discipline against an employee who is meeting concrete goals like sales figures, but is being criticized for more general problems.

Tell supervisors: No matter the inconvenience, never interfere with employees’ FMLA rights

11/23/2011
Let’s face it: It makes a manager’s job harder when employees are out on FMLA leave. That’s especially true with intermittent leave. Don’t let those hard feelings turn into an FMLA interference lawsuit. Instead, insist that managers honor approved intermittent leave without hassling the employee.

Check eligibility before sending FMLA letter

11/23/2011
A federal trial court has ruled that FMLA-ineligible employees can sue if an employer erroneously told them they were eligible for leave and they relied on that information to their detriment.