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Employment Law

Must we hold job for injured worker?

06/08/2011
Q. We have an employee who has been off work for more than 10 months because of a workers’ comp-covered injury. We have no idea when she may possibly be able to return to work. Are we absolutely required under the law to give this employee her job back whenever she believes she is ready to return to work, no matter how long she has been out?

Without a noncompete agreement, can we stop a former employee from undercutting us?

06/08/2011
Q. We just had a successful salesperson quit his job and join one of our major competitors. We did not, unfortunately, have him sign either a noncompete agreement or a confidential information agreement. We are very concerned that he may have taken, and may be using, some of our company’s confidential business information, including detailed customer information. Is there anything we can do about this situation, given the absence of any written contract?

Check your leave policies! EEOC looks at return-to-work issues

06/08/2011
Now is the time to review your return-to-work policies and practices for employees on leave. They need to be integrated without regard to the reason that prompted leave. Treating workers differently depending on the reason for their absence opens the possibility of a disability discrimination claim.

Franken introduces Arbitration Fairness Act

06/08/2011

Sen. Al Franken has introduced a bill aimed at undoing the Supreme Court’s recent decision in AT&T v. Concepcion, which barred class ­actions in arbitration cases. The Arbitration Fairness Act would prevent employers from requiring applicants and employees to agree to ­arbitration as a condition of employment.

Feds issue new tip-credit pooling rules

06/08/2011
Employers are now free under federal law to set the percentage of employee tips that can be placed in a tip pool. But Minnesota employers need to be aware of a crucial difference between federal and state laws.

Court upholds $40 million verdict for Xcel lineman

06/08/2011
A lineman for Minneapolis-based Xcel Energy will collect $40 million from Qwest Telephone as a result of a 2004 accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down.

Federal appeals court rules on OT for city firefighters assigned to state duty

06/08/2011
Government entities that employ fire­fighters face thorny Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) problems. The law requires overtime pay for fire­fighters who work more than 204 hours in a 27-day period. But that can get complicated when a local agency assigns its firefighters to battle wildfires for the state.

Applicant doesn’t have ‘property right’ to job

06/08/2011

Good news for government agencies: People who apply for government work don’t have a property interest in a potential job, even if they make the list of finalists, and others on the list don’t want the job. That’s true even if the hiring committee states it plans to hire someone from the list and then does not.

Settlement accepted? That makes it a contract

06/08/2011
Here’s something to remember when your attorneys are negotiating a settlement agreement in a pending lawsuit or other claim: As soon as you and the other party agree to an offer, a contract is formed and the terms are binding. That’s true even if the agreement hasn’t yet been signed.

What’s the New Jersey law on paydays?

06/08/2011
Q. Are there specific rules on when I must pay my employees?