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HR Management

Restrict access to data about protected characteristics

06/03/2008
One of the most important HR functions is monitoring whether your organization is unwittingly discriminating when hiring, firing or promoting. To do that, you obviously have to know who belongs to what protected classification. At the same time, you don’t necessarily want the supervisors and managers who make employment decisions to have that information at their fingertips …

Noose incident leads to citation at Frontier Airlines

06/03/2008
Denver-based Frontier Airlines says it disciplined two employees who harassed a black co-worker with a noose at Denver International Airport. Juan Sequeira, with help from a fellow employee, allegedly made the noose and showed it to the co-worker in the break room …

Employees find dog in rubble

06/03/2008
A gas explosion at Good Times Adventures, a tour company in Breckenridge, flattened a building on top of Brian Milanski and his dog, Lulu. Four hours later, rescuers extracted Milanski, but there was no sign of Lulu …

Settlement can include clause that bans reapplying

06/03/2008
Not all discrimination claims are crystal clear. Sometimes, employees are treated unfairly, and those situations deserve to be fixed. In such cases, employers may be tempted to settle, offering a small payment along with an agreement that the employee who complained will get additional training or a fair shot at a promotion. But consider the possible aftermath …

Warn about personal liability when conducting discrimination training

06/03/2008
Are you trying to find ways to get employees to listen during your annual harassment and discrimination training session? Here’s something that should get their attention …

Career audits: Does your job work for you?

06/03/2008

Every year, you probably receive (or help write) your performance evaluation. But have you really evaluated your job lately? Doing a “career audit” is a way of asking yourself: How is my position actually working for me? We talk you through the questions you need to ask yourself.

El Paso commissioners withdraw support for immigration raids

05/30/2008
On May 5, El Paso County officials adopted a resolution calling for an end to workplace immigration raids until Congress passes comprehensive immigration reform legislation. The “Rights and Justice for Immigrant Workers” resolution calls for eliminating employer sanctions and no-match letters …

Training tests may provide important screening opportunities

05/30/2008
Do your new hires have to complete a comprehensive training and testing program before they’re allowed to start work? If you can show your tests are valid and necessary (and they don’t disproportionately screen out any particular protected class), chances are a new employee who alleges discrimination because you didn’t keep him won’t get far with a lawsuit …

Public employee free speech: Only statements of ‘Public concern’ protected

05/28/2008
The U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment protects public employees from being fired for engaging in some forms of free speech—but that protection is quite limited. For example, the right to free speech doesn’t mean that public employers can’t sack employees who maintain explicit or offensive web pages …

Back up discipline with details from your investigation

05/28/2008
Like any responsible employer, your organization probably has a comprehensive employee handbook that details your internal policies and how you handle disciplinary decisions. But no handbook can cover every possible situation. So it’s not enough for supervisors and managers to simply cite a particular rule violation as the reason for firing or suspending an employee …