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Q&A

Do former employees have the right to demand copies of their personnel files?

07/24/2012

Q. We recently fired an employee who worked in our office. Several weeks later, our HR department received a phone call from the man demanding a copy of his personnel file. Are we required to send him a copy?

Can former part-timers collect unemployment?

07/24/2012

Q. Our company received a claim for unemployment compensation from one of our former part-time employees. Are part-time employees eligible to receive unemployment benefits?

Can we lay off a department and require reapplication?

07/24/2012

Q. I recently read about an employer laying off an entire division and then making those employees reapply for newly reconfigured jobs in that division. This sounds like a good way to get rid of deadweight and lower our payroll. Are there any legal problems with this? Will those who don’t reapply still be eligible for unemployment compensation?

How long should we keep applications?

07/20/2012
Q. We are swamped with applications, most from people who don’t meet our basic requirements. We typically toss out applications that clearly aren’t from qualified applicants. Should we keep copies?

What are the new EEOC rules on age bias?

07/18/2012
Q. What is the final rule that the EEOC issued regarding the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)?

Must we give FMLA leave to caretaker uncle?

07/16/2012
Q. One of our employees has apparently taken in his sis­­ter’s young child because his sister is undergoing cancer treatment. He wants to take FMLA leave to help the child adjust. Must we provide the leave?

What’s the timetable for reverifying I-9s?

07/13/2012
Q. When should we reverify employees’ work eligibility on the Form I-9 they signed when they were hired?

When can we insist on a substance-abuse test?

07/13/2012

Q. A couple of weeks ago, an employee came into work smelling like alcohol. His supervisor later reported that day that the employee “acted drunk” in a staff meeting. Yesterday, one of the same employee’s co-workers indicated that the employee came back from lunch “smelling like marijuana.” Can these reports justify requiring the employee to undergo a drug or alcohol test?

Must we grant FMLA leave for employee to provide care to her niece?

07/13/2012

Q. An employee has requested FMLA leave to care for her 5-year-old niece who is recovering from heart surgery. The employee’s sister and her daughter live with the employee. Is leave under these circumstances protected under the FMLA?

Does an employee have a right to ‘correct’ a discipline report that’s going into her file?

07/10/2012

Q. We recently disciplined an employee for repeated insubordination because of her attitude toward her supervisor. We wrote her up and placed a warning report in her file. Now she is protesting the accuracy of the report and demanding the chance to “correct” it. Can we force her to sign our disciplinary report as-is?