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Terminations

It’s your right to demand good performance—even from employees who take FMLA leave

05/11/2009

Employees who take FMLA leave or engage in other protected activities sometimes look for signs their employer is illegally punishing them. They interpret every legitimate request for improvement as retaliation. Fortunately, courts are beginning to reject those frivolous claims.

Worker claimed retaliation? Don’t fear legitimate firing

05/11/2009

Sometimes, employees think all it takes to keep from being fired is a well-timed complaint alleging discrimination, harassment or retaliation. That, they reason, will scare an employer into overlooking poor performance or even criminal behavior. Don’t fall for it.

Fired woman’s case heats up by 1 degree

05/11/2009

When Cristi Turpin completed her doctoral dissertation and defended it before her committee at Southern Illinois University (SIU), she assumed she had a doctorate in the bag. But the university’s computer system continued to show she hadn’t earned her doctorate. So the company that hired her then fired her for lying on her job résumé.

Deny religious accommodations at your peril

05/11/2009

In a move that is surprising many, the EEOC has been taking on religious accommodations cases involving obscure and ill-defined religions. In one recent Florida case, the agency won the right to a jury trial for an employee who claims her religion requires her to wear a nose ring.

Note extraordinary offense when you must fire

05/11/2009

You have disciplinary rules for a reason. They tell employees what to expect and guide managers and supervisors so they don’t inadvertently treat employees who belong to a protected class more harshly than others. But disciplinary rules have to be a little flexible—loose enough to let you distinguish between minor infractions and major ones. Here’s how to strike the right balance.

Heaven-sent policy advice for supervisors: No proselytizing or urging workers to convert

05/11/2009

Employees have the right to practice their own religious beliefs—and not be subjected to proselytizing by their supervisors or others with influence over their work. Constant exhortations to be “saved” or otherwise renounce religious beliefs can create a hostile religious environment and great potential for a lawsuit.

Got a good reason to fire worker who has requested FMLA leave? Document and do it!

05/11/2009

Some employees are under the mistaken impression that merely asking for FMLA leave means they cannot be fired. That’s simply not true. Employees who take FMLA leave don’t have greater rights than other employees.

Beware firing after employee files workers’ comp claim

05/11/2009

Florida employees are protected from retaliation for filing workers’ compensation claims. Any move that may be seen as punishment or retaliation—that comes shortly after an employee files for workers’ comp—may lead to a lawsuit based almost entirely on timing alone.

Law doesn’t cover blowing whistle on co-workers

05/11/2009

Florida employees are protected from retaliation for whistle-blowing, but courts have been limiting what they consider to be blowing the whistle. For example, in one recent case, a court concluded that a co-worker’s attempts to report a fellow pharmacy worker’s lax prescription practices was not whistle-blowing.

Chicago’s Loyola law students mastering the recession

05/11/2009

With the possible exception of employment law, the legal profession has been hit hard by the recession. Today’s law school graduates are now competing with cadres of laid-off attorneys for dwindling positions. So, Loyola University Chicago School of Law has devised a way for law students to weather the economic storm.