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Terminations

What risks do we run if older worker loses job in restructuring?

03/26/2009

Q. We’re a small business (just eight employees) and haven’t laid anyone off. But business is slow and we need to restructure. We have an employee who has worked here part time (12 hours per week) for 25 years. She is 65 years old. We have one other part-timer (10 hours per week) who has worked here just one year. We’d like to lay off both part-time employees and keep the full-time employees. Can we do that?

DITO DITA … Do It To One. Do It To All

03/24/2009

Do you sometimes let employees bend company policy … just a little? It’s really no big deal, right? A new court ruling warns that if you start bending a policy for one, you’d better be ready to bend it for all. Being flexible can sometimes be fatal.

Zero tolerance for tardiness: Legal but unwise

03/24/2009

Q. Our company’s owner is tired of tardiness and has instituted a new rule that says anyone who is tardy will be fired, no matter the reason. Recently, some people were tardy during a snowstorm when their train could not make it on time. We were told to fire them. What do you think?

IRS, DOL release guidance on new COBRA rules

03/24/2009

The IRS and the U.S. Department of Labor have just published guidance to help employers claim the credit for the new 65% COBRA subsidy and create the mandatory new COBRA notices. Look here for links to the documents and information you need to comply.

Feds publish more details on new COBRA subsidy, notices

03/24/2009

Confused about the 65% COBRA subsidy provision that was included in the big federal stimulus package approved in February? You’re not alone. In an effort to clarify things, the IRS has published new information on its web site to help employers claim the credit for COBRA medical premiums they pay for former employees.

Stop retaliation against workers who tip off drug use

03/20/2009

Remind managers not to punish or otherwise retaliate against employees who report suspected drug use by fellow employees. Such tip-offs may constitute protected activity, and retaliation may lead to a lawsuit.

What happens to accrued PTO leave when an employee separates?

03/20/2009

Q. Our company is considering replacing sick leave and vacation benefits with a paid time off (PTO) program. How are these plans treated upon the termination or resignation of an employee?

Make solid case for axing good but toxic worker

03/20/2009

Sometimes, an employee is so disruptive that it doesn’t matter how well she is performing her job. Constant arguments, tension and other elements of a personality conflict can poison the work environment and drag down other employees’ performance. She’s got to go!

No-contest plea no bar to school employment

03/20/2009

If a defendant pleads nolo contendere, the criminal court system treats that as a conviction, even though a nolo contendere plea means the person neither contests the charges nor admits they are true. But then there’s the quirky realm of school employment, in which a wrinkle in the legislation governing who may work at schools means a no-contest plea isn’t necessarily a conviction.

Employees can’t count on free attorney in most cases

03/20/2009

Sometimes, employees who want to sue their employers don’t have the cash for up-front fees lawyers demand. If the employee has little money, she may ask the court to find free legal representation. But that will work only if she’s already looked hard for an attorney herself—and the EEOC or another agency has concluded her case has merit.