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Terminations

State Pays Out Nearly $4 Million After Firing at-Will Employee

09/01/2006

If you’ve ever wondered how much it costs an employer to defend a discrimination lawsuit, a Pennsylvania case may provide the answer …

Give staff at least 15 days to obtain FMLA certification

09/01/2006

When it comes to collecting proof about an employee’s FMLA medical leave, one stupid mistake can cost your organization big bucks. That mistake? Not giving employees at least 15 calendar days to obtain the necessary medical certification to prove their need for FMLA leave …

Returning soldiers aren’t at-Will employees … temporarily

09/01/2006

If you plan to terminate an employee who recently returned from military duty, you need a clear, business-based reason for your action. You can’t fall back on "at-will status" as a reason for firing in such cases …

Announcing terminations: What’s the smartest way?

09/01/2006

A reader of our weekly e-mail newsletter, The HR Specialist Weekly, recently posed this question: “How do you let other employees know when you’ve fired someone?” Following are some of the responses from other readers …

Isolated racist comments won’t always be discrimination

09/01/2006

You know the workplace should be free of racially or sexually charged comments and that supervisors most certainly shouldn’t engage in such banter. But you can’t wipe prejudice out of every employee’s mind …

Firing ‘Worst of the best’ isn’t age discrimination

09/01/2006

If economic conditions force you to downsize, be prepared for lawsuits. That’s especially true if no employees stand out as obvious poor performers who should be canned. In such cases, articulate that you have no choice but to fire "the worst of the best" …

Cut Out the Age Jokes; Employees Aren’t ‘Antiques’

09/01/2006

Workplace humor is fine until it drifts into the realm of gags about employees’ gender, race or religion. Even age-based jokes can trigger lawsuits. Although few employees will win age-discrimination lawsuits based on a joke or two, such juvenile behavior can take an otherwise marginal case and give it legal legs …

Workers face high hurdle proving ‘Constructive discharge’

09/01/2006

Sometimes, employees who believe they’re being harassed or discriminated against feel the situation is so bad that they’re forced to quit. This is called "constructive discharge" …

Business interference is tough to prove in Pennsylvania

09/01/2006

Pennsylvania law makes it easy to enforce noncompete contracts. But trying to make a business-interference claim against an ex-employee is almost a lost cause …

Firing employee on workers’ comp may be legal

08/01/2006

Texas law makes it illegal to fire an employee in retaliation for filing a workers’ compensation claim. But that doesn’t mean employees are untouchable just because they’re out on workers’ comp. You can legally discharge injured workers under a reasonable absence-control policy that applies to all employees, regardless of how they were injured or became ill …