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Terminations

Give employees advance notice of severance plans, waivers

05/01/2003
Don’t spring severance-plan details on employees right before a layoff. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) says you must give employees advance notice …

Look at job duties, not signed pact, to decide employee/contractor status

03/01/2003
What if your independent contractors wake up tomorrow and decide they actually should be considered employees? Too many companies think they’ve got a bulletproof …

Don’t try to block employee’s lawyer from talking with your staff

03/01/2003
If Disgruntled Don in accounting sues your company, his lawyer can talk with other employees and, under most state laws, there’s not much …

Lower-level bias can illegally taint firing decision

03/01/2003
When it comes to discrimination affecting your company’s hiring and firing decisions, what you don’t know can hurt you. That’s why it’s important to reiterate …

Simple pain complaint doesn’t count as FMLA notice.

03/01/2003
A worker who previously fractured his coccyx told his boss he was “in pain from his tailbone” and needed to go to the doctor that day. Although the boss told him …

FCRA: How to comply with background-check rules

03/01/2003
THE LAW. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) regulates how your company performs background checks on job applicants. Contrary to popular belief, this federal law …

Beware unintended bias against unmarried workers, applicants

03/01/2003
A new study gives your single employees and applicants new ideas for a lawsuit. The study by consultant Challenger, Gray and Christmas says unmarried people …

One ‘come-on’ can equal sexual harassment

03/01/2003
Don’t hesitate to discipline first-time sexual-harassment violators. Even one outrageous comment or act, if severe enough, can make your company liable for fostering …

Offer accommodation, but don’t mandate extra leave

02/01/2003

Q. We’re afraid that a previously injured worker returned from medical leave too early. Can we require him to take additional leave if it’s obvious that the injury is still hurting his job performance? —M.D., Wyoming

Employee Can’t Claim COBRA if Not Enrolled in Plan

02/01/2003

Q. We offer insurance benefits that begin six months after hire. Due to changing business conditions, we had to terminate an employee after only 10 months on the job. But the worker wasn’t signed up for the health plan on his termination date. Does he now have any claim to COBRA? —M.R., South Carolina