Month: April 2010

What You Get from Givin’ Back

I’m in New Orleans for a two-day meeting of the Employers Counsel Network, a group of leading labor and employment attorneys from across the country who write the state Employment Law Letters and Federal Employment Law Insider. One of our members suggested that while in New Orleans we should volunteer with Habitat for Humanity. You […]

Be Careful What You Wish For

“This Is Why You Don’t Date Co-Workers” — that’s what tonight’s episode of The Office should have been called. In an amazing twist of fate, this may be the only episode of The Office in which Michael Scott is (a) the voice of reason and understanding and (b) does virtually NOTHING offensive. Instead, this episode […]

Health Care Reform and Workers’ Compensation

by Donald M. Harrison Will health care reform affect workers’ comp? Even though the term “workers’ compensation” isn’t mentioned in the bill, I anticipate both direct and indirect effects on workers’ comp. Most of the consequences are unknown at this time and may not be known for several years, but two direct results are already […]

Was Termination Because of Poor Performance or Age Discrimination?

by Isabella Lee The Eleventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently rejected the “same decision” affirmative defense in age discrimination cases following the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Gross v. FBL Financial Services. The Eleventh Circuit ultimately decided that employers that use age as a reason for termination cannot seek to dismiss a case […]

‘Back in the Lobby’ Article Draws Reader Fire

By Steve Bruce, Editor, HR Daily Advisor Just My E-Pinion Our headline in a recent issue of HR Daily Advisor—"He’s back … in the lobby … with a gun"—was calculated to attract attention; that’s what headlines do. But not the kind of attention we attracted. A number of readers were upset by the headline and […]

Supreme Court Rules for Employer in Benefits Case

By David R. Godofsky Yesterday’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Conkright v. Frommert rejects the “one-strike-and-you’re-out” rule, awarding a home run to Xerox as sponsor of a defined benefit pension plan. The Conkright case arose when Frommert and other employees brought a claim for benefits. The employees contended that the method Xerox used to compute […]

Key to Successful Flex, Telework Programs

Our headline in a recent issue of HR Daily Advisor—"He’s back … in the lobby … with a gun"—was calculated to attract attention; that’s what headlines do. But not the kind of attention we attracted. A number of readers were upset by the headline and wrote to tell us so. The headline was taken from […]

Recordkeeping: How long to hold on?

Litigation is the ultimate test of the adequacy of an employer’s recordkeeping practices, says attorney Allen Kato of the San Francisco office of Fenwick and West LLP. Of course, the courtroom isn’t the ideal place to discover that records are inadequate, incomplete, or nonexistent.

Rework

Employment law attorney Michael Maslanka reviews Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson’s book Rework, finding that the authors offer valuable lessons for changing the way your organization works. Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson is a fascinating book. It consists of around 100 chapters, each two or three pages long, with some cool […]

Flex Perks: Waste or Path to Profits?

Flextime, telework, and other perks: Are they feel-good frippery or the path to profits? In today’s Advisor, we’ll take a look at two companies that have reaped substantial rewards from employee-based thinking and flexible scheduling. First, let’s take a look at Robert W. Baird & Company, an employee-owned, international wealth management, capital markets, private equity, […]