Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
The U.S. Supreme Court will take up several workplace-related cases this year. In one, the court will review a Ninth Circuit ruling regarding the type of evidence a terminated employee can use to prove job discrimination when an employer has both legitimate and illegal reasons for the discharge. Other cases on the court’s docket involve […]
A group of truckers sought back overtime pay from their employer, Overnite Transportation Co. The truck drivers argued that when the state Legislature passed A.B. 60 in 1999, reinstating daily overtime—following its repeal in 1997—it abolished a previous “motor carrier” exemption from overtime for workers whose hours of service are regulated by the Department of […]
The U.S. Department of Labor has announced it will soon release new regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act to increase the salary level required for exemption from overtime, which was last updated in 1975. The new regulations will also clarify and simplify the existing complex rules regarding the types of job duties exempt workers […]
President Bush has proposed important changes to the types of retirement accounts available to American workers. The changes are designed to make retirement savings simpler and more attractive. The president proposes to create Employer Retirement Savings Accounts (ERSAs), which would streamline, consolidate, and simplify the maze of employer-sponsored plans, including 401(k), SIMPLE 401(k), 403(b), and […]
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has reported that workplace discrimination complaints filed by employees in the private sector were up 4.5% in 2002, to the highest level in seven years. The types of bias complaints that saw the greatest increases were those based on religion (up 21% over 2001 figures), age (up 14.5%), and […]
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration has changed its name to the Employee Benefits Security Administration, or EBSA. The EBSA will assume the former PWBA’s responsibilities of administering private-sector retirement, health, and other employer-based benefit programs. Visit the EBSA’s website.
Because of increasing diversity in the workforce—and a spike in discrimination complaints since the events of Sept. 11, 2001—taking steps to avoid national-origin bias is more critical than ever. Now, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has released updated guidelines to help employers understand the prohibitions against national-origin discrimination and to suggest best practices for […]
Just two years ago, Wal-Mart reportedly shelled out $50 million to settle a dispute with Colorado employees who claimed they were forced to work off-the-clock. Now the retail giant is embroiled in a string of 30 lawsuits across the country brought by employees who charge that managers required them, too, to work unpaid overtime. In […]
Most California employers know that agreements that restrict employees from competing with former employers are illegal and that California courts won’t enforce them. But because of a new California Supreme Court ruling, it is now riskier for you to hire someone who has signed a noncompete clause with a company from another state. This new […]
You pay hefty premiums for liability insurance. So when a former employee sues your company’s president, you expect that your insurer will defend your organization. But as one employer recently found out, even if you think your insurance policy should cover employment-dispute lawsuits, it probably contains an employment-related practices exclusion—and you could be left to […]