Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Managing employees with mental disabilities can be challenging—especially when the workers pose a threat to others’ safety. If you take preemptive action, you can get sued under the Americans with Disabilities Act, but if you don’t, you risk the tragic consequences of a violent incident. Two recent cases provide guidance on how to handle potentially […]
According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, compensation discrimination is still a very real workplace problem. Now, the EEOC has issued comprehensive new guidelines for when pay differentials are and are not legal. Here are the highlights.
Under changes to the state disability discrimination law that took effect January 1, you can be sued for failing to cooperate with a disabled employee to determine whether they need a reasonable accommodation and to explore available options. A new California Court of Appeal decision provides more detail on how you and the disabled employee […]
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently issued new guidelines explaining how federal employment discrimination laws apply to employee benefits. Last month we examined the rules regarding age discrimination. This month we look at the EEOC guidelines dealing with disability and pregnancy discrimination.
A bill just signed by Gov. Davis significantly raises the stakes in harassment cases by making all employees who harass co-workers potential targets of a lawsuit. We’ll focus on how the law has changed and the impact it may have on you and your workers.
Gov. Davis has signed into law a sweeping measure, A.B. 2222, that strengthens the disability discrimination protections for California employees. Because the new law—which goes into effect Jan. 1, 2001—could bring a flood of new disability-bias lawsuits, it’s more important than ever to use caution when handling accommodation issues.
In some situations, transferring an employee to a new position with a different supervisor might be an appropriate way to accommodate a disabled employee. But a recent ruling involving a Southern California loan underwriter demonstrates that courts won’t insist on a transfer without evidence that the move would enable the employee to work more productively. […]
If a pregnant employee is injured at work and her baby is born with health defects or problems, you could get blamed. Unfortunately, it’s not always easy to take preventive measures to protect a fetus from harm because some approaches that might seem sensible are actually illegal. We’ll look at a new case involving a […]
Five years ago, the EEOC issued rules explaining which medical exams you could require and what health questions you could ask job applicants without running afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Now, newly released guidance from the EEOC helps clear up some of the uncertainty employers face when these types of issues come up […]
As we went to press, the current state legislative session was drawing to a close, and a host of important bills that could significantly impact employers were pending. Here’s a rundown on key employment legislation on the docket in Sacramento and a quick overview of new federal laws under consideration.