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The owner of a Comfort Inn & Suites franchise will pay $27,500 to settle claims that it discriminated against an employee because she was pregnant. The case reminds employers to keep in mind that the law prohibits discrimination against pregnant employees, and that employers may need to accommodate them. Ramin Inc., which owned a Comfort […]
Furthermore, Morris adds, your wellness program may get way more important under the Affordable Care Act. Morris, who specializes in benefits, is a member of the firm Epstein Becker Green in its Washington, D.C., office. Wellness Is Popular, But Hard to Define A recent survey found that 70.3 percent of 539 employer respondents reported offering […]
Two employers entered into settlement agreements with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in February after the federal agency alleged the companies had violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. Both employers, the commission said, fired employees who were entitled to leave as accommodations for their disabilities. The first involved Doneen King, an employee with the […]
The “2012 NCSA/Symantec National Small Business Study” (www.staysafeonline.org/stay-safe-online/resources) was conducted by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) and Symantec. The study found that 87 percent of small businesses have at least one employee who uses the Internet daily. In addition, 70 percent of owners/operators of small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in the United States indicated […]
Review of Charge Activity, Backlog, and Benefits Provided On November 19, 2012, the EEOC announced the publication of the FY 2012 Performance and Accountability Report. During FY 2012, the Commission again received nearly 100,000 charges, with the past 3 years involving a record number of charges in the Commission’s 47-year history. Since FY 2006, there […]
Why Pay Is an Easy-to-Litigate Issue Harassment (“He made me uncomfortable”) is vague and often tough to prove, and discrimination (“You didn’t hire me because I am a member of a protected class”) is also hard to prove. But with pay issues —it’s there in dollars and cents for the agency rep or a jury […]
True or False: An employer is free to fire a pregnant employee once she has exhausted all her leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act. The most accurate answer: It depends. The FMLA requires covered employers to provide up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave for the birth of a child. On the other […]
An employer may have to tolerate an employee’s constant tardiness if it is caused by a disability, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals indicated March 4 in McMillan v. City of New York, No. 11-3932 (March 4, 2013). The court remanded the case to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New […]
PowerPoint helps trainers organize and present training content effectively, but it “is a lousy tool for learning, at least when it’s used the way most presenters and trainers use it: as a visual display of lecture notes,” says Sharon L. Bowman, MA, a professional speaker and trainer and president of Bowperson Publishing & Training, Inc. […]
A job function can be “essential” for Americans with Disabilities Act purposes even if it is rarely performed, recent case law illustrates. To qualify for ADA’s job protections, employees must be able to perform all of their job’s essential functions, with or without a reasonable accommodation. “Essential functions” are defined as the fundamental job duties […]