Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Question: When crafting a severance agreement, should you follow the guidelines of the state the employee resides/works in or the state where the company is incorporated? Answer: Before addressing the specific question about which state’s laws would apply for the enforcement or consideration of a severance agreement, let’s address the importance of such agreements in the […]
Question: We provide laptop computers to all our personnel. Many employees damage them during employment or return them with damage upon leaving employment. What are our options for recouping from employees the costs of repairing or replacing the damaged employer-owned materials? Answer: Basically, the company’s two main options for recuperating losses for damage to company […]
Question: Are there any laws regulating whether managers and supervisors are allowed to know the compensation of the employees they supervise? Answer: There’s currently no law that regulates whether managers and supervisors are allowed to know the compensation of the employees they supervise. Employers may therefore implement policies restricting the sharing of this information. However, […]
Question: We have an employee whose essential functions require the use of their hands. They have requested an accommodation, and their physician has recommended a few weeks of time off until specific medical restrictions can be determined. What is our obligation to pay this employee during this doctor-recommended leave of absence? Answer: The leave of absence […]
Question: An employee worked his entire 40 hours by Wednesday and has requested paid time off (PTO) for Thursday and Friday, bringing the week’s total hours worked to 56. Are we required to pay him for the additional requested time, considering he had already worked his 40 hours and our handbook says PTO is to […]
Question: One of our employees has been in and out with cold and flu symptoms, but he was recently diagnosed with strep throat. The leave originally wasn’t classified as Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave, but because the official diagnosis occurred almost a month after the first missed workday, does the time he took off […]
Question: Are we obligated by law to disclose that our company vehicles are geographically tracked? If so, what is the best practice when advising employees their company cars will be trackable at all times? Answer: As a general rule, employers aren’t required to provide notice or obtain consent to install tracking devices on company-owned vehicles. There […]
Question: One of our employees is on intermittent Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave. She’s gotten sick and claims it’s unrelated to her reasons for being on FMLA leave. Can we include these days in her FMLA time and have them go unpaid? Answer: No. Unless you have reason to believe she’s being untruthful, […]
Question: We have an employee who is currently breastfeeding and having issues with her performance. She’s reserving our mother’s room four times per workday for an hour each time. Is there a way to navigate this excessive use of the accommodation according to the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA)? We’re concerned about her ability to get […]
Question: Would it be noncompliant to require employees to work both the day before and the day after a holiday in order to receive holiday pay? Also, would it break any pay laws not to provide holiday pay to an employee who calls out sick before a holiday? Answer: Federal law doesn’t require pay for […]