Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
A federal jury recently awarded $375,000 to a Maryland state trooper who claimed his employer refused to let him take time off to care for his newborn daughter. The award, believed to be the first in a sex discrimination case brought under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, highlights the importance of treating male […]
The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics has just released a new survey showing the latest trends in employee benefits. The study describes what medium and large private employers offer in terms of paid leave, health and retirement benefits, and life insurance, and it provides a useful benchmarkfor comparing your own employee benefit plans. When it […]
The U.S. Department of Labor has released three free brochures to help educate workers covered by employer-sponsored health plans. The brochures address topics such as how marriage, pregnancy, childbirth and divorce affect health care choices; what to do when a child is no longer dependent; how retiring or changing jobs impact coverage options; and how […]
Under a new policy, the U.S. Department of Labor and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, which oversees government contractors, will no longer inspect I-9 forms when visiting a worksite to follow up on worker complaints about labor violations. The policy shift is an attempt to encourage undocumented employees to file such complaints without […]
When hiring a new employee, promoting an existing worker or reviewing compensation packages, it always helps to know what your competitors are paying. You don’t want to shell out too much or discourage the best talent by paying too little. California employers have just gotten some new tools to assist them. The California Employment Development […]
After a 13-year wait, the Internal Revenue Service has just released its comprehensive regulations covering COBRA health benefits continuation coverage. The new regulations-which are a complex mix of final and so-called proposed rules-clarify several gray areas of the law but don’t change the basic COBRA mandates, including the detailed notice requirements. Even though the rules […]
Seasonal workers who are hurt on the job are not entitled to 12 months of continuous modified or alternative work as a replacement for vocational rehabilitation benefits, a California Court of Appeal has ruled. The case involved Jennifer Henry, a ski instructor at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area. After she injured her back, Henry requested vocational […]
An Orange County jury has ordered Edwards Theaters Circuit Inc., based in Newport Beach, to pay $276,000 in back overtime wages to four theater managers who claimed they were misclassified as exempt from overtime. The employees said they spent more than half their time performing non-exempt work, including cleaning up, taking tickets and selling popcorn, […]
Most employers understand, in principle, that it’s illegal to retaliate against a worker who in good faith complains about an unsafe or illegal condition at work. In practice, however, retaliation cases are rarely black and white. Frequently, problems arise when an already difficult employee begins griping about something you feel is irrelevant or unimportant-and the […]
One of your employees has been violating work rules. You document the problems and eventually terminate the worker. It appears you’ve done everything right and responded appropriately to the employee’s misconduct. But a new ruling makes clear that viewing each case of discipline and termination in a vacuum can get you in trouble. Even if […]