Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
In an important new ruling, the California Supreme Court has held that employees who are harassed by co-workers cannot seek damages from the employees who actually did the harassing. We’ll look at the new ruling and provide an overview of just who can be held liable in this rapidly changing area of the law.
After Thomas White was fired from his job at an Ultramar convenience store several years ago for allegedly stealing a soda, his employer was ordered by a jury to pay $342,000 in lost earnings and punitive damages. And the company’s legal expenses were just beginning, as the case wound its way through the state appeals […]
Whenever you discipline or terminate an employee for misconduct, you open yourself up to the possibility of a defamation lawsuit if you say something negative about the person to other employees. But as a recent case shows, exercising caution in internal discussions about a worker’s wrongdoing can help keep you out of trouble, or provide […]
When a group of Latino Avis Rent-A-Car employees at the San Francisco International Airport filed a harassment lawsuit charging a manager with using derogatory racial epithets, they were awarded more than $100,000 in damages. But the workers didn’t stop there. They also convinced the court to issue an order barring the manager from making offensive […]
After selling and delivering bottled water for more than three years, Peter Ramirez quit his job and sued his employer, Yosemite Water Company, for back overtime. His lawsuit, which went all the way to the California Supreme Court, highlights how difficult it can be to determine whether or not outside sales personnel qualify as exempt […]
Late last year, the California Supreme Court ruled that only employers-not individual managers and supervisors-can be forced to pay damages for workplace discrimination claims arising out of routine employment decisions. But the ruling left the door open for lawsuits against individual managers for harassment or retaliation. Now, a new decision illustrates just how easily a […]
As employers are finding out all too often, getting tough and firing employees who harass other workers can bring on another big headache-a wrongful termination lawsuit. Although the California Supreme Court addressed this troublesome issue earlier this year, it’s been unclear exactly what steps you should take to protect yourself from being sued by an […]
Clarifying an issue that has long divided lower courts of appeal, the California Supreme Court has ruled that only employers-not individual managers and supervisors-can be forced to pay damages for workplace discrimination claims arising out of routine employment decisions. But supervisors are still at risk for huge damages in cases involving harassment and retaliation-and possibly […]
It was an employer’s worst nightmare come true. A manager fired for sexual harassment turned around and sued for wrongful termination and won $1.7 million in damages. But now, the same case has ended as a significant victory for employers who face charges they fired someone based on untrue allegations.
If a pregnant employee is injured at work and her baby is born with problems, the child can later sue you for damages. That’s the latest word from the California Supreme Court. This new decision could open the door to expensive lawsuits involving fetal injury claims-which won’t be covered by workers’ compensation laws that limit […]