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The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has published a new fact sheet with guidance on how the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to the hiring process. The fact sheet, available at www.eeoc.gov, addresses employer obligations to accommodate disabled applicants and medical inquiries that are and are not permissible during the hiring process.
Gov. Davis has signed landmark legislation to reform California’s troubled workers’ compensation system and put a lid on the upward spiral in workers’ comp costs faced by California employers. And now, after having pored over the numbers, the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB) has recommended that the 12 percent pure premium rate increase scheduled […]
Gov. Davis has signed new legislation that boosts the penalties for various California Labor Code violations, effective Jan. 1, 2004. Here are the increases that are on the way:
In earlier articles we reported on two new U.S. Supreme Court affirmative action decisions with implications for workplace diversity programs. Cultivating and maintaining a diverse workforce is a complex and ongoing process, and it’s not always easy to know how to proceed. This two-part series will address why organizations adopt diversity programs, ways to get […]
Many employers lease rather than hire employees to reduce the costs of managing employee payroll and benefits. Leasing firms usually carry workers’ comp insurance on the leased workers, which can save you money and headaches. But as one employer recently found, if you don’t administer your leasing arrangement carefully, you could face expensive legal problems […]
Regardless of whether your workplace has a formal diversity policy, it’s often hard to determine how and when race can be used as a criterion for hiring decisions. Two major new U.S. Supreme Court decisions offer some guidance. Although the cases deal with university admissions rather than workplace hiring, the court set out standards for […]
Bernard Lopez was an employee of Applied Technology Associates (ATA), which provided contract computer services for the Navy. Lopez sued the Navy, charging that it violated the disability accommodation requirements of the Rehabilitation Act, which is similar to the Americans with Disabilities Act, when it turned down ATA’s request for a handicap parking permit for […]
The U.S. Department of Labor recently published a proposal to update the 50-year-old Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) regulations defining white-collar exemptions. The new rules could take effect by the end of the year after a public comment and review process. But, as explained below, the changes probably won’t have much impact on California employers […]
Karla Jameson was a server for the upscale Five Feet restaurant in Laguna Beach. The restaurant required servers to give 10 percent of their nightly tips to the floor manager. The floor manager supervised the servers, acted as host, greeted customers, set up the reservation sheet and seating arrangement, and assisted in servicing tables. Jameson […]
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently issued new guidance to help employers understand the prohibitions against national-origin discrimination and to suggest best practices for fostering a bias-free workplace. Last month, we reviewed what the guidelines have to say about employment decisions and workplace security issues. This month, we’ll explain the guidelines concerning language requirements […]