An Ohio appeals court has ruled that an employee who quits to have a child and isn’t otherwise eligible for maternity leave isn’t entitled to unemployment.
Three-quarters of the women employees who got promoted last year at alcoholic beverage maker Diageo had flexible work schedules, including job sharing, flextime, compressed hours and telework. Among all female workers at the company, half reduced their hours at some point during the year, and 60% used flextime.
Supervisors sometimes get angry when employees accuse them of some form of discrimination. But if that anger spills over into increased scrutiny, more job tasks and other unpleasant conditions for the employees who complained, count on even more legal trouble. That’s why HR must do more than simply warn supervisors against retaliation.
The cost cutting and headcount reductions might not be over yet, but as the economy begins its slow recovery, HR pros are reporting fewer layoffs, a renewed focus on retention—and even a talk of pay raises! Still, the flush workplace of 2006 isn’t likely to rush back into vogue. Here are 12 lingering adjustments—all with comp and benefits implications—that could outlast the recession:
Can an employer that has fewer than 50 employees within 75 miles of the company’s work site willingly yet unwittingly be bound to provide its employees with FMLA rights and benefits? Maybe so. In Reaux v. Infohealth Management Corp., a federal judge recently ruled that employers that are not otherwise required to provide FMLA leave could wind up subjecting themselves to the FMLA by promising it to employees.
Employers that support pregnant and working mothers fare better if they do get sued by someone who believes she suffered pregnancy discrimination. That’s because courts are reluctant to believe that an organization would suddenly become biased after demonstrating a history of progressive policies for pregnant women and working mothers.
Question: “We have an employee currently on maternity leave who comes into work to check her e-mails, make work calls etc. This person has paperwork signed that she is on Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave for 12 weeks due to pregnancy complications. She is currently in her third week of leave. How should this be handled? Are there liability issues? We do not have a doctor’s release yet for this person.” — Anonymous
Are some of your organization’s supervisors still stuck in the Dark Ages when it comes to attitudes about pregnancy, childbirth and child care? If so, your organization may be a few off-base questions away from triggering a discrimination lawsuit. Remind managers and supervisors to keep their opinions on mothers and motherhood to themselves.
Under the FMLA, only employers that have 50 or more employees within 75 miles of the company’s work site are required to provide FMLA leave to their employees. The requirement is commonly known as the “50/75 rule.” Can an employer that has fewer than 50 employees within 75 miles of the company’s work site willingly agree to provide its employees with FMLA rights and benefits? That situation recently occurred in Reaux v. Infohealth Management Corp.
Under the FMLA, employers with 50 or more employees within 75 miles of the company’s work site are required to provide FMLA leave to their employees. But even if you're a small employer, innocent mistakes could make the “50/75 rule” meaningless to you — and force you to provide FMLA leave. Learn how to avoid that trap.
When an employee announces she’s pregnant, it’s important for HR and supervisors to know what they must do—and what they can’t do (or say) under federal anti-discrimination and leave laws. Most employers must comply with the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and the FMLA. The ADA may apply if pregnancy complications arise.
In today’s down economy, nearly every termination and layoff is fraught with risk. Layoffs are supposed to be blind on issues of race, sex, age, etc. But, if you are making these decisions in the dark, you are making a big mistake that could prove very costly. Before implementing a layoff, it’s crucial to review the demographics of who is staying and who is leaving.
It should come as no surprise that employees look for subtle as well as blatant retaliation. In one recent case, the employee thought that being asked to fill in (without being paid extra) for another employee who was on maternity leave was retaliation for her own discrimination complaint.
Here’s another reason for managers and supervisors to pay attention during FMLA and Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA) training. If they make a mistake, they may be personally liable under both laws.
Q. We have a pregnant employee who is planning to take maternity leave soon. Her performance has deteriorated badly during her pregnancy, but we don’t think her pregnancy has anything to do with it. Can we terminate?
It’s time to check your policy on maternity leave. An Ohio appeals court has ruled that it may be discrimination if you don’t provide maternity leave to employees who don’t qualify for your usual leave plan because they haven’t been on the job long enough.
A federal jury has awarded $74,000 to Melissa Brown, a former food service director at Plymouth House nursing home in Plymouth Meeting, after the contractor employing her dismissed her when she sought maternity leave. But that was just the beginning ...
The Supreme Court has ruled that women whose retirement benefits are worth less because they weren’t credited for time spent on maternity leave before enactment of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act can’t sue to recover lost funds. The decision in AT&T Corp. v. Hulteen generally followed the reasoning the High Court used in its landmark Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber ruling: If a policy was legal at the time alleged discrimination occurred, employees can’t challenge it retroactively.
The Supreme Court on May 18 ruled that women whose retirement benefits are worth less because they weren’t credited for time spent on maternity leave before enactment of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act can’t sue to recover lost funds. Learn more about a case with important implications for benefits programs.
Last year, U.S. employees filed a record number of legal complaints claiming they suffered discrimination at work. You know that U.S. anti-discrimination laws require managers to treat all applicants and employees equally. But what, specifically, do the laws require of supervisors and managers? Here’s a rundown.
Question: “An employee went on maternity leave and some of her duties were redistributed to other admins during her leave. I was given the responsibility of reviewing the company's wireless phones. In reviewing the contracts, I discovered the company could save about $10,000. However, the employee has returned to work and changed the online account password to prevent me from further access. I told my bosses, but they have not done anything about it. The employee is an executive assistant to the president. Should I just let it go?” — Anonymous
Carole Smith, who worked for property management firm Normandy Properties, sued the company for pregnancy discrimination, and a jury awarded her $600,000 in compensatory damages. Then it assessed the company $1.2 million in punitive damages.
Employees who are promised they can take “FMLA leave” may have a claim against an employer even if it turns out the company isn’t required to comply with the FMLA because it has fewer than 50 employees. Employees can argue that the employer misled them, and that the company should therefore be required to comply with the FMLA.
Employees who return from FMLA-covered maternity leave are supposed to come back to the same or a substantially equivalent position. Don’t make the mistake of offering a position that has the same title and pay, but which involves very different duties. That’s especially true if those duties are more onerous for a new mother.
Just the facts, ma'm. Your employee handbooks should clearly state your organization's rules and benefits without including any excess or superfluous language. If you embellish the document with needless explanations, you may end up eating your words ...
Q. Our company offers a health insurance opt-out incentive, paying employees $400 a month if they use their spouses’ insurance plans. We now have an employee going out on FMLA maternity leave. Do we have to keep paying her $400 per month?
At Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, 90% of new moms come back to work after they have their babies, but that wasn’t the case five years ago. Then, just 64% returned to work. So HR started throwing baby showers for expectant and adoptive moms and dads ...
Is your employee handbook clear on exactly what constitutes maternity leave and how long it lasts? If you plan to permit just the 12 weeks allowed for pregnancy and childbirth under the FMLA, spell that out. Don’t refer to maternity leave separately and then provide a different week or month count ...
Q. Our company offers a health insurance opt-out incentive, paying employees $400 a month if they use their spouses’ insurance plans. We now have an employee going out on FMLA maternity leave. Do we have to keep paying her $400 per month?
Most employment contracts are written documents prepared with the assistance of an attorney. However, an employment contract can be oral, written, or partially oral and partially written. If an employer isn’t careful, it’s easy to unknowingly enter into an employment contract with an employee.
If you have employees or operations in New York City, your sexual harassment and discrimination policies must reflect the strict rules employers are required to follow under the New York City Human Rights Law. It all adds up to a challenging HR environment. Your best bet in New York City—adopt a zero-tolerance policy for any sort of sexual, racial or other harassment.
During this term, the U.S. Supreme Court will consider employment cases concerning arbitration, pregnancy discrimination, protected activity and union fee use.
Is your employee handbook clear on exactly what constitutes maternity leave and how long it lasts? If you don’t spell out the details, you may run into
trouble if you try to discharge a new mother when her 12 weeks of FMLA leave have
run out ...
A short- and long-term disability-income protection plan kicks in the very day an employee starts work at Snagajob.com in Richmond, Va. The company pays 100% of the insurance, which lets employees receive 60% of their salary while on disability leave ...
A member of the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination
created quite a stir—and potential new obligations for Massachusetts
employers—when he announced in May that the Massachusetts Maternity
Leave Act should be viewed as gender neutral, so it might cover
men seeking paternity leave.
When an employee announces she’s pregnant, her employer had better be aware of the federal pregnancy discrimination law, state maternity leave laws and the employee’s right to FMLA and pregnancy disability leave.
When it comes to maternity or childbirth leave, women have at least two federal laws that protect them from possible discrimination: the FMLA and the Pregnancy Discimination Act. Employers who understand that the FMLA and the PDA work together aren’t likely to make mistakes that result in lawsuits ...
Question: “Last year I became ill shortly after I was given a new assignment. I
was gone about two months and then returned to work eager to continue
my assigned responsibilities. The day I reported back to work, my new
responsibilities were taken away and I was reassigned to grunt work,
basically "put out to pasture." My title and salary remain the same, so
the company could not be accused of discrimination. I am about four
years from retirement. I like the company, and I don't want to go on
the job market at this point. I have given essential services and
skills to the company for 13 years. No one else in the admin staff has
the particular knowledge or skill set I have. I have offered to train
or coach the others so that they can carry on when I retire, but no one
seems interested. Is there anything I can do to stay as valued and
appreciated as I was before my illness? Or is my only option to write
an admin manual covering the knowledge and skills I would like to pass
on?” — Caroline N. Packard
Q. Our office manager, who is pregnant, has begun coming in late two or three times a week due to morning sickness. Because she is a salaried employee, we know that we cannot deduct from her wages for partial-day absences. Can we change her position to one that is paid on an hourly basis until she returns from her maternity leave? ...
Q. We granted an employee maternity leave following the birth of her child—12 weeks of leave in accordance with the FMLA. Other than the FMLA, our company has no past practice or policy of granting leave (paid or unpaid) to employees except for their own medical conditions. Our employee claims that we will be discriminating against her because of her pregnancy and status as a new mother if we do not grant her additional leave time. I am aware of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act. Does it require us to grant our employee additional leave to care for her newborn? ...
Nothing builds a circumstantial sex discrimination case like needless pregnancy and parenthood comments. Explain to all managers and supervisors that their subordinates’ childbearing plans are absolutely none of their business ...
The New York State Department of Correctional Services (DCS) will pay $972,000 to 23 female DCS employees who were shortchanged by the department’s maternity leave policy when they became pregnant while on workers’ compensation leave ...
Arlington Host Corp., which formerly owned and operated the BallPark Inn in Arlington, settled a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit for $20,000 brought by the EEOC on behalf of a front-desk clerk who was pregnant when she lost her job ...
Q. Our policy requires an employee out on FMLA leave to run any accrued vacation or sick time concurrently with FMLA leave until that time is used up. (At that point, the FMLA leave becomes unpaid.) We also have a short-term disability (STD) policy that kicks in after seven consecutive days and lasts up to eight weeks. A pregnant employee recently requested 10 weeks of FMLA leave, starting upon the birth of her child. She currently has 3½ weeks of accrued vacation time. Can we require her to use up all of her vacation time once she goes out on maternity leave, even though she is also receiving STD payments? ...
Indiana is about to join 14 other states that already have enacted laws to support breastfeeding women by protecting their right to express milk in the workplace. Starting July 1, 2008, Indiana companies that employ at least 25 workers will be required to provide certain basic facilities for women to express breast milk during the working day ...
Q. We are a small not-for-profit organization with eight full-time and 20 (give or take) part-time employees. One of our full-time employees is asking about maternity leave. We currently do not have a policy in place for maternity leave. What are our options? ...
When it comes to discrimination claims, timing can be everything. An employer that discharges or demotes a pregnant employee (or one who has just given birth) is asking for a discrimination or retaliation lawsuit. If you have a poorly performing employee who is pregnant or just gave birth, don’t do anything adverse until she has returned to work for some time ...
Not every employee wants to take FMLA leave, and employers sometimes don’t designate paid time off as FMLA time. But an employee doesn’t have to request FMLA leave in order to be protected by the law. That means you can’t refuse to reinstate an employee when she returns from leave. Doing so would amount to interference with the right to FMLA leave ...
Fortune magazine recently published its 2008 list of “100 Best Companies to Work For,” and two Minnesota companies made the list. The Mayo Clinic ranked 59th, and General Mills came in 69th ...
Fortunately for employers, not every temporary physical restriction is a disability under the ADA. Before you entertain accommodations, look at the claimed disability and decide whether the problem will resolve itself within a reasonable time frame or if it permanently impairs a major life function ...
Kathleen Williams, a former teacher at Sauganash Elementary School in Chicago, is suing the city school district and the Chicago Board of Education for $5 million, claiming she was fired for being pregnant ...
Barbara Sykes said it was “political back and forth” that led her to resign her post as appointed head of Ohio’s Civil Rights Commission (CRC) just before her confirmation hearing. Sykes locked horns with Gov. Ted Strickland over the commission’s proposal to expand Ohio’s maternity leave requirements ...
In the fall of 2007, the Ohio Civil Rights Commission’s proposed revisions to the rules governing pregnancy discrimination became a hot political topic. Due to some unusual political wrangling, the future of the proposed rule revision is very much in question ...
After using up their available 12 weeks’ unpaid FMLA leave, many new mothers request additional time off. If you agree to additional time off to be covered by a short-term disability policy, check to see if that policy includes job protection. If it doesn’t, you don’t have to hold her job or even reinstate her. Don’t, however, start the search for her replacement while the employee is still on FMLA leave ...
Good news for public school employers: Employees who allege they have been discriminated against under the New York Executive Law have just one year to start litigation—as specified in the New York Education Law. Most other employees have three years to mull over their lawsuit options ...
Question: “Our company wants to establish a policy for maternity leave or
long-term sick leave. We’re a small company and have never formally
established a policy. Since we’re growing, we want to enable our
employees to take leave without using all their vacation time. What are
some suggestions that have worked for other companies?” — Sydney
Eckersley
Employees who quit in frustration when their harassment complaints go unheeded can sue, claiming they were “constructively discharged” because conditions were unbearable. That’s why it’s crucial for the HR office to respond to each and every complaint. Doing so can head off a surprise lawsuit ...
Many employers try to simplify medical leave policies by adopting the same eligibility requirements set by the FMLA. But those same employers sometimes make exceptions for select employees, especially if they are seen as too valuable to lose to a short medical leave. Watch out if that’s your informal practice. Denying that flexibility to pregnant employees probably violates the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act ...
The Ohio Civil Rights Commission has proposed a new statewide policy to guarantee 12 weeks’ maternity leave to mothers working for companies with as few as four employees, with no minimum length of service. The law would replace Ohio’s existing law, which requires companies to give a “reasonable period of time off,” a standard which has been confusing ...
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act has important implications for how employers treat pregnant women during the hiring process and after, once they become employees. Here are the EEOC's answers to some of the most common questions employers face.
Employees who work for educational institutions on a temporary basis from semester to semester—substitute teachers, for example—may be eligible for unemployment compensation if they are offered a substantially different position (with lower pay) the next term. But if the new assignment is essentially the same as the previous assignment, they can’t refuse the offer and receive unemployment compensation ...
Employees seeking relief from on-the-job discrimination on the basis of their race, sex, age, national origin or religion can typically pursue their claims under federal law, Ohio law (Ohio Revised Code Section 4112.02) or both. In most cases, it doesn’t matter whether the employee sues under state or federal law—the court will apply the same cases and reasoning. The same is not true in pregnancy discrimination cases. That’s because the Ohio Civil Rights Commission interprets pregnancy discrimination quite differently than does its federal counterpart, the EEOC ...
Question: What is your opinion? An individual is job searching, and she’s three
months pregnant. Does she inform a potential employer that she’s
pregnant (voluntarily)? If so, how? If not, after she’s employed ...
how and when? Should she just stay at her current employer? -
Jean/Kansas
About 70% of all hires at Findley, Ohio-based hiring firm Right Thing come highly recommended by the organization’s own employees. What gets employees talking to their friends about joining the firm? It’s the company’s laid-back atmosphere—with no formal managers or departments—and an employee profit-sharing plan that involves half the company profits ...
The EEOC just issued guidelines stating that one’s status as a family member can’t be considered in employment decisions. The agency says the guidelines address “family-responsibility discrimination.” They draw on earlier theories about so-called “gender-plus” discrimination ...
Some new mothers returning to work after giving birth request time off during the workday to express and store breast milk. Some states have passed specific laws protecting nursing women from harassment and discrimination ...
If your organization is considering early retirement as an incentive to move out highly compensated employees, do your homework first. To properly calculate seniority, you’ll need to check how unpaid leave was handled years ago ...
If you’ve never heard of “family-responsibility discrimination,” or FRD, you soon will. The EEOC has issued new guidance to help employers understand how federal anti-bias laws apply to workers with caregiving duties. The result: Expect more awareness (and lawsuits) from employees , plus more enforcement from the EEOC and state anti-bias agencies.
If it's been awhile since the last overhaul of your employee handbook, you may be courting danger. Establish a regular revision schedule for your handbook, updating it once a year or whenever significant statutory changes occur ...
HR Law 101: The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) of 1978 prohibits discrimination on the basis of "pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions." Employers can't deny a woman a job or a promotion merely because she's pregnant or has had an abortion ...
HR Law 101: Employee handbooks are extremely valuable business tools. But if you're not careful, your handbook could land you in court. In particular, employees are increasingly suing for wrongful discharge, pointing to a handbook they claim guaranteed them employment indefinitely ...
Q. Our maternity leave policy offers paid leave for female employees who plan to return to work after the birth of the child. If the employee quits before returning to work, she's required to reimburse the company for the paid leave. Is this lawful? —A.C., Maryland
Q. Is there a law or reasonable standard regarding how many weeks maternity leave should be? And should we make that a written policy in our employee handbook? Even with FMLA, to which our employees are entitled, we thought maternity leave was either six or eight weeks, depending on type of delivery. —J.F., Pennsylvania
Q. When an employee returns from maternity leave, do we have to give her the very same job she had or can she be put to work in a different type of position? —J.B., North Carolina
Q. One of our employees is on leave after giving birth. She may qualify for a position that recently opened up. Do we have an obligation to notify her of that opening? —R.D., Ohio
Q. My company offers 10 weeks paid maternity leave. Recently, a male employee asked whether he could take maternity leave. I said no, only women are eligible to take such leave. Was I right? —K.R., Maryland
When employees return from FMLA leave, you're required to restore them to the same position or a comparable one. That requirement might make you hesitant to make any changes to employees' jobs or conditions of employment while they're out on FMLA leave. However, a new court ruling shows that you can make minimal changes to a job description without worrying about FMLA violations ...
HR Law 101: If it’s been awhile since you last overhauled your employee handbook, you may be courting disaster. You should establish a regular revision schedule and update your handbook once a year or whenever significant statutory or other changes occur ...
Question: How do you address an issue with a co-worker who speaks and laughs very loudly
in ongoing conversations at work, which is very disruptive when you're
doing your work?
The problem is that no one seems to say anything to this person,
even though everyone -- especially her supervisor -- knows that this is
a problem.
How can this situation be remedied? Help! -- Virginia
Remind your managers: Contrary to popular belief, female employees don't need to be pregnant to earn legal protections under the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA). Even nonpregnant employees can sue. ...
Issue: Employees can sue for FMLA retaliation only if they've put in the minimum hours to become eligible for FMLA leave. Benefit: Less risk of first-year employees winning FMLA-retaliation suits. ...
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) protects employees against retaliation for taking FMLA leave. But a recent court decision makes clear that employees retain these rights only if they're actually ...
Issue: It's up to pregnant employees to decide if pregnancy or maternity will prevent them from performing their jobs. Risk: Liability for up to hundreds of thousands of dollars in ...
Under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), you can't fire a pregnant worker simply because of her condition. Nor can you force her to take leave as long as she's physically ...
If you've only semiunderstood the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) until now, it's time to brush up. Reason: The 24-year-old law is spawning its greatest number of claims yet. (See chart below.) ...
Dr. Tina Thomas, an optometrist with Pearle Vision Inc., requested maternity leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). After all, a summary of employee benefits said "all employees with ...
Denise Davis missed a lot of work over more than five years due to maternity leaves and her Crohn's disease. During this time, her employer continued to accommodate Davis by ...
Moira Kelly received an extension of her maternity leave, with one caveat. Her company informed her by letter that she was considered a "key employee" under the Family and Medical Leave ...
If you operate a small business, don't take it for granted that you're immune from state discrimination laws. It's true that state anti-bias laws don't apply ...
