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The Employer Handbook Blog

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Organized labor’s favorite 12-foot inflatable protest balloon prevails — red eyes, fangs, claws and all.

Yesterday, the National Labor Relations Board issued this decision in which it found that a union did not violate the National Labor Relations Act by displaying a 12-foot inflatable rat with red eyes, fangs, and claws. You and I know him as Scabby the Rat. Not to be confused with…

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250,000 reasons to consider a reasonable accommodation — even if the employee can perform his job duties anyway

Jami430, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Once during mediation, a federal judge asked me if I knew which type of discrimination jurors hated the most? I thought maybe age discrimination or retaliation, which jurors could either relate to personally or through a spouse or parent. “No,” said the federal…

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Can you legally fire a “victim” whom you honestly believe has fabricated a discrimination complaint at work?

Image Credit: Piqsels.com (CC0 public domain license) Let’s answer one of the most common questions that I receive when I speak at HR events. The answer is yes, according to this recent federal court decision. I’ll explain why in a bit, but let’s start with the unique facts. The plaintiff…

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Because you asked, I’ve got so many great trans-inclusive resources for you and your workplace today

Danachos, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Thank you for all of the positive feedback and comments both via email and here on LinkedIn following yesterday’s transgender pronoun post. Many of the requests were for additional resources to promote a trans-inclusive workplace. So, last night, I searched the interwebz and…

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One of your employees objects to using transgender co-workers’ personal pronouns. Now what?

Amousey, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons Most employees are at-will; they can be fired for any reason or no reason at all. And intentionally misgendering a co-worker would be enough. But, what if the employee objects on religious grounds? 🤔 I may have an answer for you. It comes from this…

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New Jersey is not f**king around with employee misclassification

Image Credit: Photofunia.com Since taking office, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has committed to battling worker misclassification, i.e., treating employees as independent contractors. Misclassifying employees as independent contractors can deprive workers of wages and benefits and also have tax ramifications too. In 2018, New Jersey teamed up with the U.S.…

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Yep, President Biden ordered the FTC to curtail private companies from using of non-competes.

Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons I warned — didn’t I? — you that President Biden was preparing to tell the Federal Trade Commission to either ban or curtail private employers from using non-competition agreements. On Friday morning, the White House…

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Wait, WHAT?!? Is President Biden planning to ban private employers from using non-competes?

Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay So much for my blog servers getting a much-needed Friday rest. On Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki held a press gaggle aboard Air Force One en route to Crystal Lake, IL. About halfway through her prepared remarks, she dropped this bomb on employers:…