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The Employer Handbook Blog
Articles Posted in Religion
There are better ways to improve employee morale than with exorcisms and sex questionnaires, I’m told.
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Howard Stern interviewed Alec Baldwin recently. Mr. Baldwin was talking about going to anger management classes and realizing quickly that, well, he’s really not that angry. At least not compared to some of the other folks required to attend anger management classes.
Now, consider your most pain-the-butt, problem employee.
Girl Scout Cookies and Employment Law – Almost Everything That HR Needs To Know
Won’t you help little Ivy Meyer achieve her Girl Scout Cookies sales goal?
It’s that time of year again.
Coworkers have begun bombarding you with requests to purchase Girl Scout Cookies. So, in that spirit, let’s tackle:
- Whether unions will start organizing your workplace if you relax your no-solicitation policy to allow employees to sell Girl Scout Cookies;
- Can employees use your email system to proselytize if co-workers use it to sell Girl Scout Cookies; and
- A bonus discrimination case involving the sale of Girl Scout Cookies gone terribly wrong.
Not every offhand comment, slight, and insult is a federal lawsuit.
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Meet “John” the firefighter. Continue reading
Although firing a proselytizing employee may be perfectly legal, making fun of him is a really bad idea.
Image Credit: Pixabay.com (https://pixabay.com/en/angel-church-religion-edward-312462/)
Just ask a midwest employer that had its motion for summary judgment denied and now may have to defend a hostile work environment claim before a federal jury. Continue reading
SCOTUS sides with baker that refused to bake a cake to celebrate gay marriage. But, it’s not what you think.
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By Jeffrey Beall – Own work, CC BY 4.0, Link
Most of you have probably heard of the case that went to the Supreme Court involving a Colorado baker who would customize a wedding cake for a same-sex couple because he believed that doing so would violate his religious beliefs. The case is called Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission.
Yesterday, in a 7-2 ruling, the Supreme Court sided with the baker.
Today, you’ll read headlines like, “Supreme Court sides with Colorado baker who refused to make wedding cake for same-sex couple” or “Supreme Court Hands Win To Baker Who Refused Service To Gay Couple”
But, don’t get it twisted. Continue reading
If you’re considering forcing your employees to practice the “Onionhead” religion, well, don’t.
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We employment lawyers have stories upon stories.
When it comes to the employer-employee relationship, especially when that relationship hits the skids, we’ve seen it all.
But, every once in a while there comes a story that even raises my eyebrows. Continue reading
Do your employees understand the limits of their freedom of speech? If not, educate them.
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Do your employees appreciate that what they do on social media on their own time can cost them their job?
Do your employees think that “freedom of speech” can save them from getting fired? Continue reading
BOOKMARK THIS: A blueprint to providing an employee with a religious accommodation
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I started the week presenting to HR audiences in DC and NJ about accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Today, I want to pivot into religious accommodations by highlighting a recent federal court decision, which can teach employers a thing or two about how to engage in a good-faith interactive dialogue. Continue reading
PODCAST: “Losing My Religion: Title VII and flu shot accommodations” (ft. Brooks and Ivy Meyer)
Last Thursday, the Third Circuit of Appeals issued this opinion in Fallon v. Mercy Catholic Medical Center of Southeastern Pennsylvania, in which the court addressed religious accommodation and flu shots. Specifically, the court focused on what constitutes “religion” under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
So, rather than write this up as a blog post, I thought I’d enlist the help of two family members who apparently enjoy flu shots; namely, my older son Brooks (8) and my older daughter Ivy (6). Continue reading