The Employer Handbook Blog

Appeals court revives disability bias claims of one-handed bus driver

August 9, 2012 | by Eric B. Meyer

Tammy Rosebrough was born without a left hand. In September 2007, she applied for a cook position at Buckeye Valley North High School. However, due to a shortage of bus drivers, the school encouraged Rosebrough to become a bus driver. Rosebrough accepted.

Rosebrough claimed that, during her training, her trainer made discriminatory comments to her about her disability on two separate occasions. Rosebrough reported the comments and was informed that her concerns would be addressed.

Later, during her training, Rosebrough was informed that she would need a commerical driver’s license (CDL). She scheduled a CDL test with the State, but later cancelled when her trainer was unavailable to take her to the test. Over the next several months, Rosebrough contacted several other testing centers and school districts but learned she could only be trained by the school district that ultimately hired her. Rosebrough never contacted Buckeye Valley again to return and finish her training.

What do Ravishing Rick Rude and sex discrimination have in common?

August 8, 2012 | by Eric B. Meyer

A federal court described Charles “Chuck” Wolfe, a crew superintendent in of an all-male construction crew, as a “world-class trash talker” and a “master of vulgarity.” One of the members of Wolfe’s crew was Kerry Woods, a straight male. Woods claimed that his supervisor, Wolfe another straight man, had engaged in unlawful “same sex” harassment, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, by referring to him in “raw homophobic epithets and lewd gestures.”

A jury heard Woods’s claims and awarded him nearly $500,000. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals heard the employer’s appeal, threw out the jury award, and dismissed the complaint (in this opinion).

Why? Find out after the jump…

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Facebooking about “naked Twister” may doom one’s sexual harassment claims

August 7, 2012 | by Eric B. Meyer

And some of you wonder why I enjoy blogging about HR and employment law.

More after the jump…

(What I won’t do for my loyal readers….)

Can the words “Emergency Room” trigger an FMLA request?

August 6, 2012 | by Eric B. Meyer

As you know from this post, an employee who wants leave from work under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), does not need to use the word, “FMLA.” Instead, the employee need only provide enough information for the employer to understand that the employee needs FMLA leave.

So what about the words, “Emergency Room”? That is, if an employee calls her supervisor and says:

“I am currently in the emergency room. My mother has been brought into the hospital via ambulance, and I am unable to work today.”

Can that trigger an FMLA request? Find out after the jump…

413,000 reasons for HR to avoid inconsistent employee discipline

August 3, 2012 | by Eric B. Meyer

Inconsistent discipline is bad. But, when an employee’s request for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act precedes the inconsistent discipline by only 48 hours, damn, that’s not just a lawsuit, that’s jury-verdict material.

The details on this bloodbath and a few lessons for my employer-readers after the jump…

Snoop Dog becomes Snoop Lion! And news of a new employee Facebook law

August 2, 2012 | by Eric B. Meyer

Calvin Broadus a/k/a Snoop Dogg is now the artist formerly known as Snoop Dogg. During a recent trip to Jamaica, Snoop was apparently *** afraid to add snarky ~~strikethrough~~ for fear of losing job *** “born again” and is now Snoop Lion.

But in even BIGGER news —

Drop it like it’s hot!

A scary NLRB decision threatening the integrity of workplace investigations

August 1, 2012 | by Eric B. Meyer

HR heads are still spinning as they try to digest what the National Labor Relations Board has tried to accomplish this year.

The Acting General Counsel has issued confusing reports on social media. The Board has also attempted to create quickie union elections, and require companies to abide by a union-poster rule. Why, just a few weeks ago, the Board ruled that an “at will” provision in an employee handbook may violate the National Labor Relations Act. That one is still a head-scratcher for me.

But the National Labor Relations Board has really stepped in it again, dealing another crushing blow to HR. I think you’ll agree with me when you read on after the jump…

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“An employee walks into a hospital wearing a Jesus lanyard…”

July 31, 2012 | by Eric B. Meyer

They can’t all begin with a priest, minister and a rabbi walking into a bar. Then again, it’s “Religious Accommodation Tuesday” here at The Employer Handbook. So, after the jump, we’ll discuss the test to determine whether an employee may lawfully don religious items at work and find out whether the hospital worker in this case has a potential religious discrimination claim (Hint: he does).

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HR Manager emails bolster employee’s ADEA and FMLA claims

July 30, 2012 | by Eric B. Meyer

Documentation is good; smoking-gun emails from the HR Manager not so much.

After the jump, I’ve got a few doozies which now have a financial institution going to trial on a former employee’s age-discrimination and Family and Medical Leave Act claims.

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