How to avoid turning your costume party into an HR nightmare
Today is Halloween. Truth be told, Halloween is one of my least favorite holidays. It always has been and always will be. I never liked it, ...
Archive: October 2013
Do you employ minors? Then read this sexual harassment case.
By Jon Hyman
R.W., age 16, worked at Land of Illusion, a haunted theme park. She reported to Brett Oakley—48 years old—the park’s owner and a friend of h...
Halting the tide of religious-discrimination claims
By Jon Hyman
According to the Wall Street Journal, religious-discrimination claims are on the rise . Companies big and small are being affected by the ...
Yes, it’s legal… (10 more things companies can do without breaking the law) #yesitslegal
By Jon Hyman
Every now and then, I come across a blog post that I wish I had written. Last Friday, I read one of those posts. Suzanne Lucas (aka, the Ev...
WIRTW #294 (the “all I want” edition)
By Jon Hyman
Satellite radio has so overplayed Kodaline’s All I Want that, even though I like the song, I instinctively switch channels any time it come...
The legal reason why you shouldn’t force employees to turn over social media passwords
By Jon Hyman
There has been a lot of ink spilled out on the supposed practice of employers requiring employees to provide access to their private social...
When Coyote Posts Get Ugly (My latest column in Workforce magazine)
By Jon Hyman
Each month I write a featured column in Workforce magazine. This month, my column focuses on the risks businesses take when then take to so...
A hypnotic tale about choice of law and non-compete agreements
By Jon Hyman
Choice of law is one of the most important, and, often, most ignored decisions you can making in drafting a non-competition agreement. Lifes...
Riffing on the right way to do workforce reductions
By Jon Hyman
Anthony Rachells was a top performer at Cingular Wireless. As a National Retail Account Executive in Cingular’s Cleveland region, he receive...
WIRTW #293 (the “interview from hell” edition)
By Jon Hyman
Is this the worst (fake) job interview ever ? Here’s the rest of what I read this week: Discrimination Fortune on the EEOC’s legal war...
Smoking out the law on e-cigarettes in the workplace
By Jon Hyman
29 states, plus the District of Columbia, have laws prohibiting anyone from smoking in the workplace . Like similar bans in other states, Oh...
The devil went down to the EEOC… A story on religious accommodation
By Jon Hyman
Halloween is almost upon us, which mean that it’s only appropriate to discuss one of the EEOC’s last actions before the government shutdown—...
Can George Costanza sue for sexual harassment or retaliation?
By Jon Hyman
In an episode of Seinfeld, George Costanza lost his job after the cleaning woman , with whom he had sex on his desk in his office after hour...
The case regarding intern harassment
By Jon Hyman
By now, you’ve probably read about Wang v. Phoenix Satellite Television (S.D.N.Y. 10/3/13) [pdf] , the New York federal court case dismissi...
WIRTW #292 (the “hot pockets” edition)
By Jon Hyman
Are you looking for some fresh idea on how to spruce up your management style? Look no further than these four tips from corporate-guru Jim ...
How to handle the malingering FMLA abuser
By Jon Hyman
Let’s say you have an employee who claims to be suffering from a chronic back injury. He even has doctor’s notes certifying that his back pa...
It’s time to end sexual orientation & gender identity discrimination
By Jon Hyman
There is currently legislation pending in both the Ohio House [ H.B. 163 ] and Ohio Senate [ S.B. 125 ] that would include “sexual orientati...
751,942 (and a half) marks against the EEOC in background check litigation
By Jon Hyman
It’s no secret that criminal background checks rank highly on the EEOC’s hit list. The EEOC has taken the position that a policy that per se...
Fired for posing for Playboy? Or, how does an employer prove a negative?
By Jon Hyman
Jessica Zelinske, a 33-year-old Minnesota mom, is suing her former employer after it fired her for appearing in Playboy’s 2011 “Hot Housewi...
WIRTW #291 (the “if you can’t beat ‘em…” edition)
By Jon Hyman
At The Employer Handbook Blog, Eric Meyer is polling his readers with the question, “ Would you hire this employee ?” The employee in quest...
Facebook “likes” as free speech
By Jon Hyman
In Bland v. Roberts , a Virginia federal court dismissed a First Amendment retaliation lawsuit brought by a group of terminated city employe...
Must you pay your employees for civic and charitable work?
By Jon Hyman
October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, which means that businesses all over the country will be sponsoring events to combat this disease ...
It’s the final countdown: How the government shutdown affects labor and employment law
By Jon Hyman
In case you haven’t heard, as of 12:01 a.m. this morning, the federal government is closed . Your business will feel this shutdown in many ...