Must you tell employees when you are surveilling their devices?

It’s unusual these days for an employee not to have a device issued by their employer, or on which they can access their employer’s information — cell phones, tablets, laptops, and other computing devices.

Conventional wisdom (California notwithstanding), is that if the employer owns the device, the employee has zero privacy rights in that device, its use, or the information stored on it.

That conventional wisdom, however, might be changing.

“Tone down your gayness” = $20 million

A jury has awarded a St. Louis County police officer nearly $20 million over allegations that his superiors repeatedly denied him a promotion because they thought him too gay.

According to The Washington Post, the sergeant had more than 15 year of experience when he applied for a promotion. “The command staff has a problem with your sexuality,” he was told. “If you ever want to see a white shirt [i.e., get a promotion], you should tone down your gayness”, which was “way too out there.” The St. Louis Post-Dispatch adds that a captain had also referred to the plaintiff as “fruity.”

6 tips to avoid turning your costume party into an HR nightmare

Even this Halloween Scrooge

can get into the spirit

Halloween is this week. Truth be told, Halloween is one of my least favorite holidays. It always has been and always will be. I never liked it, even as a kid. Sure, all the candy was fun, but I just never got into the whole dress-up thing. As an adult, I like it even less. Not to be a Halloween scrooge, but I can’t even get into the holiday for my kids.

A lot of people, however, are into Halloween, and some are really into Halloween. It’s the holiday on which we spend more than any holiday other than Christmas.

And, a lot of your workplaces will be having Halloween celebrations. Some will request that you dress up for the occasion. If you happen to work in one of the workplaces, you have my sympathies. You also have my top 6 tips to avoid turning your innocent costume party into an HR horror show.

The 18th nominee for the “worst employer of 2019” is … the fecal loving fast-food manager

Kari Phillips did not feel well when she awoke prior to her shift at an Oregon City, Oregon, McDonald’s. She called the restaurant to request that someone cover her shift because of her stomach ailment, but a manager told her she had to come in, but would allow her to use the bathroom whenever needed.

According to Willamette Week, however, that’s not what happened once Phillips arrived at work.

WIRTW #574 (the “hero” edition)

What's a hero? I'm not sure how to define one, but I certainly know one when I see one. And earlier this week, I got to see one.

Dr. Harrison Schmitt is one of only 12 men to have walked on the moon. He was an astronaut on Apollo 17, the last NASA mission to land on the moon. He was also a United States Senator, chair of the NASA Advisory Council, and professor of engineering physics. And, at least according to his remarks, he still actively works with NASA.

He also has a very well developed sense of humor, as he was happy to share this clip of Norm McDonald asking David Letterman how it's possible that any of the Kardashians are more famous than someone who walked on the moon.

I was captivated listening to his remarks about his work on the Apollo lunar project.

Here's what I read this week.

OSHA publishes new guidance on distracted driving

The reaction time of someone texting while driving is 35 percent worse than someone driving without any distractions. Compare that figure to the 12 percent deficit a drunk driver faces, and you begin to understand why distracted driving is so dangerous. Indeed, in 2018 alone, 4,637 people died in car crashes related to cell phone use.

OSHA understands this danger as well. Thus, in conjunction with Drive Safely Work Week (which occurred earlier this month), OSHA announced an educational campaign calling on employers to prevent work-related distracted driving, with a special focus on prohibiting texting while driving.

Is this the worst defense ever to a discrimination claim?

Litigation is painful. It takes a lot of time, costs a lot of money, and has lots of variables that you just can’t control. Especially when the client goes off the rails and says something so ludicrous that you might as well just pack it in and cut a check.

As an example, I offer Evans v. Canal Street Brewing. It’s a race discrimination currently pending in federal court in Detroit. According to the Detroit Metro Times, the plaintiff, who is African-American, alleges “a racist internal corporate culture,” including the repeated used of the “N word”, and  management naming its printer the “white guy printer” and  the printer for lower-tier employees the “black guy printer.”

The employer’s defense? The restaurant’s general manager, Dominic Ryan, claims that he did not know Evans was black.