Archive for February, 2010

Attempting to Prevent Workplace Violence

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

Amy Bishop, a 42-year-old biology professor at the University of Alabama-Huntsville (UAH), walked into a biology faculty meeting on Friday, February 12, and according to eyewitnesses, opened fire on her colleagues, killing three and wounding three others. She is charged with capital murder and the death penalty may be sought. Obviously this a nightmare for [...]

Protect Your Business From Embezzlement

Wednesday, February 17th, 2010

There was an insignificant story in the Amarillo newspaper last week about a former credit union employee who was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for stealing $221,000 from her employer over a seven-year period. At least it seemed insignificant, based on the placement in the paper. But to her employer, I know it [...]

Women Still Hitting Heads on Glass Ceiling

Monday, February 8th, 2010

At the end of 2009, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) settled a class action lawsuit against Outback Steakhouse for $19 million. What kind of claim was worth so much money? It was an old-fashioned glass ceiling sex discrimination suit.
The EEOC said that Outback denied women equal opportunities to advance within the corporation’s restaurants, particularly [...]

Are You “Stealing” Your Employees’ Wages?

Thursday, February 4th, 2010

If you have employees who you believe are exempt from being paid overtime or the minimum wage (and who doesn’t?), your company is vulnerable to being accused of “wage theft” by the Department of Labor and being faced with repayment of wages, liquidated (double) damages, interest, penalties and attorneys’ fees. “Wage theft” is the new [...]

2011 Budget Means More Enforcement Against Employers

Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010

I’ve been trying to get the word out to employers for the last several months that the executive branch of the federal government has employers who violate any of the federal employment laws in its sights (click here for an earlier blog post on enforcement efforts). Money for enforcement is pouring into federal agencies like [...]

DOT Bans Truck Driver Texting While Driving

Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010

As a follow up to yesterday’s post on employer liability for employees who cause an automobile accident while using a cell phone, it is worth noting that the federal Department of Transportation just announced a prohibition of texting while driving for all interstate truck drivers, commercial bus drivers and van drivers who carry more than [...]

Employee on Cell Phone in Car can be Costly for Employer

Monday, February 1st, 2010

Debra Ford was driving on Interstate 16 in Georgia when her car was hit by a sedan driven by Vanessa McGrogan, an International Paper Company employee who was driving a company-owned car with the cruise control set at 77 mph in a 70 mph zone and according to a witness, talking on her company-issued cell [...]