It’s an all too common situation: an employee’s medical condition results in permanent restrictions that prevent the employee from performing essential job functions that she used to be able to do. It is not reasonable to modify the job so the employee can keep the position. There is a vacancy in another department for which
Human Resources Compliance
What Happens Next with the DOL Overtime Rules?
We posted on November 23 about the surprising temporary injunction issued to stop the new overtime rules from going into effect on December 1. Many employers breathed a sigh of relief, but still wondered if this injunction was only a short term reprieve that could be taken away next year. Here are a few things…
Texas Court Grants Injunction Delaying the Department of Labor’s New Overtime Rules
On November 22, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting the Department of Labor from implementing and enforcing the new overtime rule as scheduled on December 1, 2016.
The new rule more than doubled the minimum salary an employee needed to qualify as exempt from overtime under…
Employers Using Mandatory Post-Accident Drug Testing Should Reconsider the Practice in Light of OSHA Rule
Iowa law has fairly strict limits on an employer’s right to conduct drug and alcohol testing. One area in which testing is allowed, however, is when there is a workplace accident. An employer may require an employee to undergo post-accident drug or alcohol testing if the employee is injured and requires medical treatment, or if…
What Does the Fox News Settlement with Gretchen Carlson Mean for Ordinary Employers?
The headline was Fox News agreed to pay $20 million to its former anchor Gretchen Carlson to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit against its former CEO Roger Ailes. This is an extraordinary settlement, and not just because of the amount. Fox News agreed to a public settlement (usually they are confidential); publicly apologized to…
Does Polk County Have the Legal Right to Iowa Impose a Higher Minimum Wage?
The minimum wage has been in the news a lot lately. Here in central Iowa, the Polk County Board of Supervisors appointed a task force to study whether to raise the minimum wage in the County over and above the federal and state law minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. Now the task force…
Is Time Off Work A Reasonable Accommodation?
Most of us think about workplace accommodations as modifications that will allow an employee with a disability to perform his job. Without the accommodation, doing the job may be difficult or impossible. Whether that means modifying the job duties, changing the schedule, or providing an assistive device, the ultimate objective is to help the employee…
What Makes for a Good Employee Lawsuit
Management side lawyers are constantly giving advice about “how to” or “how not to” handle various employment situations. But, sometimes the best insight about what is or is not a good practice comes from the plaintiff’s side. After all, they are the ones who sue our clients, and we should pay attention whenever a plaintiff’s…
Iowa Employers Should Re-Examine Policies on Pregnancy Accommodation
How to best accommodate pregnant employees is a frequent challenge Iowa employers face. Pregnant employees may be entitled to protection under the laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, as well as those requiring equal treatment based upon gender and disability. Many employers have tried to walk this fine line with policies that allow…
Don’t Assume An Applicant Is Not Qualified Because a Doctor Says So…
A federal district court in Michigan recently granted summary judgment for the plaintiff, (you read that correctly), ruling that the employer was liable for disability discrimination as a matter of law. (Lafata v. Dearborn Heights Sch. Dist. No.7 (E.D. Mich. 12/11/2013)). A plaintiff hardly ever files for summary judgment in an employment case, let …