Although marijuana is classified as an illegal drug under federal law, a majority of states have now legalized its use in one form or another. This rapidly evolving legal landscape presents new challenges for employers, particularly those with offices and employees in several states. Employers must balance complying with often divergent federal and state laws, maintaining a safe work environment, and protecting employees’ rights. Although difficult at times, there are steps employers can take to…

We all know how much HR professionals LOVE to fill out government-mandated forms. One of the forms at the top of the list is the EEO-1 compliance form that must be filled out by companies that have 100 or more employees or that are a federal contractor with 50 or more employees and a contract of $50,000 or more. The form asks for basic information on the company’s full-time and part-time employees, including gender and…

We routinely receive calls from employers who want to terminate an employee (or have been sued for doing so) but do not have a good paper trail to support their decision. Usually, we hear that the supervisor has talked to the employee repeatedly about performance or tardiness or other problems and is “done” with the employee. Of course, the supervisor has little or no documentation of these repeated discussions. To fire or not to fire? That…

You might have seen all the buzz about the Seventh Circuit’s recent decision in Kleber v. CareFusion Corporation holding that job applicants were not covered by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). Does that mean you can refuse to hire someone because of their age? Not surprisingly, no, it does not mean that. Let’s take a minute to look at what happened. What’s the Difference between Impact and Treatment Claims? The difference between disparate…

Companies that work with the federal government (think Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements, government contracts, grant funding) need to stay up to date on the False Claims Act (FCA). The FCA is one of the primary tools used by employee whistleblowers to bring actions against their employers. In 2018, whistleblowers filed 645 new FCA actions and recovered $2.88 billion for the government in settlements and judgments—of which the whistleblowers kept $301 million as their share. This…

When considering a position’s requirements and responsibilities, most people would assume that attendance is a given. Before any other job duties can be fulfilled, an employee must actually come to work. However, since individuals increasingly perform their job duties away from their employer (think technology, work-at-home policies, virtual positions, etc.), attendance has slowly but surely become a regularly contested issue in disability discrimination cases. In Lipp v. Cargill Meat Solutions Corporation, the Eighth Circuit…