Employee Relations
Gender Stereotypes Undermine Sexual Harassment Investigations, Study Says
Women who do not conform to societal stereotypes of femininity may experience bias when seeking legal protections against sexual harassment, according to a study published Jan. 14 in the American Psychological Association’s Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. In recognizing the barriers to legal rights, it’s crucial to understand misperceptions about victims of sexual harassment, according to the…
Read More2021 May Signal a New Recruiting Era
The relationship between employers and employees has evolved dramatically over the course of the coronavirus pandemic. Here’s what that means for recruiting. As recruiting leaders embark on a new year, it would be easy to overlook all of the ways the workplace and employment changed over the last nine months. While the calendar may have…
Read MoreVaccination as a Condition of Employment: Evaluating Legal Risks of Mandatory Vaccine Policies During the Pandemic
With coronavirus vaccines receiving their emergency use authorizations from the FDA and being rapidly rolled out, employers will need to evaluate a mandatory vaccination policy that balances employee rights with novel business realities and pre-existing legal frameworks lacking clear guidance in the face of COVID-19. Under existing federal law and regulations, employers may be able…
Read MoreEmployers Can Require Proof of COVID-19 Vaccination — With Some Exceptions, EEOC Says
Employers can require proof that employees have received a COVID-19 vaccine — with some exceptions, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) said in Dec. 16 guidance. COVID-19 vaccinations approved by the Food and Drug Administration do not constitute medical examinations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), EEOC said, but certain inquiries could implicate the…
Read MoreDefining ‘Sex’ in Title VII: The Bostock Decision and LGBTQ Rights
The U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that federal law prohibits employers from discriminating against gay, lesbian, and transgender employees in workplaces. Hayley Archer discusses the case, its potential implications, and what it means for employees in Wisconsin. In a landmark decision that is a major victory for the LGBTQ community, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled…
Read MoreDanone Extends 18 Weeks of Parental Leave to Manufacturing Employees
Danone North America, whose portfolio of brands include Activia, Dannon, Horizon Organic and YoCrunch, has expanded its parental bonding leave policy to its manufacturing employees, enabling them to take 18 weeks’ paid time off within the first year of the birth or adoption of a child. The company in a Dec. 1 announcement said the benefit is…
Read More‘Clear’ Circuit Split on Sexual Harassment Requires SCOTUS Review, Employee Says
The U.S. Supreme Court should weigh in on a Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 sexual harassment standard and resolve a “clear and important” circuit split, an employee argued in a Nov. 12 filing (Paskert v. Kemna-ASA Auto Plaza, Inc., No. 18-3623). The petition, originally filed in July, challenged an 8th U.S. Circuit Court…
Read MoreWorkplace Safety During the Pandemic: What Employers May Not Know About Their OSHA Obligations
Whether they have remained open during the COVID-19 pandemic or sought to reopen after pandemic-related closures, employers have had to monitor the constantly evolving and often confusing guidance from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other federal and state entities. OSHA has recently fined numerous…
Read MoreAddressing and Preventing Inappropriate ‘Shop Talk’
In a manufacturing environment, employees often work near each other, and the level of noise can cause conversations to go unheard by others not in the immediate vicinity. Like the quintessential example of “locker room talk,” “shop talk” in a manufacturing environment can walk a fine line between employee banter and inappropriate, or, in extreme…
Read MoreElection Day Leave Policies – What Employers Need to Know Before November 3
Even though it happens every four-years, it still tends to dominate the media, culture, and watercooler. We are, of course, talking about the presidential election. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, but citizens have been voting in some states since late September. As the airwaves become inundated with political ads, telephones get overwhelmed with robocalls,…
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