Category: Health Care Industry Group

Quirky Question #281: Deploying the DTSA

Question: We believe our former employee recently stole some of our trade secrets and went to a competitor.  Can we rely on the Defend Trade Secrets Act to bring suit in federal court?

Quirky Question #280: Minneapolis Sick and Safe Time Ordinance

Question: We are an employer that has a few employees working in Minneapolis, and just heard about a new law requiring employers to provide paid sick leave in Minneapolis. Will this apply to us? What are the requirements? And how long do I have to prepare?

Quirky Question #278: DOL Doubles the FLSA Salary Basis Threshold

Question: Where can I find more information about the DOL’s doubling of the FLSA salary basis threshold? Did they make other changes? As an employer, what does this mean for me? And how long do I have to prepare?

Quirky Question # 276: Ex-Employees Gone Rogue

Question: Our company uses agreements to try to protect our confidential and proprietary information. One of our former sales employees recently left us to work for a competing company.  We have evidence he took with him our confidential information about our clients and is planning to use it to sell products to our clients for his new employer.  When we reminded...

Question #274: Opining on Obesity

Question: We have a large meat processing facility in Northern Minnesota. We were recently hiring for one of our positions in the plant requiring work with large mechanical equipment. Because we consider this position to be safety sensitive, we require candidates for this position to pass a medical examination prior to hire. One of the candidates for the open position...

Question #273: Crafting a Concrete Non-Compete

Question: Our company uses non-compete and non-solicit agreements that bar former employees from having contact with any client of our company after they leave. One former employee who recently left is now claiming the agreement is invalid because it is “overly broad” in that it bars him from soliciting not only those clients of ours he used to work with,...

Question #272: Competing in California

Question: One of our company’s employees recently left to start a competing business. We think he started this process while he was still employed by us, and that he is probably using information he learned from us.  We’re in California, so I know we don’t have a non-compete agreement with him.  Do we have any other recourse?

Quirky Question #270: A Win for Wellness Plans

Quirky Question #270: A Win for Wellness Plans

Question: Our company offers employees a self-funded and self-insured health plan. We’d now like to implement a wellness program.  Can we require employees to complete a health risk assessment which requests personal medical information before they are eligible to participate in the health plan?  I’ve heard that asking for employee medical information, even if it’s pursuant to a wellness program,...

Quirky Question #267: An Equine Accommodation?

Question: Our employee regularly uses a service dog in our office, which helps him with stability and maintaining balance around the office, which can be challenging for him due to several medical conditions he has. However, yesterday he came in and said he would like to use a miniature horse as a service animal instead of the dog, because it...