Quirky Questions

Real Life Employment Law

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A New Question Every Week

Nearly every day, executives and managers, and the in-house counsel and Human Resources professionals who work with them, are confronted with unanticipated questions regarding the workforce. Just when they think they have "seen it all," along comes a new and often stranger scenario involving an odd twist to an area they thought they fully understood. These individuals often find themselves back at square one when trying to construct an appropriate response and devise a creative solution to the problem presented. Sometimes these "Quirky Questions" can be resolved easily; other times, they implicate practical and legal issues that are not immediately apparent.

This Quirky Employment Questions Blog addresses unanticipated questions regarding the workforce.

We encourage you to submit your thoughts and reactions to the questions presented. We also encourage you to submit questions that you would like to see addressed, subject to these guidelines.

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Quirky Question #283: They Stole Our Stuff, Can We Sue?

 

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Question: My company recently terminated an employee, and we are very worried she accessed her email inappropriately in the days before she was fired. The timing of it all is … well, quirky. Here’s what happened: The employee’s manager met with her on a Friday and informed her that her performance was not acceptable, even after several earlier warnings to...

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: Common Law Claims, Litigation Issues, Misappropriation of Trade Secrets

Quirky Question #281: Deploying the DTSA

 

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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?

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: Banking Industry Group, California Questions, Energy Industry Group, Food & Agriculture Industry Group, Health Care Industry Group, Litigation Issues, Mining Industry Group, Misappropriation of Trade Secrets, P3D Industry Group

Quirky Question #280: Minneapolis Sick and Safe Time Ordinance

 

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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?

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: Employee Handbook / Policies, Health Care Industry Group, Leave Issues, Wage and Hour Issues, Wellness and Benefits

Quirky Question #279: Concerted Activity in 140 Characters or Less

 

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Question: I am a manager in a medium-sized retailer that has locations and employees in 16 states.  The company maintains a social media policy, which was recently updated.  Last week, I noticed that one of our employees posted some pretty nasty things about the company on Twitter.  She accused the company of not treating employees fairly because some had to...

POSTED IN Arbitration, Food & Agriculture Industry Group, Labor Law, Social Media

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

 

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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?

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: Banking Industry Group, Class and Collective Actions, Energy Industry Group, Food & Agriculture Industry Group, Health Care Industry Group, Mining Industry Group, P3D Industry Group, Wage and Hour Issues

Quirky Question # 276: Ex-Employees Gone Rogue

 

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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...

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: Banking Industry Group, Employee Handbook / Policies, Health Care Industry Group, Misappropriation of Trade Secrets, Post-Employment Restrictive Covenants

Question #275: Can We Take A Stand On Employees Sitting?

 

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Question: Some of our retail company’s employees in California are demanding chairs to sit in while they work. Management thinks it appears unprofessional to have workers sitting, but I hear the employees might have a legal right to sit down. Should management take a stand?

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: Banking Industry Group, California Questions, Class and Collective Actions, Food & Agriculture Industry Group

Question #274: Opining on Obesity

 

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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...

POSTED IN Disability Discrimination, Employee Handbook / Policies, Food & Agriculture Industry Group, General, Health Care Industry Group, Mining Industry Group, P3D Industry Group