Handbook Compliance with Affordable Care Act
Employers should regularly review their plan documents, summary plan descriptions, and other documents to ensure consistency with the ever-changing Affordable Care Act. If the employee handbook contains compensation and benefit information, the handbook language also must be regularly revised to reflect the Act’s mandates and policy changes. For instance, handbooks often specify whether the healthcare […]
Can an Employee be Disciplined for Engaging in Political Speech in the Workplace?
Election season will be in full swing in a few short months, as in any election, there is a strong possibility that the contentious world of politics may spill into the work place. If this happens, most of the time, it will likely be harmless banter among employees. However, there is always the risk that things […]
Supreme Court Sides with Church on Employee Firing
The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that a school teacher who was trained in theology, directed prayer services, and taught religion classes in addition to secular classes could be terminated from employment after missing work due to a disability because of the “ministerial exception” to the Americans with Disabilities Act. Perich was employed as a “called” […]
Another Delay – NLRB Poster on Workplace Rights Again Set Back
The National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) issued a Final Rule requiring most private-sector employers to notify employees of their rights to unionize. (See our first blog on New Employer Posting Requirements). The notice rule was originally scheduled require posting the rights in the workplace starting November 14, 2011, and then that date was postponed until January 31, 2012. Now, […]
Customer Lists Are "Trade Secrets"-With Caveats
Nebraska Revised Statutes sections 87-501 through 87-507, known as the “Trade Secrets Act” (“Act”), contains several provisions applying to employees and employers alike when it comes to “customer lists.” When an employee is considering leaving an employer, an employer’s customer list may be an appealing piece of information to an employee, especially if the employee […]
NLRB Judge Rules on Social Media, Employee Handbook Case
A National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) Administrative Law Judge recently ruled that an employer did not wrongfully terminate an employee for two Facebook postings. The first involved pictures and remarks making fun of the quality of food being served at the employer’s BMW dealership which insinuated that the food would hurt sales and was inappropriate given […]
New Employer Posting Requirements
The National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) has issued a Final Rule requiring most private-sector employers to notify employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”). The rule was posted in the Federal Register on August 30, 2011. Under the rule all NLRA covered employers must post written and in some cases electronic notice […]