A federal judge blocked parts of Arizona’s new immigration law on Wednesday, the day before the rest of the measure went into effect. But legal challenges are already flying and many are waiting to see what happens next.
Last year, a record number of immigration-related laws were considered and passed in the 50 states. Over 222 [...]

by Mark Wiletsky
Organizations sometimes require employees to arbitrate claims or disputes that might arise during or after the employment relationship. Workers typically sign arbitration agreements when they’re hired but don’t always want to comply with them when there’s a dispute, and employees’ attorneys often want to present their case to a jury, not an arbitrator. [...]

The Tenth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently overturned a trial court’s dismissal of a case without trial. The case was filed by a female manager in Colorado who claimed she was discriminated against after being forced to choose between moving to California as a part-time customer service representative or “voluntarily” resigning.
HR Guide to [...]

by Lorraine Yeomans
The 2010 state legislative sessions have kicked off across the nation, and one of the first pieces of legislation to be signed into law this year was a bill legalizing the use of medical marijuana.
On January 18, as one of his last acts before leaving office, New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine signed the [...]

by Emily Hobbs-Wright
Employers that have a policy of automatically terminating employees who fail to return to work after they’ve exhausted their workers’ compensation leave need to be aware that such a policy puts them at risk of a class-action lawsuit under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Read on to learn more about the largest [...]

by Mark Wiletsky
Although we’re beginning to see signs of an economic recovery, many organizations are still grappling with how to stay competitive in this challenging environment. Layoffs, furloughs, and other methods used to cut personnel costs are often part of the equation. But the savings gained by those cost-cutting measures can be lost if employees [...]

by Jim Goh
Behind efforts to assist organized labor and improve the balance between work and family, increasing workplace safety is a top priority for President Barack Obama and the 111th Congress. Both the President and congressional leaders have vowed more funding for the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and [...]

by Emily Hobbs-Wright
Q: We have 40 stores, and sometimes the I-9s we receive aren’t filled out completely. If just a date is missing (not verification of documents or a signature), can we e-mail the store and ask for the date and fill it in ourselves, or do we need to send the forms back [...]

The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act) requires employers with 100 or more workers to provide 60 days’ advance notice of a plant closing or mass layoff. Sometimes employers need to act quickly to lay off employees and can’t provide the 60 days’ notice required by the WARN [...]

Imagine this: One of your employees violates company policy and state law by disclosing confidential company records to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to buttress her discrimination charge. After learning about the activity, you fire the employee — who then sues you, claiming you retaliated against her for filing an EEOC [...]