Archive for the 'New York' Category

Checklist for Drafting Executives’ Contracts

January 7, 2010 at 11:01 am by: New York Employment Law Letter

by Peter M. Panken
Drafting executive employment contracts requires attention to myriad details. The higher up the executive, the more likely there will be detailed negotiation of the terms. And when negotiating with an incoming CEO, CIO, or CFO, an HR executive is faced with tough negotiations with a future boss.
Keep up with the latest changes [...]

Document Employee Behavior Today to Avoid Lawsuits Tomorrow

October 2, 2009 at 7:58 am by: New York Employment Law Letter

by Eric B. Topel
Charles “Slip” Shod has been employed by your company for more than two years, during which time you have received repeated complaints from vendors about his performance.
In your capacity as a member of human resources, you begin reviewing the other matters on which Slip has been working and determine that his poor [...]

Office Romance: Do You Need a Workplace Dating Policy?

October 1, 2009 at 12:21 pm by: New York Employment Law Letter

by Anna A. Cohen
As the holiday season and the new year approach, many people are either looking for love or ending relationships. Many relationships begin and end in the workplace. A recent survey revealed that almost half of employees have been involved in an office romance, and 20 percent admit to [...]

Telecommuting: Tips for Managing Employees Who Work From Home

September 18, 2009 at 10:12 am by: New York Employment Law Letter

by Brian Molinari
The ripple effect of stunning job losses since the recession that began in December 2007 have become commonplace across the United States. And it continues: the global pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly has just announced plans to cut 13.6% of its workforce, roughly 5,500 workers. During the 20 months from December 2007 through July [...]

Why Employers Can’t Ignore Social Networking Sites

September 11, 2009 at 10:54 am by: New York Employment Law Letter

Over the last several years, social networking websites like Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, and Twitter have evolved to the point where most employees use at least one, if not several, of them throughout each day. Social networking sites provide an easily accessible medium for individuals to stay in contact with friends, colleagues, clients, prospective clients, and [...]

Employer’s Guide to Writing Employee Handbooks

August 21, 2009 at 9:11 am by: New York Employment Law Letter

by Peter M. Panken
An employee handbook tells workers what they’re getting, instills a team spirit, and lets people know what the rules are. It should emphasize the employer’s fair treatment and how it provides significant benefits like vacations, holidays, health insurance, and retirement benefits. It lets the workers know they can grieve to get fair [...]

EEOC Guidance on Disciplining an Employee with a Disability

March 13, 2009 at 4:18 pm by: New York Employment Law Letter

Have you ever tried to discipline an employee for workplace misconduct only to hear for the first time that his disability caused the misconduct? Did you then wonder how you should proceed? If that has ever happened to you, then the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) recent guidance, “The Americans with Disabilities Act [ADA]: Applying [...]

Top Employment Issues for States in 2009: Part 1 – WARN Acts, Immigration, ADA, and Unemployment Insurance

February 13, 2009 at 9:17 am by: Employers State Law Alert

The nation’s economy and its impact on state budgets will be the overriding factor state legislatures address in 2009. Many states have already attacked their budget shortfalls by delaying projects, implementing hiring freezes, eliminating positions, and cutting programs. With predictions of continued shortfalls in 2009, state budgets will be first on [...]

Obama Will Bring Change for Employers

January 23, 2009 at 12:58 pm by: New York Employment Law Letter

Now that President Barack Obama has been sworn into office many expect to see more new workplace regulations in the upcoming months than at any time in the last two decades. This article discusses of some of the proposed legislation that could affect employers in the areas of civil rights (the [...]

BlackBerry® and iPhone® Use May Lead to Overtime

August 1, 2008 at 10:27 am by: New York Employment Law Letter

In today’s technological climate, it seems that almost every employee, from the CEO to the rank-and-file worker, uses some type of personal digital assistant (PDA) or BlackBerry® device.
PDAs, BlackBerries®, iPhones®, and other so called “smart phones” have a number of uses: calculator, clock, calendar, video recorder, address book, word processor, radio, [...]