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Sep 16 2011
Washington

WASHINGTON: paid sick time mandated for employees working in Seattle

Do you have employees that perform work within the city of Seattle? If so, then you’ll need to be sure to comply with the City of Seattle’s new paid sick time ordinance, approved by the City Council on September 12, 2011 (   (employers of 5 to 49 FTEs): Employees must accrue at least one hour…

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Sep 14 2011
Labor Relations

New NLRA rights poster to be required for most employers

Most private employers will be required to display a poster notifying employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), under a new rule that takes effect on . Among other things, the poster tells employees they have the right to join a union, bargain collectively with their employer, take action with one…

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Sep 02 2011
Hiring

Specifying I-9 documentation is costly for company

The federal Department of Justice (DOJ) has been cracking down on employers who violate the Form I-9 employment eligibility verification process, and a Missouri company is the latest to face penalties for alleged misconduct. According to the DOJ, the company was requiring all newly hired non-U.S. citizens to provide extra work authorization documents beyond what…

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Aug 31 2011
Uncategorized

Safety: Even a one-time therapeutic treatment can be a recordable injury

According to an OSHA 300 Log. The letter asked OSHA to weigh in on whether a work-related injury should be recorded when an on-site health care provider recommended that the employee do exercises for only a short period of time. Specifically, the letter questioned whether the exercises should be considered medical treatment beyond first aid…

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Aug 29 2011
Employee BenefitsLeave Laws

COBRA mistakes cost employers big bucks

Three recent court decisions involving the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) serve as a good reminder to employers that the dangers of noncompliance with COBRA are very real. Under COBRA, employees who lose health insurance coverage due to a qualifying event must be given the opportunity to continue their coverage for a limited time…

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Aug 26 2011
Uncategorized

No fault attendance policy leads to $20 million EEOC settlement

Verizon Communications is paying big bucks to The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires employers to engage in the interactive process to make an attempt to reasonably accommodate an employees disability. See our Legal Guide, ADA: Reasonable Accommodation Quick Reference (

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Aug 25 2011
California

CALIFORNIA: Partially earned sabbatical may be due in final paycheck

A jury should decide whether an employer’s sabbatical program was actually vacation in disguise, ruled a California court of appeal. If so, then the sabbatical would be considered part of wages under California law. This means it is earned day by day, and must be paid out pro rata with a final paycheck if the…

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Aug 19 2011
Employee Benefits

Debate over health care reform’s individual mandate rages on

A second appeals court has weighed in on the legality of the “individual mandate” contained in the federal health care reform law known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA), this time ruling that the mandate is unconstitutional.  The ACA’s individual mandate is the requirement that by 2014 nearly all U.S. citizens must maintain health insurance…

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Aug 17 2011
Affirmative Action

Affirmative Action: OFCCP energized and ready to make changes

Patricia Shiu, the Director of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), recently More staff and better training  Coordinating with other agencies  Strengthening veterans regulationscommented on behalf of our members.: Within the next few weeks, the agency expects to release proposed regulations that would completely revamp the affirmative action rules for employment of people…

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Aug 15 2011
Employee Benefits

Affordable Care Act requires contraceptive coverage with no cost-sharing

Check out HealthCare.gov, for a list of all the preventive services required to be covered with no cost sharing.

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Aug 10 2011
Affirmative Action

EEO-1 Report due September 30, VETS-100/100A delayed until November 30

It’s time once again to begin compiling data for the annual VETS-100/100A Reports, the system is offline because of technical problems. The Department of Labor expects everything to be back up and running by October 1, and is therefore extending the deadline for filing until November 30, 2011. These reports contain a snapshot of the…

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Aug 08 2011
Labor Relations

No NLRA protection for Facebook complaints not directed to coworkers

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