The Employer’s Legal Advisor

Table of contents

1. Copyright
2. Acknowledgments
3. Introduction
   1. The Costs of Litigation
   2. The Employer’s Need to Act
4. Employment Law at Work
   1. The Burden on the Employer
   2. If It Can Be Filed, It Will Be Filed
   3. Discrimination Cases
   4. Defending Your Company
   5. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter One Checklist
5. Good Intentions Are Only a Start
   1. A Shock to the Client
   2. Shielding Yourself from Charges of Discrimination
   3. Constructive Discharge and Other Claims
   4. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Two Checklist
6. Eliminating Problems Before They Arise
   1. Prompt Correction of Employees
   2. Employee Reviews of the Company
   3. Following Through on Complaints
   4. It’s Not Only What You Say But How You Say It
   5. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Three Checklist
7. Communications Strategies to Help You Avoid Legal Woes
   1. Maintaining a Presence with Your Employees
   2. Publishing a Sexual Harassment Policy
   3. Interpreting Employee Behavior
   4. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Four Checklist
8. Investigating Problems and Preserving Evidence
   1. Investigations
   2. Preserving the Facts
   3. Getting It in Their Own Words
   4. Confronting the Employee with the Facts
   5. Dealing with Difficult Witnesses
   6. The Case of the Jerk of a Manager
   7. Knowing the Employee’s Excuse
   8. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Five Checklist
9. Knowing Why Things Happen Strengthens Your Case
   1. Digging Deep for Why
   2. Checking the Record
   3. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Six Checklist
10. Trusting but Verifying
    1. Looking for Lies
    2. The Power of the Lie
    3. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Seven Checklist
11. Advantages and Pitfalls of Electronic Devices
    1. Telephones and Tape Recorders
    2. Videocameras and Videotaping
    3. E-Mail and Electronic Transmissions
    4. Handling Misuse of Company Electronics Through Monitoring
    5. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Eight Checklist
12. Making Your Decision
    1. Taking the First Steps
    2. “Stale” Offenses
    3. Zero Tolerance
    4. Other Factors to Consider
    5. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Nine Checklist
13. Implementing Your Decision
    1. Direct Evidence (or the Lack Thereof)
    2. Being Honest with Employees
    3. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Ten Checklist
14. Paperwork and Reality
    1. Employee Evaluations
    2. Avoiding Haste in Completing Paperwork
    3. Writing the Disciplinary Report
    4. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Eleven Checklist
15. Unemployment Compensation Claims
    1. Providing the Necessary Information
    2. Hearsay Testimony
    3. Testifying at the Hearing
    4. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Twelve Checklist
16. Problem Employees
    1. Alcohol and Drug Use
    2. The Attendance Problem
    3. Criminal Behavior
    4. The Dangerous Employee
    5. The Insubordinate Employee
    6. The Troublemaker
    7. The Thief
    8. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Thirteen Checklist
17. Employees with Special Issues
    1. The Accident-Prone and Workers Compensation Claimants
    2. The Disabled Employee
    3. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Fourteen Checklist
18. Things You Should Know
    1. Avoiding Do-It-Yourself Employment Law
    2. Hiring an Attorney
    3. Deciding Whether to Fight or Settle
    4. Working with an Attorney
    5. How to Be a Good Witness
    6. Employer’s Legal Pad—Chapter Fifteen Checklist
19. Final Thoughts
20. Summary of Key Employment Laws
21. Glossary of Terms
22. Quick Reference Guide
23. Sample Consent Form for Electronic Monitoring
24. Sample Rules of Conduct
25. Sample Drug and Alcohol Testing Policy
    1. Objective
    2. Policy
    3. Preemployment Testing
    4. Testing of Employees
    5. Laboratory
    6. Testing Procedures
    7. Positive Test Result
    8. Voluntary Rehabilitation
    9. Conviction of a Drug-Related Offense
    10. Acknowledgment of Receipt of Substance Abuse Policy
26. Sample No-Fault Attendance Policy
    1. Definitions
    2. Basic Obligations
    3. How the Policy Works
    4. Excused Absences
    5. Clearing the Record of Points
    6. Special Review
27. Sample Harassment and Sexual Harassment Policy
28. Index