Snow day office closures and calls from employees unable to shovel their cars out of their driveways cause regular headaches for Minnesota employers in the winter. Now that winter is here and these issues are likely to arise, employers should review the wage and hour laws triggered by inclement weather and also review any related
In helping employers with their written employment policies, we are often asked whether it is necessary to have a policy regarding employees’ use of cell phones for work purposes while driving. The answer, as is often the case, is “it depends.” If your employees drive as part of their job or commonly use their cell phones for work purposes while driving, then your company should address cell phone use while driving in a written policy. A well-written policy can not only reduce the likelihood of accidents caused or contributed to by distracted driving, it can also help reduce your company’s liability in the event of an accident caused or contributed by your company’s employee.
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About a year ago, 10 days after the Harvey Weinstein sexual harassment story broke, Alyssa Milano tweeted “– if this has happened to you tweet #MeToo.” In the first 24 hours after that tweet rocked the nation, Facebook had 12 million Facebook posts and a movement was born. The movement is creating new landscapes for
If you’re an employer with questions regarding employee marijuana use, you’re not alone. State and local governments are increasingly paving the way for cannabis use at what is generally viewed as a rapid pace. In addition to states where legislatures are acting independently to pass cannabis-related laws, in every election cycle, more marijuana-related issues find
Don’t assume that men can’t sexually harass other men (or women can’t harass other women), or otherwise discriminate against them in violation of the civil rights laws. In August of this year, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision involving allegations of sexual harassment by a male employee against his male coworkers and
Earlier this year, Duluth passed its Earned Sick and Safe Time Ordinance, joining Minneapolis and St. Paul in requiring employers to provide their employees with paid sick and safe time leave, which the employees accrue over time and carry forward from year-to-year. Duluth’s ordinance goes into effect on January 1, 2020. Well before then,
When I prepare a drug and alcohol testing policy for Minnesota clients, they often tell me it is their understanding that although post-accident testing is permitted under Minnesota law, it is prohibited by OSHA. Their perception that post-accident testing is unlawful is based on a 2016 change in OSHA’s reporting and retaliation policies, to prohibit
As many know, the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requires employers with 50 or more employees to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to employees with serious health conditions. That leave is only available to eligible employees, generally those who have been employed for at least a year and worked at least 1,250
Employee trade secret theft is a significant problem faced by many businesses. It is unfortunately all too common for a departing employee to take valuable confidential information from the former employer to the new workplace. An employer may use a number of legal strategies to stop the theft and misuse of its trade secrets by
In closely-held businesses, it is common for owners to also work as employees. Often, their primary source of income is not from distributions of the business’ profit, but rather their regular salary. This is particularly true for service professions such as accountants, consultants, and medical professionals. The dual role of employee and owner can cause