Articles and Blogs

An employee who is caught sleeping on the job will usually end up getting fired. Indeed, this is what happened when a night shift employee was caught sleeping numerous times. The employee was given progressive warnings, including a final warning, before getting caught the last time and was fired. This seems pretty straightforward; however,... READ MORE

HIPAA Violation Was a Pretext A hospital employee’s violation of patient privacy as protected by HIPAA is a serious matter.  An intentional violation can and should lead to discipline up to and including discharge.  But a case that was decided by the NLRB is an object lesson for health care employers on what is and... READ MORE

Talk of Job Security Is “Inherently” Concerted and Protected We all know by now that private employees are protected if they engage in concerted activity for their mutual aid or protection.  We also know that the protections afforded employees under the NLRA can be interpreted quite broadly.  The current NLRB has done just that... READ MORE

One Last Chance or Set Up to Fail? Faced with an underperforming employee, an employer will often give the employee a chance to prove himself one last time before termination.  Sometimes that approach can backfire if not done carefully – especially if the employee can claim some legal protection – like using FMLA. READ MORE

Former Employee with Medical Marijuana Card Claims Freedom from Disciplinary Action. The Michigan Medical Marihuana Act (“MMMA”), enacted by referendum, permits an individual with a qualifying medical condition to use or possess a limited amount of marijuana for medicinal purposes if the patient holds a valid registration card obtained after proper physician certification. READ MORE

Illegal Conduct at Work What is the right thing to do when you become aware that your employee has done something illegal at work?  Some employers may be reluctant to tell law enforcement authorities what their employee did out of fear of being sued for defamation by the employee.  A very recent case decided by... READ MORE