Documenting even minor lapses in performance create a complete personnel file that will protect a company when larger disputes arise. […]

Employers need to know the contents of employee handbooks and update them as policies change and new laws take effect. […]

Keeping records of medical conditions and accommodations separate from an employee’s personnel file and performance evaluations are the best way to ensure matters are handled in a way that minimizes risk to the company. […]

Retaliatory firing happens when emotion takes over, when firing seems to solve a problem in the short term, and employers fail to look at long-term consequences. Companies can “buy” a lawsuit for an underlying claim that turns out not to be valid because of how they have treated the messenger. Such claims are difficult to fight and open employers to punitive damages. […]

Employers need an applicant’s informed and express written permission to run a background check on an applicant. Several cities have recently passed “ban the box” legislation, restricting an employer’s ability to ask about criminal records on applications and in job interviews. Whether or not employers do business there, it is important to know when and how an employer may conduct a background check. […]