Protecting Employers Since 1985
HR professionals that conduct criminal background checks on prospective employees are well aware of (or should be) the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act’s prohibition against discrimination on the basis of an individual’s arrest or conviction record. Under the WFEA, an employer may not discriminate against an employee or prospective employee on the basis of a pending…
Read MoreIn a stunning recent decision, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals held that temporary employees who are injured/killed while performing services for their host employer have the right to choose between the receipt of workers’ compensation benefits under the Wisconsin Worker’s Compensation Act or the pursuit of a personal injury claim against the host employer. Under…
Read MoreThe enforcement of non-compete agreements in Wisconsin is governed by the provisions of Wis. Stat. § 103.466, which sets forth five requirements that must be met in order for the restriction to be enforceable. Over the years, the courts have found that these restrictions applied not just to traditional non-compete agreements, but also to agreements…
Read More“The importance of documentation” is an axiomatic, and almost trite, battle cry that human resource professionals constantly beat into the psyches of their supervisors – quite often to no avail. But what, really, is “documentation?” When do you do it? How do you do it? And, what, exactly, are you supposed to document? More importantly,…
Read MoreYour company utilizes electronic timekeeping software, whether purchased for internal use or provided by a third party payroll service. The system is operating, so it must be doing so legally, right? Not necessarily. On several recent occasions I discovered, much to the dismay of my clients, that the timekeeping system they have been utilizing for…
Read More“The ADA is an antidiscrimination statute, not a medical-leave entitlement.” These are the words employers have been waiting more than 25 years to hear, since the date the ADA first became effective, and even more so after the passage of the Family Medical Leave Act in 1993. They address an issue that has vexed employers…
Read MoreOver the last ten years or so, Employment Practice Liability Insurance (“EPLI”) has become a more and more common form of insurance coverage for businesses. Unlike traditional sources of coverage, which insure against risks associated with business operations, products, work injuries, hazards, etc., EPLI covers an employer against liability stemming from employment practices, such as…
Read MoreIn 2013, the Wisconsin legislature tightened the eligibility requirements for unemployment benefits as they related to discharges for attendance. Under the previous law, an employee had to have “5 or more” absences without notice in a twelve-month period in order for his/her absenteeism to rise to the level of statutorily-defined misconduct. The legislature reduced that…
Read MoreWisconsin’s Right-to-Work law, which became effective on March 11, 2015, prohibits employers and unions from entering into agreements which require membership in the union or the payment of dues as a condition of employment (“union security agreements”). The law also prohibits employers from deducting union dues from an employee’s wages unless the employee has signed…
Read MoreIn a previous issue, we discussed a new OSHA reporting regulation that was initially scheduled to take effect on August 10, 2016, but was pushed back to November 1, 2016, and then delayed again until December 1, 2016 as a result of pending litigation by a number of trade associations, which sought to enjoin the…
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