Protecting Employers Since 1985

Supreme Court’s Ruling Regarding Arbitration Clauses is Positive News for Employers

By Joseph H. Laverty / May 30, 2018

On May 21, 2018, in a 5-4 majority decision, the U.S. Supreme Court in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis ruled that employers can require as a condition of employment that workers waive their rights to participate in class action lawsuits by entering into a mandatory arbitration clause in their employment agreement. Supreme Court Justice Neil…

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Three New Laws Affecting Employers Became Effective January 1, 2018

By Joseph H. Laverty / January 24, 2018

I. Illinois Amends State Genetic Information Privacy Act Illinois has amended the state Genetic Information Privacy Act (GIPA). Amended Law Under the amendment, an employer is prohibited from penalizing an employee who does not disclose his or her genetic information or does not choose to participate in a program requiring disclosure of the employee’s genetic…

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Employers Need to Remain Diligent Regarding Discrimination/Retaliation Investigations in 2018

By Joseph H. Laverty / January 5, 2018

On November 15, 2017, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued its annual performance and accountability report. In the report the EEOC states that: “offices deployed new strategies to more efficiently prioritize charges with merit and more quickly resolved investigations once the agency had sufficient information. Together with improvements in the agency’s digital systems, these…

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Take Steps to Avoid Overly Inflated Performance Reviews

By Joseph H. Laverty / December 22, 2017

As 2017 comes to an end, many companies will perform their annual employee performance reviews. Companies typically do performance reviews at the beginning of the calendar or their fiscal year or at the employee’s anniversary with the company. No matter when you perform reviews, companies need to be careful that managers do not over rate…

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End of the Year HR Self-Audits

By Joseph H. Laverty / December 14, 2017

As 2017 comes to an end and 2018 is about to begin, it is a very good time to conduct a HR self-audit to make sure your company is in compliance with all HR and employment laws Every HR audit is different but the goal of the audit is to determine if your company is…

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Illinois Employers Should Use Caution with Having Low-Income Employees Sign Covenants-Not-To-Compete

By Joseph H. Laverty / November 28, 2017

The unemployment rate in Illinois continues to decline, as is the case nationally. As of the time of writing this article, the state wide unemployment rate in Illinois is 4.6% and numerous experts predict that this rate will go lower as the economy continues to improve. Some cities in Illinois have unemployment rates as low…

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Recent Mass Shootings Have Again Raised Questions for Companies Regarding their Workplace Policies

By Joseph H. Laverty / November 13, 2017

Two of the five deadliest mass shootings in the United States have taken place over the last few months. On October 1, 2017, fifty-eight (58) people were killed at the Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas, Nevada. In that shooting, a gunman fired from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on…

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Communications with Applicants, Current and Former Employees: Best Practices

By Joseph H. Laverty / August 25, 2017

Every day, as a regular part of doing business, employers need to discuss applicants or current and former employees. Communications have changed and evolved over the years and these communications can be in the form of any of the following: In-person verbal communication; over the telephone; mail; fax; email; text messaging; and twitter. Most written…

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