Posted on June 24, 2013 by AdminUN

INTERMITTENT FMLA REQUESTS CAN BE TRICKY—FOR MANAGEMENT

What if an employee’s MD certified that due to the employee’s chronic but intermittent illness he is likely to be absent for five periods of two to three days each every six months, but the employee ends up needing to stay home twice as often as the MD predicted? Can the employer refuse to approve the extra FMLA leave needed? Can it fire the employee for unapproved absences? The answer will surprise you. Check out the article entitled, “Employee Fired for Absences Exceeding his Certification Can Raise a Viable FMLA Claim,” which was posted on the FMLA Insights blog page.

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Posted on June 24, 2013 by AdminUN

WHEN DO YOU OWN A PROMOTION?

By “own” we mean when must management use full adverse action procedures against you to take a promotion away? MSPB has changed its mind on when in the last year, which makes this important when management says that it made a mistake and reverses your promotion. Continue reading →

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Posted on June 19, 2013 by AdminUN

WHEN OSTRACISM AND PETTY MISTREATMENT CREATE A HOSTILE WORK ENVIRONMENT

Every once in a while union reps run across an employee that a manager hates to deal with. The law firm of Ogletree and Deakins just published advice on when that manager’s avoidance of the employee can be illegal. Check it out.

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Posted on June 19, 2013 by AdminUN

WHY UNION REPS NEED LAWYERS HANDY

FEDSMILL makes no secret of the fact that we think unions have to reorganize themselves in order to make attorneys more available to local chapter presidents and chief stewards. We even believe that organized labor should start lobbying to require high school students be given a course in labor and employment law. After all, they likely are going to be employees for most of the next 50 years or so of their lives. We know we have readers who disagree with our views and some really, really think our approach is elitist, unworkable, and an insult to workers. To those who disagree, we will only suggest that they review the list of labor and employment laws that apply to most worksites today. Below are 75 primarily federal statutes that give employees enforceable rights that unions should be prepared to enforce for them. Our thanks to the web site EmployeeIssues (EI) which developed this list and entered the comments on all but the first statute. Check out their site when you get a chance.

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Posted on June 19, 2013 by AdminUN

FLRA PUBLISHES GUIDE TO NEGOTIABILITY

Our congrats to FLRA Member Dubester for keeping FLRA active while we await Carol Pope’s Senate confirmation.  The FLRA just issued a Guide to Negotiability that any union negotiators should print and read.

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Posted on June 13, 2013 by AdminUN

TEST YOURSELF- FMLA, DISABILITIES, AND LIGHT DUTY

An employee, Jessie Crutch, had a long-time reasonable accommodation of being allowed to rest his hip for a few minutes every few hours while working as a warehouse custodian.  As the injury got worse and management less tolerant of his need to sit for a few times a day, he started to take time off using his FMLA rights to rest his hip.   When he returned after two days of FMLA leave, he submitted the same medical documentation he always did, namely that he could perform all his duties but needed intermittent periods to sit. However, his supervisor informed him that he would not be permitted to work again until he either submitted new medical documentation certifying that he no longer needed to rest his hip during the work day or he submitted a formal request for light duty.  So, Crutch went home.  While a sad situation for Crutch, are there any violations of law and regulation here? Continue reading →

Posted in Discipline/Adverse Action, EEO/Disabilities, FMLA, Test Yourself | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Posted on June 12, 2013 by AdminUN

WHAT IS FRONT PAY?

Let’s say that you are representing a terminated employee and realize three things about his/her situation.  First, the job the employee held before being fired no longer exists.  Second, even if you get the employee reinstated, it is going to be a terrible situation because the same supervisors and managers who fired him/her are still there and clearly do not like the employee; nor does the employee want to work with them again.  Third, one of your grievance claims is that the employee was fired in violation of the Civil Rights acts.  If the only remedies you request are that the employee be reinstated and given back pay with interest, what other remedy option are you missing? Continue reading →

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Posted on June 1, 2013 by AdminUN

LACTATION DISCRIMINATION

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held unanimously recently that firing a woman because she is lactating or expressing milk is unlawful sex discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as amended by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978). Congress passed the Pregnancy Discrimination Act to protect working women against discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth or a related medical condition.  Check out the EEOC press release and watch for this form of discrimination in any personnel action, e.g., performance appraisal, promotions, assignments, etc.

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Posted on June 1, 2013 by AdminUN

OUR FAVORITE APPROPRIATE ARRANGEMENT PROPOSALS (Pt. 3 – Union Needs)

Unions and their reps can be just as impacted by a proposed agency management rights change as any other bargaining unit employees.  Consequently, the FLRA allows unions to make bargaining proposals to lessen the impact on them as well. Here are a few of our favorites. Continue reading →

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Posted on May 28, 2013 by AdminUN

ACCOMMODATING ALMOST EVERY TIME IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH

Not long ago the Dept. of Defense tried to defend itself against an allegation that it had failed to provide a deaf employee a reasonable accommodation by pointing out that it had done so 11 out of 15 times the employee asked during the period in question. But complying with the law 73% of the time is not a defense, and the EEOC told DOD to figure out how much of a check to give the employee as compensation for the harm done. Continue reading →

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