Articles Posted in Employment & Labor

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

Written employment contracts come in all shapes, sizes and forms. Some even have the unambiguous words “Employment Contract” typed in bold words at the top of the first page. But not all do. 　Under Idaho law there is no magic form that in and of itself is the only form that an employment contract must be in. For this reason, sometimes an employment contract exists and no one even knows that it does. Let’s start with the easiest of all, the document that has the title “Employment Contract.” In Idaho this document is rare and elusive, but it does actually exist. In my experience it is most often found in the realm of professional work.

E-mails, letters and other miscellaneous written documents can also create an employment contract. This occurs in Idaho more often that you might think and usually occurs as the parties are simply discussing the creation of a new employment relationship. Nevertheless, if mutual promises and assent occur, a written employment contract may exist. Usually this type of an employment contract doesn’t provide much more than the start date, the responsibilities and the salary/wage. There typically isn’t any information on the term of the contract or how it can be terminated. When this is the case, the employer’s ability to discipline or terminate an employee is simply left up to the employer, which is the case when no employment contract exists.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

Generally speaking, in Idaho, there are few statutory limitations for disciplining an employee for off-duty misconduct worth mentioning. The only one worth mentioning is contained in the Idaho Civil Service Act (See I.C. §§ 50-1601 et seq.)

Pursuant to the Civil Service Act, each city council that creates a civil service system has to adopt a civil service ordinance that describes the department or employees that will be subject to the Act. 　In most instances, civil service employees include police and firemen.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

Opening scene from the movie Swordfish:

STANLEY (Referring to the changes to the movie Dog Day Afternoon, Gabriel just suggested) You know, this movie of yours, I don’t think it would have worked.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

The Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA) forbids discrimination by employers based on age when providing employee benefits, like severance. The OWBPA also ensures that no employee is coerced or pressured into signing legal waivers of rights under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).

The OWBPA was enacted to “protect the rights and benefits of older workers” who are being laid off. 　The U.S. Supreme Court has interpreted the statute as requiring “‘strict, unqualified statutory stricture on waivers’” executed by these workers in exchange for compensation and benefits. 　The party defending a release’s validity bears the burden of proving compliance.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

Employment ends for positive reasons such as a new job, a resignation or retirement. Employment also ends for more negative reasons such as layoffs, downsizing, job termination or firing. Assuming that you have taken all possible steps to help an employee improve their work performance, it may be time to fire the employee. Here are the legal and the ethical steps in how to fire an employee and ensure that the company’s actions as you fire an employee are above reproach when faced with the necessity of terminating a large number of employees at the same time. Commonly known as a “layoff” employers must often take several proactive steps in carrying this process out legally and correctly.

The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act) is administered by the U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration (DOLETA). It requires most employers with 100 or more employees to provide employees, bargaining representatives of the employees (i.e., unions), and specific government agencies at least 60 days notice of any plant closing and mass layoff. The purpose of the WARN Act is to give workers and their families some transition time to prepare for the prospective loss of employment, to seek a new job, and, if necessary, to seek training in a new skill or retraining in an existing skill that will allow the workers to obtain replacement work.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (abbreviated as FLSA; also referred to as the Wages and Hours Bill) is a federal statute of the United States that changed employment relationships dramatically. 　The FLSA introduced the forty-hour workweek, established a national minimum wage, guaranteed “time-and-a-half” for overtime in certain jobs, and prohibited most employment of minors in “oppressive child labor”, a term that is defined in the statute. It applies to employees engaged in interstate commerce or employed by an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, unless the employer can claim an exemption from coverage.

The FLSA was originally drafted in 1932 by Senator Hugo Black, who was later appointed to the Supreme Court in 1937. However, Black’s proposal to require employers to adopt a thirty-hour workweek was unpopular with employers who were used to working employees up to 12 hours a day. In 1938 a revised version of Black’s proposal was passed that adopted an eight-hour day and a forty-hour workweek and allowed workers to earn wage for an extra four hours of overtime as well. Children under eighteen were prohibited from certain dangerous jobs, and children under the age of sixteen could work during school hours.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

In a perfect world an employer would never have to terminate any employee. All employees would work hard, be profitable and be worth keeping as an employee. However, the reality is quite different. There are often employees that are poor workers, or whose personalities are caustic in the workplace. Additionally, even if all the employees are good, sometimes the business is not doing well and can’t afford to keep the employees hired. Whatever the reason, there are often times when an employer must terminate an employee. Here are 4 steps to take anytime you are considering terminating an employee.

1. MAKE SURE THE REASON FOR TERMINATION IS LAWFUL.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

COMPENSABLE TIME

Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), an employer must pay an employee for all hours that are legitimately worked. However, sometimes there is a dispute about whether certain activities are work and therefore whether the time spent doing these activities is compensable time. This is an area where the FLSA leaves the determination to the states. In Idaho, based upon its wage and hour statutes, hours worked, and thus compensable time, does not include the following:

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

A job offer letter is an opportunity to start the employment relationship off on a positive note. In this letter, the employer has an opportunity to describe the job and its responsibilities. As with any type of letter, a job offer letter should be direct and positive. It is an opportunity to the candidate know that they were chosen specifically and that the employer recognizes the skills and experience the new employee can bring to your company. Doing this encourages new employees to feel confident, not only of a decision to accept your job offer, but in their ability to perform the job itself.

STICK TO THE FACTS