business law 2

“Oh, you’re a woman, I am not sure you can handle this job.” Wow, who would say that?! This may seem like an antiquated response. However, discrimination can and does still happen in a company, and is not limited to gender discrimination. Consequently, every company is very careful about their operations and employee treatment in today’s business world. Many business entities have put together a human resource department to properly manage and take care of their most valuable resource, their employees. Over the years the government has also helped ensure that employees get proper treatment. Measures such as the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, and Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 have all been put into place to combat against discrimination in the workplace. The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 is designed to help give job security to employees who need to balance personal life and professional careers. FMLA allows for a person to take up to 12 work weeks of unpaid leave to handle a medical or personal obstacles. There are a few reasons where one may use FMLA, such as, personal or family illness, family military leave, pregnancy, adoption, or the foster care placement of a child. The following situation is one of those cases. Situation A: Employee A has been with Company X for two years. Employee A's spouse gave birth prematurely to twins. He requested leave to be with his spouse, which was granted. Employee A has been on leave for 11 weeks, and has asked to return to work, and to be paid the withheld salary from his 11-week leave. The previous department manager left the company during Employee A’s leave. The new manager has agreed to Employee A’s return to the previous job, at the previous rate of pay. But the manager has denied the request for the 11 weeks of withheld salary. Well, in such a situation Company X has to look over some information. It seems that Employee A may have had a prior arrangement with the old manager for Company X. If so, one hopes that he has it in writing The FMLA act will require the company to let him return, but will not ensure any kind of compensation for his lost wages. This Act strictly states it is an unpaid leave for no more than 12 weeks, and continual health care will be given over the leave if provided by employer. So, in this case the company has no H.R. problem, but may want to take the time to explain the law, what was agreed upon, and what employee A may have misunderstood. It is a great idea to take the time to explain these things personally to get everything out in the open, so everyone can move forward. Moving forward can be a hard thing to do when you reach a certain age. That is why the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 was created. Age can mean a lot to an employer. A young employee may have more time left in his career, but that doesn’t mean he is better trained, more motivated, or a better fit for the new job or promotion and vise versa. One such situation is Situation B. Situation B: Employee B is 68 years old and has been with Company X for 42 years. During the annual performance review last month, it was determined that Employee B was doing “above average” work in the department. Employee B was denied a promotion due to age. A co-worker given the promotion, who is 32 years old, received a performance review of “adequate”. This kind of incident will also need the proper research done on it. Even though Employee B had a better performance review and to him it may seem that this alone means everything to getting the promotion, this may not be the case. The 32 year old employee may have specialized certifications and training in the field that will make him the best candidate for the promotion. They may have education or employment time requirements that employee B did not have. So, before addressing the case as an age discrimination issue make sure adequate research on the situation and the people in it has been completed. Investigate to ensure that age discrimination is truly the case in the given situation. Then take the employee aside, explain what happened and why age had nothing to do with it. Let him know you appreciate his work and give him something to keep working for. It could be another promotion opening, or a raise for doing a great job where he is now. On the other hand, if they had the same qualifications Company X has committed a federal crime. Try to settle in house by giving him a better or equal to promotion, after all he earned it. There are many amenities that many people do not notice, but can mean the world to handicapped individual. Simple things like handicap stalls in all public and work related bathrooms, and proper ramp access to commercial buildings. Noticing how important these amenities are to such a large population the government implemented the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. This Act requires employers to properly accommodate mental and physical disabled employees into the workplace within reasonable accommodation. Furthermore, a qualified individual with a disability should not be discriminated against in the application process, hiring, job training, and many more circumstances. In the following situation a problem linked to this Act has arisen for Company X. Situation C. Applicant C requires the use of a wheelchair to move about due to paralysis of both legs. The position Applicant C applied for requires movement about the entire company offices, instead of using the elevator to access any of the seven floors in the headquarters building. In order for Applicant C to make use of the elevators, the key pads in two of the four elevator cars would have to be lowered four inches to be accessible. Applicant C was denied employment, and was told the denial was because his/her employment would cause undue hardship on Company X. Company X definitely has discriminated against Applicant C. The company may look at the cost of moving the keypad as an undue hardship, but in reality it is the cost of doing business and keeping up with the times. Today, all of the elevators being built are made to accommodate handicap people, so, if taken to court Company X would most likely either settle or lose. In today’s world, companies must first invest in an employee to make him better. Making this investment enables a company to get the best qualified employee for the job, so why wouldn’t they want to do it?