Employer Resource Institute Audio Conference

Originally presented on July 23, 2008
10:30 a.m. to Noon (Pacific)

Order Option       Price   CD Recording Only       $219

As an additional benefit, you will receive a no-risk trial subscription to California Employment Law Answers when you register for this Audio Conference (or purchase a CD recording). You will receive 3 evaluation issues. If you want to continue to receive the newsletter, simply pay the invoice you will receive in the mail. If you decide the newsletter isn't for you, just write cancel on the invoice and return it. You will owe nothing, and all issues you receive are yours to keep. As with all ERI products, your satisfaction is guaranteed 100%. (Offer good for new subscribers only.)

From flip-flops to tube tops, "Daisy Duke" shorts to arm-length tattoos, maintaining a professional-looking workforce is an uphill battle for employers—particularly in the summertime, when employee flesh is on display as far as the eye can see. Recent studies have found that about half of Americans in their 20s sport a body piercing somewhere besides their ears, or a tattoo, and this is the time of year you're bound to encounter something that's been demurely hiding beneath a sweater all winter.

Striking the proper balance between requiring appropriate dress among your employees and respecting their rights at the same time can be tricky, particularly when concerns like religious expression come into play.

In this audio recording, our employment law experts will explain the practical and legal steps you can take to respect your employees' cultural and religious rights while maintaining a professional work environment. You'll learn what you can—and cannot—require in your current dress code, as well as the changes you should make to your rules to stay current with today's employment laws and younger workforce.

You and your colleagues will learn:

• The key rules you should always include in your appearance policies


• How to address sensitive summertime dress code situations, such as the employee who regularly comes to work simply wearing too little


• How to adopt dress codes that keep younger workers happy without upsetting their more experienced colleagues who came of age in the "suit and tie" era


• The most recent court decisions on dress codes—and how they apply to you


• How to tailor your appearance policies to fit workers in different types of jobs, from the warehouse to the corner office


• How much detail you should include in your written appearance policies


• How to address the needs of today's diverse workforce in your appearance policies


• Proven tips for communicating your dress code expectations to workers without running afoul of the law


• The questionable dress code rules to avoid that could leave you liable for claims of discrimination on the basis of race, gender, national origin, or similar grounds


• How to deal with employees who consistently push the dress code envelope—and when you should bring in your attorney instead of confronting an employee yourself


• How to prepare policies that legally and effectively address piercings, jewelry, tattoos, beards, hairstyles, cosmetics, and other seemingly innocuous yet legally tricky issues.

About Your Speakers:

Clarence Belnavis, Esq. is the managing partner of the Portland, Oregon office of Fisher & Phillips, LLP. He has substantial experience handling various types of employment litigation including disability, racial, and gender discrimination; retaliation; sexual harassment; and wrongful discharge. He also represents employers in wage and hour claims, employment class actions and traditional labor matters.

Belnavis began his legal career serving as a law clerk in the Office of the General Counsel for the Department of the Navy, and he served as a judicial intern for Judge A. Burnett, Superior Court, Washington, D.C. He has been named an Oregon "Super Lawyer" and is listed in Chambers USA, America's Leading Business Lawyers 2006.

Sarah Nichols, Esq. is an associate in the San Francisco office of Fisher & Phillips, LLP. Her practice focuses on labor and employment litigation, defending employers against claims of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, and wage-and-hour issues.

Nichols provides preventive advice to clients on various personnel issues, including employee discipline and termination and the development of preventive policies and procedures to avoid employment claims and litigation. She also provides compliance and liability prevention training, and is a frequent speaker for trade groups and associations as well as private employers.

Approved for Recertification Credit

This program has been approved for 1.5 recertification credit hours toward PHR and SPHR recertification through the Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI). For more information about certification or recertification, please visit the HRCI homepage at www.hrci.org.

How Do Audio Conferences Work?

An Audio Conference is remarkably cost-effective and convenient. You participate from your office using a regular telephone. You have no travel costs and no out-of-office time.

Plus, for one low price you can get as many people in your office to participate as you can fit around a speakerphone.

Because the conference is live, you can ask the speakers questions' either on the phone or via e-mail.

With your registration, you also receive conference materials with additional practical information from California Employer Advisor sent to you via e-mail shortly before the conference.

Why You Can Sign Up To Attend This Event with Confidence

As with all California Employer Advisor products, you're completely protected. If for any reason you are unsatisfied with this Audio Conference, simply let us know and we will return your entire registration fee.