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Hiring, Part 1: Can I Fire a New Employee Whose Background Check Reveals Pending Criminal Charges?
August 2008
I ran a background check on an employee I just hired and discovered that she faces serious criminal charges pending a hearing but has not been convicted. Some of the charges (to name a few) are assault in the first and second degree and theft over $500. Technically she didn't lie on the application because she has not yet pleaded guilty or been convicted. But I don't want to employ someone who has the potential to commit these types of crimes. What do I do? . . . more

Recordkeeping: Can We Destroy Paper Originals if We Keep Scanned Electronic Copies on File?
August 2008
We have many employment documents that bear a seal or have a signature or a notary's stamp. If we scan the documents and store them electronically, can we keep (and properly index) only the original pages that have the seal, signature, etc., and destroy the rest of the pages? Or, even better, can we scan the whole document and destroy all of the original pages? . . . more

Terminations: Can We Fire an Employee During the Probationary Period?
August 2008
What are the rules regarding termination during an employee's probationary period, which for us is the first six months of employment? . . . more

Privacy: We Think an Employee Stole Company Data on His iPod; Can We Confiscate It?
July 2008
We suspect an employee has stolen proprietary data from us using his iPod. We have suspicions but no hard facts. Can we confiscate the iPod? What do we do from here to protect our information? . . . more

Short Takes: Recruiting
July 2008
We're interested in using Facebook and similar websites to locate potential job applicants. Would we be violating their rights in any way by contacting them out of the blue when they haven't applied to our company for work? . . . more

Discipline: What Should We Do When an Employee Refuses to Sign a Disciplinary Form?
June 2008
After discussing discipline with an employee, we always ask the person to sign the disciplinary form so there is a record that we talked with the employee about the issue. Quite often, the person refuses to sign. What do we do if an employee sues us someday? Would a court accept a document that has "employee refused to sign" written on it? Should we just bag the whole idea of written warnings and avoid this problem altogether? . . . more

Employment Contracts: Could I Be Entering into 'Implied Contracts' Without Knowing It?
April 2008
We fired an employee, thinking he was "at will," but now he claims we made an oral promise that he could be fired only for cause. We'll fight this one in court, but how do we keep from having misunderstandings like these? . . . more

Short Takes: Sheriffs
April 2008
Are we required to allow sheriffs and other people who wish to serve subpoenas or court papers on an employee to enter our facilities? . . . more

Short Takes: Workers' Compensation
March 2008
Do we have to be a part of the State Compensation Insurance Fund, or can we go on our own for workers' comp insurance? . . . more

Bulletin: Special Report enclosed with this issue: "What's New for 2008—Workplace Developments and What California Employers Must Do to Comply"
February 2008
Many workplace-related laws went into effect on January 1, and numerous court decisions on employment issues were handed down in the past year. With our exclusive Special Report, you'll have inform . . . more

E-Challenges: How Can We Get Employees to Follow Our Internet Usage Guidelines?
January 2008
We have tried to be clear with our employees about Internet use but we believe a lot of unauthorized use and personal emailing is still going on. How far can we go in monitoring our employees' use of the Internet while at work? . . . more

Bulletin: New law expands whistleblower protection for health care workers
November 2007
Governor Schwarzenegger recently signed A.B. 632, which bars a health care facility from discriminating or retaliating against patients, employees, facility medical staff, or other . . . more

Bulletin: Join us for the second-annual California Employment Law Update conference next month
November 2007
The California legislature has concluded its current session, and Governor Schwarzenegger has now signed bills into law. Many of the new laws could directly affect your workplace--do you know what they are and how to respond? . . . more

Sexual Harassment: Can Third Parties Sue for Harassment?
November 2007
We've got two situations in which third parties are complaining about sexual harassment. In one case, an office couple is "carrying on" in front of another employee who is complaining about a "hostile environment." In the other case . . . more

Workplace Bullying: Do You Have Any Advice on Preventing and Recognizing Bullying at Work?
CELA Online Exclusive October 2007
We have an "aggressive" employee who seems to make her co-workers uncomfortable by loudly criticizing them; we think we have a bully on our staff. Is workplace bullying illegal? . . . more

Bulletin: Second-annual California Employment Law Update conference coming soon
October 2007
The California legislature is wrapping up its current session, and Governor Schwarzenegger has until October 14 to sign any bills into law. Many of the bills on the table could directly affect your workplace--do you know what they are and how to respond? . . . more

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