
Dilemma of the Month: Asking About Health
What you need to know about the ADA and evaluating an applicant's health
I interviewed a job candidate who was severely overweight and had trouble walking. While the job is mostly a desk job (administrative assistant) the admins are expected to run things back and forth when needed. Could I have asked her about her health? I didn’t. I didn’t offer her the job, either, and now I’m feeling guilty. What should I have done?

Dilemma of the Month: Drug Testing New Hires
We drug test new hires at my company. When a potential employee’s test comes back positive it’s easy enough to rescind the offer, but we had a candidate have a test returned “negative but diluted” and we rescinded the offer. The candidate had already given two weeks’ notice at his current company and they won’t take him back. Did we do the right thing?

Dilemma of the Month: Snooping on Employee Email
I have an employee who hasn’t been performing well. Last week, she was out sick again and I needed a report. I tried to call her, but she didn’t answer. So, I asked IT if I could get the report from her email, and they gave me access to her inbox. I found the report, but curiosity overcame me, and I opened a few other emails. I feel totally guilty — I snooped. Is this legal? Is it moral? What do I do with this information?

Lock the Business Cookie Jar
What steps did you take in October’s National Cyber Security Awareness Month?
Did you make any progress during October’s National Cyber Security Awareness Month? Did you, as I like to say, lock your business’s cookie jar?

Commonly Used Employer Interview Practices Now Prohibited by Law
By now, most employers know there are certain questions they can ask, and certain questions they must avoid when interviewing a candidate for a job. They know that anti-discrimination laws apply before a worker is even hired, and have heard stories about costly lawsuits resulting from an employer asking the wrong question of a prospective employee during a job interview.

As Capitol is Hit by “Me Too” Reports of Sexual Harassment, Will Lawmakers Make Changes?
Do Capitol employees have enough protection to believe that they can report sexual harassment or assault and maintain their careers?

Mitigate the Legal Risks of Terminating an Employee
When an at-will termination is at issue, there are certain steps to take and considerations an employer should evaluate to minimize the risk of later becoming the target of a wrongful termination lawsuit.

Dilemma of the Month: He Said, She Said
We have a female employee who reported sexual harassment from a male coworker. The woman didn’t want to come forward, but once the CEO found out, he felt he had an obligation to handle the claim. We currently are without an HR manager. What is the proper way to handle this? Should an investigation be made?

What Does the New Workplace Harassment Guide for California Employers Mean For Your Business?
Watch any news channel, listen to any talk radio station or read virtually any online news or social media feed, and chances are, you’ll learn about a new lawsuit being filed against a company based on allegations of harassment, discrimination or retaliatory conduct in the workplace.

Digital Detective
A State Bar opinion on electronic discovery underlines a new reality — lack of technology competence isn’t just a competitive risk, but an ethical one
From texts to photos to emails, every modern law case involves some sort of e-discovery — so why are lawyers still failing to do it?