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Got a Workplace Problem? Ask a Lawyer |
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The AFL-CIO community affiliate, Working America, is sponsoring Cliff Schecter, political analyst and national commentator, to cover its relaunch of Ask a Lawyer. Check out Schecter’s blog here and at Americablog.
Can my boss really do that? How many of us find ourselves asking that very question on a weekly, if not daily basis? Well now we just may get the answers we seek. Because Working America, the 1.6 million-member community affiliate of the AFL-CIO, which provides a voice for those of us denied the right to union membership on the job, has started its “Ask a Lawyer” program.
First of all, who benefits from Working America? Well, only those of us who don’t have stock options in Halliburton or stay up nights uncontrollably excited about the next day’s bank merger. The silenced majority, if you will.
Working America provides its members, who are located everywhere from Ohio to Oregon, Missouri to Minnesota, essential information on “good jobs, a just economy, affordable health care, quality education, retirement security and globalization.” And interestly enough, the majority of Working America members identify themselves as politically moderate or conservative, as one-third are “born again” Christians and one-third own guns. Sorry to disappoint, Mr. Limbaugh.
So it’ss only logical that the country’s fastest-growing progressive organization would pioneer a new frontier in providing information to workers about their rights, by providing a “free online service to help workers understand their rights and determine whether the boss can really do that—or not.”
Questions may range from: “Can I be fired for something I put on my blog” (probably, unless you are writing about politics) to “Can I be fired for being a smoker even if I don’t smoke at work” (yes, in 21 states). Or you may be interested in more everyday subjects such as workers’ compensation, pay and benefits or discrimination at the workplace.
To the chagrin of corporate-jet executives everywhere, Working America’s Ask a Lawyer program can answer these and other general questions that arise at the workplace.
So find out what your rights are, and enjoy the benefits of an organization that helped defeat tax initiatives that would have hurt working families in Oregon, assisted in getting a family and medical leave law passed in Washington state and fought to get a fair hearing for the Employee Free Choice Act.
Unless, of course, you come from the school of exploiting your workers. Then you had better prepare yourself. Because Working America is on the job, day in and day out, to make sure your day comes to an end.
Full Disclosure: I am being sponsored by Working America, a community affiliate of the AFL-CIO. More disclosure: I could not be more passionate about this project.
11 Comments
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1. Under what circumstances, if any, can an employer require a medical physical examination and testing of a current employee?
2. An employee who drives a public transportation bus, who has a valid drivers license and has passed a physical examination by his own personal physician that validated the license medical requirements - can an employer require that employee undergo another physical examination by the employers own physician?
3. Can an employer routinely (annually) require current employees go to the employers own doctor for a medical exam?
I work at a non-union facility, but some of the employees, myself included, have been discussing unions and possibly going union here. I have been called into the front office on 2 different occassions now to discuss what my problem is, and each time, there are 2 or 3 managers present and myself. Since the last meeting, I have asked my foreman that if anymore conferences were to be held, I would like fair and equal representation, meaning that I want another employee present during these meetings…or 2 depending upon however many managers they have in the room. I was told that this is not a union establashment and that I have, basically, no rights.
My question is do I have a right to have a witness of my choosing present, or maybe even not of my choosing, just any other employee? The reason being is that after the meeting they could fire me, I guess, and say just about anything transpired in that meeting and it would be my story against theirs.
And if I do have no rights in that regard, just how the hell can employees get organized in a company that is conducting witch hunts?
Would an employee on medication for depression and anxiety who is currently in therapy for anger management be protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act?
If an employee has missed work due to a child with many diagnosed psycological illnesses and cannot function in many day cares and schools, is she covered under the Americans with Disability Act to protect her from discipline action brought on by these absences due to the illnesses and lack of childcare options?
If a salary nonunion worker is told to work on random weekends, can they ask for over-time compensation?
My wife works at a weekly wage for a New Hampshire town agency. Her position is limited to 20 hours per week. She does not, as far as I know, have a contract, but has been in this job for 13 years.
She had planned to take a week off to accompany her elderly mother on a vacation with other family members. The vacation is paid for and scheduled by her mother. She was informed by the Board that she reports to that she could not take off a week and make up the wages by working extra hours during a different week. She believes, but may not be able to prove, that she was allowed to do so in a previous year, when the membership of the Board was different. She had ascertained that the week in question is not one in which staffing was expected to be inadequate.
Is it really acceptable/legal for an employer to deny a part time employee with no paid vacation time the ability to make up voluntary time off by working extra hours in a different week? If it could be proven that a previous Board had permitted this kind of make-up time, is that a precedent?
We are a union shop but are treading into new waters with the introduction of pagers for call out after hours on our work force.
We are in Louisiana and I am wanting to know what kind of restrictions [response times to pager or distance away from home while carrying pager] the company can put on the employee if he is not being compensated [paid] for being on call.
Does the doctor/patiant confadentiality apply when you are seeing the company’s on site doctor. Also can the human resources department review your medical records that the company medical department has without your permission?
I was promised inwriting a deffered compansation pension after 5 years they did away wiht the plan . they offered 4000 as a pay out I refused Where do I stand legally.
T Richards, tomr929@msn.com
I am waiting for Arbitration. To have a case against the employer, should I sue the employer before the Arbitration or after the Arbitration? Should I file the papers with the Court in six months after I was fired? If is after Arbitration, it will more than six months since I was wrongfully fired.
My question is: can I sue the employer after I go to Arbitration and it will be more than six months, to get damages? or should I sue the employer now, before the six months period?
My fiance has a weird situation going on, tell me if this is even legal, becuase we talked to a lawyer, but he was only onterested in workers comp..
She started a job in a field she had worked before and on the first day someone left a big box in a walkpath and she broke a toe in her foot and her small toe. It took her two days to get time off to go to the hospital to find out it was broke. Well they did not file a report, had no workers comp and made her work even after she asked for time off or for a little help. She asked for the furniture to be moved a little to be able to use crutches and for a golf cart they own to be used by her on the property, no luck, they actually made it where she couldnt use it, and eft her at the office alon most of the time. She went to the doctor after one night of pain and got vicoden, the office manager did not care still, I had enough and told her to tell them her foot was not healing, because it wasnt, she told them she needed time off, (this is after a month of walking on a broken toe and bone) and after 5 or 6 days the manager fired her. Even though she told them, gave them a doctors note. The manager lied about it, but we can prive that…and they have no workers comp so she cant get that or even get a workers comp lawyer to help. We also got stalked by this woman trying to take pictures(the manager) but were asked by a lawyer not to call the police, then he dropped her case, due to no workers comp insurance. She is about healed and ready to go back to work, but these jerks shouldnt be able to abuse people like this, what laws have they broken, if none, I wan tot know to lobby for these missing laws.