According to the February 18, 2010, Newsletter of the United States Department of Labor’s (DOL), 107 new members of its "Wage & Hour" staff have completed their "Basic I Investigator Training." The graduates completed an intensive three-week training on the investigative process and application of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Despite its name, “Basic
How to Conduct a Sexual Harassment Investigation
Dear Readers,
I recently wrote an article, along with employment attorney Nancy Bornn, providing practice pointers on conducting internal workplace investigations. It is published today on the SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) website.
If you are not a member of SHRM, you can also read the article for a limited time on the
Sexual Harassment Investigation: Preserve the Evidence
You have just learned that an employee is complaining of sexual harassment by a co-worker via email. What should you do first, or at least at the very top of the list?
Take steps to insure that the accused harasser does not have access to any of the evidence supporting the alleged victim’s claims.
Personnel Files: Review Before or After Interview, or Not at All?
Should a workplace investigator in a sexual harassment or discrimination investigation view the personnel file of the complainant / alleged victim at all? If so, at which point in the investigation should it be viewed, and under what circumstances? These questions are debatable among workplace investigators, but I have my preference, and of course, an
EEOC Hit For $4.56 Million for Failing to “Properly” Investigate Sexual Harassment Claims
Last week, Chief Judge of the Northern District of Iowa, Linda Reade, issued an order requiring the EEOC to pay to Defendant CRST Van Expedited the sum of $4.56 million in attorney’s fees, expenses, and costs. Defendant CRST is a trucking company that the EEOC had sued in federal court alleging that a large
Recruiting, Social Media and Disparate Impact
I just listened to a very informative podcast today by economist and statistical consultant Stephanie R. Thomas, Ph.D., titled Recruiting, Social Media and Disparate Impact, which I highly recommend to anyone reading this post, particularly, recruiters. Ms. Thomas is the Director, Equal Employment Advisory and Litigation Support Division, for Minimax Consulting in Newtown
Should a Workplace Investigator Examine Statistics?
Employment attorney Jonathan Hyman writes an interesting blog post this week concerning statistics: Why Statistics are So Important in Reduction in Force Cases.
Attorney Hyman states that "the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act requires all releases and waivers of federal age discrimination claims provided as part of a severance program offered to
Gathering Documents in a Workplace Investigation
An interesting article came out this week on Jobsinformed titled "Seven Steps to Successful Workplace Investigations" by employment attorney Patricia C. Perez, SPHR, founder of Puente Consulting.
In her Step 3, "Gathering Documentation", Ms. Perez summarizes the relevance of the investigator viewing the personnel files of the complainant and the accused.
Pitfalls to Avoid in Workplace Investigations
An article posted in the National Law Review on January 31, 2010, titled "Top 5 Pitfalls to Avoid When Conducting Workplace Investigations" by employment attorney Julie Vogelzang is worth the read. She lists and discusses the following pitfalls:
PITFALL NO. 1: Failing to Promptly Begin the Investigation
She notes that "one of the worst
Peace Officer Investigation: Some Special Considerations
Workplace investigations involving Public Safety Officers are governed by special procedural rules set forth in the Public Safety Officers Procedural Bill of Rights Act ("POBR").
Specifically, California Gov’t Code section 3303 says:
When any public safety officer is under investigation and subjected to interrogation by his or her commanding officer, or any other member of