Ricky Gervais is a hero to all of us who live in the world of employment law or human resources. He created David Brent, the most inappropriate boss ever, on the original British version of The Office. David Brent begot Michael Scott, his U.S. counterpart and the second most inappropriate boss ever. I bring this up because last week, the Wall Street Journal published An (Atheist) Easter Message from Ricky Gervais. Ricky’s point is that being a good person doesn't necessarily equate to being a good Jew or Christian or Muslim or whatever:
It’s not that I don’t believe that the teachings of Jesus wouldn’t make this a better world if they were followed. It’s just that they are rarely followed…. God or not, if I could change one thing for a better world, it would be for all mankind to adhere to this little gem: “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” I assure you, no more stones would ever be thrown.
As we celebrate Passover and Easter, Ricky’s thoughts are good ones to take to heart. Two of my fellow bloggers weighed on the issue of religion in the workplace this week:
- Passover & Easter: A Time to Reflect on Religious Discrimination Issues – from Daniel Schwartz’s Connecticut Employment Law Blog
- Religion in the Workplace: 5 Devilish Employer Mistakes – from Employment and Labor Insider
Here’s the rest of what I read this week:
Social Media & Workplace Technology
- Social Networks: New Hotbed for Hiring Discrimination Claims – from Computerworld
- Social Media Research May Expose Discrimination Claims – from David Carr at InformationWeek’s The Brainyard
- Can a lawyer respond to comments on their blog without creating an attorney client relationship – from Real Lawyers Have Blogs
- Social Media Signals of an Employee Departure – from Rob Radcliff’s Smooth Transitions
- A Facebook Harassment Consideration – from Philip Miles’s Lawffice Space
- Inside Straight: Social Media Policies – from Mark Herrmann at Above the Law
- Social-Media & Legal Ethics – from Molly DiBianca’s Going Paperless
- Cool or Creepy? Your iPhone and iPad Are Keeping Track of Everywhere You Go, And You Can See It – from Kashmir Hill’s The Not-So Private Parts
- Your smartphone is tracking you, and you said it was okay – from Boy Genius Report
Discrimination
- EEOC Sanctioned On Another Class-Wide Case – from Employment Class Action Blog
- Paycheck Fairness Act Not “Magic Bullet” – from Stephanie Thomas at Compensation Cafe
- Paycheck Fairness Act Not The Answer – from The ChamberPost
- Wal Mart to Pay $440,000 To Settle Allegations It Tolerated Harassment of Mexican-American Employees – from Joe’s HR and Benefits Blog
- Don’t use unemployment as a proxy when it's a poor predictor – from Michael Maslanka’s Work Matters
- Don’t Hate Me Because I’m Beautiful! Appearance Discrimination in the Workplace – from Screw You Guys, I’m Going Home
- Transgender Man Challenges Firing From Male-Only Job – from LE Blog
- Legality of Wellness Programs Under the ADA: A Good Development – from Labor & Employment Law Navigator
- Questions About the ADA Amendments Answered by EEOC Associate Legal Counsel – from Michigan Employment Law Advisor
- ADAAA: The true cost of disability accommodation under the new law – from HR Cafe
- The ADA Soon Will Cover More Disabled – from PCWorld Business Center
Employee Relations & HR
- 9 Sure-Fire Ways to Get Fired – from Evil HR Lady, Suzanne Lucas
- 7 Signs Your Employees Are Poachable – from Trade Secrets & Non-Compete Blog
- Lying On Your Resume Is Not Good For Your Career – from fyiscreening.com
Wage & Hour
- “FindLaw Legal Bloggers Sue for Overtime Pay” – from Walter Olson’s Overlawyered
- Misclassifying an employee may void a non-compete agreement – from Eric Meyer’s The Employer Handbook Blog
- SSA Resumes Social Security Number “No-Match” Letter Program – from Employer Law Report
- “Happy Days” cast sues CBS over royalties – from Entertainment Weekly
- 4th Circuit Affirms That Store Manager That Spends Majority Of Time On Non-Managerial Tasks Is Nonetheless Exempt Under The FLSA – from Laconic Law Blog
- Improperly Recouping Worker’s Overtime Pay Puts Animal Hospital in the Doghouse – from Overtime Advisor
- Tips For Managing Intermittent Leave – from Labor & Employment Law Perspectives
Labor Relations
- Former NLRB Member: Board to Rewrite Organizing Law, Ignore Federal Rulemaking Requirements – from Seth Borden’s Labor Relations Today
- NLRB Issues Complaint Against Boeing – from Workplace Prof Blog
- In Shot Heard Around Business World, Obama’s Labor Board Issues Complaint Against Boeing – from LaborUnionReport
- Labor Employment Law Blog: National Labor Relations Board Seeks To Force Boeing To Direct Work To Union-Represented Plant – from Labor & Employment Law Blog
- Criticisms Mount Against NLRB’s Attack Against Boeing, Business – from Shopfloor
Presented by Kohrman Jackson & Krantz, with offices in Cleveland and Columbus. For more information, contact Jon Hyman, a partner in our Labor & Employment group, at (216) 736-7226 or jth@kjk.com.