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Supreme Court Upholds Healthcare Reform – It’s Time for Employers To Get To Work
Today the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). In what is easily the most significant decision this term, and arguably one of the most important rulings in decades, the Supreme Court upheld the so-called “individual mandate” and all of the provisions of ACA that impact employers. NFIB v. Kathleen Sibelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services. Read full article from Fisher & Phillips

Background Checks: There’s An App For That
By Lawrence S. McGoldrick
But Are You Using It Correctly?
In January of this year, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a warning to three companies that sell mobile applications (apps) which provide background reports, including criminal record reports. The issues are whether those apps and reports are covered by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), and whether the providers and their customers – that would be you – are complying with the FCRA’s requirements. Read full hospitality update from Fisher & Phillips

Can You Refuse To Hire A Felon?
By Andria Lure Ryan
Imagine you are a hotelier hiring for a sensitive position – perhaps a night auditor or purchasing clerk. Your practice is to conduct criminal-background checks on all applicants, since almost all of your employees will have some access to your guests and their property. During an initial phone interview the applicant reveals a significant criminal conviction. He tells you that he was recently convicted of a felony involving distribution of narcotics, served a short sentence and is currently on probation. Read full hospitality update from Fisher & Phillips

Interviewing The Pawn Stars Way
By James R. Holland, Michael S. Mitchell
Viewers of the popular television show “Pawn Stars” (The History Channel) know that recently the owner, Rick Harrison, and his father, “the old man,” have been interviewing applicants for the night shift. Here is their exchange when the old man sat in on one of the interviews.
Read full labor article from Fisher & Phillips

State Department Releases New J-1 Visa Requirements
The U.S. Department of State recently released new guidelines for the J-1 Summer Work Travel Program. Under the new rules, student workers from six countries (Bulgaria, Russia, Romania, Ukraine, Belarus, and Moldova) must have a vetted job offer before their visa interview. This means that employers seeking J-1 visa holders must begin the process much earlier. For further information, please visit the Council on International Educational Exchange

Supreme Court: Public Employers May Ask Comprehensive Background Questions Of Employees:
Court ducks Constitutional privacy issue
In a rare unanimous decision, the Supreme Court held that NASA’s background inquiries of its contract employees regarding drug treatment or counseling and other negative “general behavior or conduct” of its contract employees were tailored to the government’s interests in managing its workforce and therefore did not violate the employees’ right to informational privacy. The Court ducked the issue of whether such information is actually protected by any Constitutional right to privacy, leaving that question open for another day. Nelson v. NASA. Read full alert from Fisher & Phillips

A Successful Employment Relationship Starts With A Good Interview
By Michelle I. Anderson
Let’s face it, if you have conducted any number of interviews, you know that all things being equal on paper, the face-to-face meeting with an applicant can be invaluable. For years, I advised job seekers on how to achieve the “fit-in factor” with an employer during an interview. Like it or not, this is often the ultimate hiring criteria. Will this applicant fit in with the corporate culture? Will this person enhance the cohesiveness of out “team” atmosphere? Will this individual grow with the company and contribute towards its goals and success? The fit-in factor! Or, from the applicant’s perspective, the most important response to the question: “Why should I hire you?” Read full labor letter article from Fisher & Phillips

March Mayhem Bracket For Employers: Biggest Workplace Headaches
By Richard R. Meneghello
About this time of year, most of your employees will start wasting a good chunk of their day filling out brackets in anticipation of the NCAA college basketball tournament. Why try to beat them when you can join them? Fisher & Phillips has created a bracket for employers, but instead of predicting basketball results, we want you to tell us your biggest headaches for employers. Read full labor letter article from Fisher & Phillips

Writing An Employee Handbook Your Employees Will Read – And Heed, Part 1
By D. Albert Brannen
Not complying with current law can be expensive in today’s legal climate. Employers should review their employee handbooks and employment-related policies to make sure they are up to date. More importantly, employers should draft their handbooks so their employees actually read them and follow their policies. Read full labor letter article from Fisher & Phillips

“Kitchen Tryouts Start Today” . . . Or Maybe Not
By John E. Thompson
Hospitality employers sometimes wonder whether it’s possible for individuals to participate in kitchen activities as unpaid interns or on a tryout basis, typically as chefs or cooks. Among the many questions this raises is whether such people would be “employees” who are subject to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act’s requirements. Read full hospitality update from Fisher & Phillips