A fun way to while away your time until the weekend officially arrives.
How much do you know about the basics of HR law? Take our quiz and find out! The usual rules apply: The answers immediately follow the questions, and I won't know if you cheat. Since I'm in a good mood because we have survived the month of February, everybody will get a participation trophy at the end.
Unless otherwise indicated, assume that there are no unique state or local laws involved.
Ready? Here we go:
No. 1: What does "right to work" mean?
A. Everybody has a God-given right to earn a livelihood through gainful employment.
B. Either the employee or the employer can terminate the employment relationship at any time and for any reason, or for no reason at all.
C. An employee cannot be required to join a union as a condition of employment.
D. Welfare-to-work. In other words, for an able-bodied person, getting off welfare and going back to work is the "right" thing to do. So, it's "right" "to work."
ANSWER: C. Twenty-six states have "right-to-work" laws. A circuit court judge in West Virginia issued a decision this week invalidating that state's right-to-work law, which was enacted in 2016. The court's decision is sure to be appealed. In non-right-to-work states, union membership can be required.
The blue states in the map below are right-to-work states:
No. 2: Well, then, what is it when "Either the employee or the employer can terminate the employment relationship at any time and for any reason, or for no reason at all"?
A. A misstatement of applicable law.
B. Promissory estoppel.
C. Res ipsa loquitur.
D. Employment at will.
ANSWER: D, but I'll give you credit if you answered A. Generally, in an employment at will state, if the parties don't have a contract of employment for a definite term, then either party can terminate the employment relationship at any time and for any lawful reason. Even in an employment-at-will state, an employer can't terminate an employee for an unlawful reason, such as a discriminatory or retaliatory one.
Every state in the union is an "employment-at-will" state, except Montana.
No. 3: A clerical employee who is paid a weekly salary (not by the hour) is exempt from the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
TRUE
FALSE
ANSWER: FALSE. To be exempt from the overtime requirements of the FLSA, the employee's job must meet a number of requirements, including the "duties test" for the administrative, executive, or professional exemptions. Most clerical jobs will not meet the requirements for the exemptions. (There are also exemptions for certain computer employees and outside salespersons, but a clerical employee clearly won't fit into those, either.)
The salary threshold for exemption is pretty low right now -- $455 a week, so most clerical employees would probably be fine there. But word on the street is that the U.S. Department of Labor will soon be issuing proposed regulations that would raise this threshold.
No. 4: Bad Company has a policy that prohibits its non-exempt office staff from working overtime unless the overtime has been authorized in advance. Sheila flagrantly violates this rule. All the time. Which of the following can Bad Company NOT do to rectify the situation?
A. Fire Sheila for repeatedly violating the rule against working unauthorized overtime.
B. Stop paying Sheila for the unauthorized hours. That'll teach her.
C. Issue progressive discipline, up to and including termination of employment.
D. Make Sheila leave on the nose at 5 p.m. (her regular quitting time) every evening.
ANSWER: B. Employers can punish employees for working unauthorized overtime, and they can require employees to leave at their regular quitting times, but they can almost never withhold their wages. (Read "almost never" as "never.")
No. 5: Your company is in Portland, Oregon, and your CEO has strong religious beliefs. She finds out employee Skip is an atheist. Not long afterward, she tells you that the company is overstaffed, even though it isn't. She tells you to eliminate Skip's position, even though he is a good employee and the company needs someone with his talents. The other employees, all believers of one type or another, are not laid off. Which is the MOST ACCURATE description of your company's legal status?
A. Great! Your CEO found a way to get rid of that heathen!
B. Not so hot. You got rid of one of your best employees for reasons that don't have anything to do with work.
C. That's not the way I would have handled it, but to each his own . . .
D. You have violated the Portland civil rights code, which was recently amended to provide anti-discrimination protections to non-believers.
ANSWER: D. Only in Portlandia . . . well, never mind that, because Madison, Wisconsin, also has an ordinance that protects non-believers. And even if you have only Title VII to worry about, you shouldn't discriminate against anyone based on their religious beliefs or the lack thereof. (Exceptions apply to religious organizations and bona fide "ministerial" positions.)
No. 6: Ashleigh comes to you and says that she is being sexually harassed by her supervisor, Anakin. You know them both very well, and you know that Ashleigh is a big flirt and also a liar. On the other hand, Anakin is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent.* You're swamped with work, and you don't have time to conduct a thorough investigation, and you aren't worried in the least that Anakin really did anything wrong. What should you do?
*Yes, I ripped this off from the Boy Scouts' Scout Law.
A. Investigate anyway, or better yet, bring in an outside investigator who can be more objective than you are.
B. Call it a "he said, she said," and close the case as "inconclusive."
C. Fire Ashleigh for making a false complaint.
D. Lock the two of them in a room together until they work things out.
ANSWER: A. Yes, Ashleigh may be a ditz, and yes, Anakin may be the greatest, but that doesn't mean Ashleigh couldn't be right this once. Never close a harassment case before you've conducted a thorough investigation. And if you feel that you know the personalities a little too well, do seriously consider bringing in an outside Human Resources consultant or employment attorney to conduct an objective investigation.
No. 7: While you're in a restroom stall, you overhear Matt and Ben complaining about their 2 percent pay raises. Ben tells Matt that their co-worker Nicole got 3.5 percent. As the HR Director, you know Ben is correct. Your CEO will be furious when he finds out that employees are talking about their pay. What can you do to nip this in the bud?
A. Fire Matt, Ben, and Nicole for discussing confidential information.
B. Conduct employee meetings, in which you warn them not to discuss their pay under penalty of disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment.
C. Nothing.
ANSWER: C. Assuming Matt, Ben, and Nicole are not "supervisors" within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act, and that they don't handle payroll or salary administration, this is "protected concerted activity" within the meaning of Section 7 of the NLRA. Section 7 of the NLRA applies even if your company is non-union. Among other things, employees have a legal right to discuss their terms and conditions of employment, of which pay is certainly one.
For more on why non-union employers need to know about the NLRA, tune in to our latest edition of ConstangyTV's Close-Up on Workplace Law. You'll be glad you did!
No. 8: Danielle has recently used up all of her leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act for her cancer treatments. Your company doesn't offer short-term or long-term disability. Danielle brings you a note from her doctor saying that she will be able to return to work with restrictions in two weeks. What do you do?
ANSWER: D. Of course!
HOW'DJA DO?
6-8 correct: Senior Veep! The HR professional to end all HR professionals!
4-5 correct: You're going places, baby! HR Director, or at least Manager!
2-3 correct: You share a hallway with the HR Department.
0-1 correct: An HR person fired you from your last job.
Just kidding! Everybody did great! Here's that Participation Trophy I promised you:
Of Counsel & Chief Legal EditorRobin also conducts internal investigations and delivers training for HR professionals, managers, and employees on topics such as harassment prevention, disability accommodation, and leave management.
Robin is editor in chief ...
This is Constangy’s flagship law blog, founded in 2010 by Robin Shea, who is chief legal editor and a regular contributor. This nationally recognized blog also features posts from other Constangy attorneys in the areas of immigration, labor relations, and sports law, keeping HR professionals and employers informed about the latest legal trends.
