Tennessean (05/10/12) Brian Wilson

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam signed into law on May 9 three measures tightening eligibility standards for people to receive state unemployment benefits. The series of bills makes it more difficult for individuals fired with cause to receive benefits. It also requires unemployment recipients to apply for at least three jobs every week or go to a local career center and then submit detailed information to verify these applications. The system’s changes will greatly benefit small businesses, says the legislation’s main proponent, Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey.

JDSupra (05/03/2012)

Companies may want to move away from safety-management programs that mainly track the program’s effectiveness based upon recordable injuries. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has criticized such programs and is encouraging whistleblowers instead.

Companies should carefully review the March 12 memo on “Employer Safety Incentive and Disincentive Policies and Practices.” OSHA considers “reporting an injury to always be a protected activity” and looks askance at companies that discipline, terminate, or take other adverse action against an employee who reports a workplace injury.

Lexology (05/01/12) Theodore A. Olsen

Employees are protected from retaliation when opposing illegal discrimination or participating in a proceeding that claims discrimination under Section 704 of Title VII and other employment discrimination laws, but the courts have long ruled that they are not protected when complaining about working conditions not associated with prohibited discrimination. However, there have been several surprising decisions in “opposition” cases recently. In Brush v. Sears Holdings Corp., for instance, the plaintiff claimed she was terminated after investigating an employee’s sexual harassment claim because she complained that the company was not sufficiently addressing sexual assaults of female workers, but the court ruled that her complaints did not constitute “protected opposition.” According to the court, complaints about internal grievance processes and challenges to these grievance systems are not protected opposition under Title VII, because employers are not legally required to have such processes and the absence or inadequacy of such systems does not violate the law.

Lexology (04/30/12) Adam C. Losey; Scott Callen

A greater focus on electronic discovery has made employment litigation more costly and time-consuming, but there are several things employers can do to handle e-discovery efficiently and effectively. They should implement a legal review process to determine whether e-mail and other electronic information should be preserved and then keep these documents safe, and they should implement a document-retention policy detailing the management, storage, and deletion of data. Employers should understand that electronic information includes not only e-mail but also timekeeping systems, payroll systems, and data stored in the cloud. Finally, they should consult an e-discovery professional to ensure they are not spending too much on discovery requests, and they should consider using review technology to identify relevant documents in litigation.