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...r>FIRING WITHOUT FEAR: AVOIDING WRONGFUL TERMINATION LAWSUITS by Beth Schroe...ncerned with the possibility of the wrongful discharge lawsuit, and are not in...

...void legal action. Lawsuits for wrongful termination, discrimination, defamat...new people several weeks after the terminations are certainly calling into que...

...eds in the event of the agent's termination. Each producer's contract should be carefully studied for termination clauses and the consequences of termination. Many P/C agencies have Life busin...l commissions after a Life agent's termination, but ownership should clearly b...

...ination, he sued the company for wrongful discharge, claiming that the congrat...greement with or without cause. At termination, too often Life agents lose all...

... rated yet. These hiring guidelines can help protect your business against the "growth industry" of employment-related litigation. Today, every business faces not only the traditional challenges of competition and rapidly changing technology, but a relatively new category of potential adversary — workers hitting them with employment-related claims. Not-for-profit corporations, public entities, and private businesses alike are experiencing an explosion of litigation alleging: Discrimination Sexual Harassment Wrongful discharge Wage and hour disputes Negligent hiring, retention, and supervision Failure to provide benefits Violations of federal and state leave-of-absence laws Whether companies win or lose such suits, they'll divert time, money, and energy from growing sales and earnings. In one Southern California lawsuit, an openly gay grocery store night manager claimed he was wrongfully terminated because of upper management's discriminatory anti-gay practices. The store denied ... allegations and said the manager was fired because he violated the store's zero-tolerance policy on sexual harassment. He was suspended after a stock clerk accused him of trying to fondle him; other employees provided signed statements accusing the manager of conduct ranging from mild sexual innuendo to fondling and propositioning employees. Even if the store wins the suit, it will have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars on lawyers' fees and its public image will suffer. If it loses the suit, the verdict could be in the millions. Only 5% of the workforce is responsible for 95% of employment-related litigation. Most of those 5% have victim mentalities. They believe that they're entitled to a job and salary regardless of their performance; they blame others for their shortcomings; or they refuse to accept responsibility for their ...

... The limited availability of EPL insurance on an occurrence basis is a recent development. But before switching your clients to occurrence-based EPL insurance, consider the following issues: PRIOR ACTS Prior-acts coverage is a particularly important feature for insureds because many employment claims allege a pattern of wrongdoing that spans more than one year. It's not uncommon for sexual harassment suits and race- and gender-discrimination suits-class-action and individual claims-to allege that wrongful conduct occurred over the course of at least 10 years. Now that prior-acts coverage is widely available, if EPL coverage is written on a claims-made basis, the policyholder can capture the benefits of the most recent policy enhancements. If coverage is written on an occurrence basis, the coverage might not be enhanced from year to year. Even if coverage is enhanced, it will be available only for ... or constructive-of an employment relationship that is against the law Allegations of wrongful demotion, retaliation, misrepresentation, promissory estoppel, and intentional interference with contract Defamation, infliction of emotional distress or mental anguish, humiliation, false imprisonment, invasion of privacy, and other personal-injury allegations Allegations of breach of an implied employment contract, or breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing in the employment contract Employment terminations, disciplinary actions, demotions, and other employment decisions that violate public policy Violations of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act Breach of an employee's federal, state, or local civil rights, including but not limited to any violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1886 or 42 U.S.C. section 1983 Retaliation against any insured for filing under the Federal False Claims Act, in connection with whistle ...

... The limited availability of EPL insurance on an occurrence basis is a recent development. But before switching your clients to occurrence-based EPL insurance, consider the following issues: PRIOR ACTS Prior-acts coverage is a particularly important feature for insureds because many employment claims allege a pattern of wrongdoing that spans more than one year. It's not uncommon for sexual harassment suits and race- and gender-discrimination suits-class-action and individual claims-to allege that wrongful conduct occurred over the course of at least 10 years. Now that prior-acts coverage is widely available, if EPL coverage is written on a claims-made basis, the policyholder can capture the benefits of the most recent policy enhancements. If coverage is written on an occurrence basis, the coverage might not be enhanced from year to year. Even if coverage is enhanced, it will be available only for ... or constructive-of an employment relationship that is against the law Allegations of wrongful demotion, retaliation, misrepresentation, promissory estoppel, and intentional interference with contract Defamation, infliction of emotional distress or mental anguish, humiliation, false imprisonment, invasion of privacy, and other personal-injury allegations Allegations of breach of an implied employment contract, or breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing in the employment contract Employment terminations, disciplinary actions, demotions, and other employment decisions that violate public policy Violations of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act Breach of an employee's federal, state, or local civil rights, including but not limited to any violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1886 or 42 U.S.C. section 1983 Retaliation against any insured for filing under the Federal False Claims Act, in connection with whistle ...

... The limited availability of EPL insurance on an occurrence basis is a recent development. But before switching your clients to occurrence-based EPL insurance, consider the following issues: PRIOR ACTS Prior-acts coverage is a particularly important feature for insureds because many employment claims allege a pattern of wrongdoing that spans more than one year. It's not uncommon for sexual harassment suits and race- and gender-discrimination suits-class-action and individual claims-to allege that wrongful conduct occurred over the course of at least 10 years. Now that prior-acts coverage is widely available, if EPL coverage is written on a claims-made basis, the policyholder can capture the benefits of the most recent policy enhancements. If coverage is written on an occurrence basis, the coverage might not be enhanced from year to year. Even if coverage is enhanced, it will be available only for ... or constructive-of an employment relationship that is against the law Allegations of wrongful demotion, retaliation, misrepresentation, promissory estoppel, and intentional interference with contract Defamation, infliction of emotional distress or mental anguish, humiliation, false imprisonment, invasion of privacy, and other personal-injury allegations Allegations of breach of an implied employment contract, or breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing in the employment contract Employment terminations, disciplinary actions, demotions, and other employment decisions that violate public policy Violations of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act Breach of an employee's federal, state, or local civil rights, including but not limited to any violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1886 or 42 U.S.C. section 1983 Retaliation against any insured for filing under the Federal False Claims Act, in connection with whistle ...

...Curtis Pearsall Claims alleging wrongful employment practices have undoubtedl...most policies cover discrimination, wrongful termination, sexual harassment, and workpla...

...on Sexual Harassment Wrongful discharge Wage and hour disput...misrepresent the reason for their termination. Amendments to the FCRA apply i...