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Employer Representation

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WORKPLACE POLICIES & PROCEDURES

If you are a small or medium size business in New York, your company is subject to local, state and federal anti-discrimination laws which mandate that employers maintain workplaces free of unlawful harassment and discrimination.

Does your company have a sexual harassment policy; an anti-discrimination policy, and a complaint procedure? Are these policies current and posted prominently in the workplace? If not, your company is at greater risk of liability should an employee complain of workplace discrimination.

Ms. Mulligan has nearly a quarter century of experience promulgating workplace sexual harassment policies; anti-discrimination policies and complaint procedures which help businesses reduce and limit their exposure to liability in the event of an employee complaint. Ms. Mulligan will visit your workplace, audit your policies and procedures and, where necessary, update or draft policies and complaint procedures which will position you as a "Best Practices Employer" in the event you are the subject of a complaint or lawsuit.

EMPLOYEE HANDBOOKS

An Employee Handbook lays the foundation for your expectations of staff. It includes vital information such as an unequivocal statement that employment is at-will and may be terminated at any time. It communicates performance standards and allows employees an important opportunity to sign-on to your Company's mission statement.

Employee policies and procedures are clearly set forth, including those pertaining to time and attendance, overtime and meal breaks.

Ms. Mulligan can assist your Company in drafting this important document.

Employee Handbooks

CLASSIFICATION OF EMPLOYEES AS EXEMPT (Salaried) OR NON-EXEMPT
(hourly): BEWARE THE PITFALLS

Mis-Classifieds workers
On occasion, Employers erroneously misclassify non-exempt, hourly employees as exempt and thus fail to pay workers at the requisite rate of time-and-a-half for hours worked in excess of a forty (40) hour workweek. Instead, these misclassified workers are paid a salary that fails to properly compensate them as otherwise required under both the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and regulations promulgated by the New York State Department of Labor. In such cases, Employers often find themselves subject to liability for unpaid overtime wages, interest, liquidated damages and attorney's fees for the Employee's attorney, in addition to their own legal defense costs. As these amounts can be prohibitive, Employers are well advised to have counsel proactively audit these classifications to reduce or eliminate exposure to liability, and, in cases where an inquiry has been started by the Department of Labor, to work on behalf of the Employer in connection with the inquiry.

CLASSIFICATION OF WORKERS AS INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS

The New York and United States Departments of Labor, the Internal Revenue Service, the State's Workers Compensation Board and Department of Taxation and Finance increasingly scrutinize the classification of workers as Independent Contractors, often finding 'misclassification' and assessing interest, penalties and liquidated damages against Employers. If you hire workers as Independent Contractors, you would be well advised to have counsel conduct a classification audit of your workforce to minimize exposure to and/or avoid both assessments and the costs of legal defense.
Classification of workers

INVESTIGATION OF WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION COMPLAINTS

Discrimination in the workplace
Ms. Mulligan has investigated over 400 complaints of alleged unlawful workplace discrimination. When a company receives a complaint of discrimination (i.e., pregnancy, sexual harassment, race or retaliation), it is required, under the law, to investigate the allegations and take prompt and corrective remedial action. A failure to do so can result in increased liability and damages. Under federal and certain local laws, attorneys fees may also be awarded to a successful plaintiff's attorney.

Ms. Mulligan can assist your company in the investigation of such complaints filed either internally to company management, or with the New York State Division of Human Rights, the Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or a local Civil Rights Commission.

Sexual Harassment Prevention Training/Mandatory Anti-discrimination Policies & Complaint Procedures

Ms. Mulligan has also conducted workplace training for executives, managers, supervisors and employees on issues including sexual harassment prevention, unlawful workplace discrimination, diversity and sensitivity training. Ms. Mulligan's audiences have ranged in size from 15 to 200.

Proactive workplace training helps to minimize a company's exposure to liability in the event they are the subject of a discrimination complaint based on, among other things, gender (including sexual harassment), pregnancy, disability, race, creed and sexual orientation.

If you are a small or medium size business in New York, your company is subject to local, state and federal anti-discrimination laws which mandate that employers maintain workplaces free of unlawful harassment and discrimination.

Does your company have a sexual harassment policy; an anti-discrimination policy, and a complaint procedure? Are these policies current and posted prominently in the workplace? If not, your company is at greater risk of liability should an employee complain of workplace discrimination.

Ms. Mulligan has nearly a quarter century of experience promulgating workplace sexual harassment policies; anti-discrimination policies and complaint procedures which help businesses reduce and limit their exposure to liability in the event of an employee complaint. Ms. Mulligan will visit your workplace, audit your policies and procedures and, where necessary, update or draft policies and complaint procedures which will position you as a "Best Practices Employer" in the event you are the subject of a complaint or lawsuit.

Sexual Harassment on the Job?