S Background Telephone Seminars

Telecommuting: The Next Wave of Wage and Hour Litigation BenefitsTechnological developments have resulted in a substantial increase over the last several years in the number of employers offering telecommuting as an alternative work arrangement, and the number of employees who choose it. Although telecommuting arrangements can be beneficial to employers and employees, many employers have failed to adequately meet many of the legal compliance and  more...

Wetlands Challenges and Use of Mitigation Bank Credits BenefitsWetlands have presented a liability and construction timing risk to companies, real estate developers, oil and gas companies and other parties constructing buildings, roads, pipelines, oil and gas exploration and production activities, among many others. Failure to understand and manage these issues had resulted in fines, litigation, and extensive delays in construction. Planning ahead,  more...

Understanding LEED for Sustainable Building BenefitsMystified by the new LEED certification process? Concerned about whether you need a new approach for your next LEED project? Confused about the requirements for maintaining your existing AP status? This live audio conference provides the answers! By attending you will understand how the project certification and professional accreditation requirements have changed with the release of  more...

Screening Unemployed Job Applicants: Pros and Cons to Consider Benefits(Problem) Many employers struggle to balance their need for information about potential applicants, given the high costs of even a single 'bad hire,' with understanding their legal obligations and the risks of using certain available tools to screen job applicants. Unemployed applicants pose unique issues and are more likely to bring a failure to hire discrimination claim. (Solution) This  more...

Utilizing Graphs and Charts in Microsoft Excel BenefitsAny Excel user who needs quick methods to show numerical information in a visual way needs to know the basics of chart creation, how (and why) to use different chart types, and how to alter the look of a chart with layout, color and content changes. Depicting data in a chart may reveal a trend that was not so obvious in the numerical data, which often can be dry and boring. That elusive  more...

A Primer on Social Security Disability Law BenefitsThe Social Security law encompasses the Social Security regulations which span nearly a full volume of the Code of Federal Regulations, many volumes of law reporters, dozens of separately issued Social Security rulings and many volumes of internal regulations. This is why most lawyers do not want to develop an expertise in this area. This teleconference is designed to give you a broad  more...

Conducting Background Checks BenefitsAn ever increasing number of employers are recognizing the benefits that can be derived from conducting background checks on both current and prospective employees. While background checks can be an effective tool for weeding out questionable employees, legal limitations on how such checks can be performed (and how the resulting data discovered can be used) must be understood or otherwise  more...

Green Leases: Sustainable Alternatives to Traditional Agreements BenefitsA steadily increasing number of tenants, along with state pension funds and other institutional partners of commercial landlords, and state and local legislators are combining forces to press commercial landlords into moving forward with green buildings and the greening of existing buildings. The LEED movement for green building leases started with encouraging energy efficiency and then  more...

Lawful Hiring BenefitsEmployers must navigate a minefield of complicated and, in some cases, conflicting laws that affect the hiring process Discrimination claims often arise out of the hiring process. The new U.S. Supreme Court decision in Ricci v. DeStefano, 557 U.S. ___ (2009) shows how an employer (the New Haven Fire Department in that case) can violate discrimination laws when taking steps to attempt to  more...

Stormwater Management for TMDLs BenefitsTotal Maximum Daily Loads are increasingly identifying stormwater as a significant or even major source of loading to impaired waters. Stormwater loading is difficult to identify and quantify even when regulated stormwater dischargers exist in the system. Often, TMDLs that include stormwater loading allocations give target reductions in loading, but give little guidance as to how to obtain  more...

Understanding the Language of Mold Assessment Reports ... the interpretation of laboratory results. The consultant's background and the laboratory's history and experience must always be questioned. If taken to task, would these parties survive a Daubert Motion? If not, their "evidence" could be deemed unqualified and any future testimony as an expert could be excluded in a future legal proceeding. Why would an unqualified consultant or an  more...

Effective Utilization of Employee Waivers ...ivers put employees on notice of employment screens such as background checks and drug testing. During employment, employee waivers define employee expectations of privacy in the workplace and limit company liability for employee activities. After employment has ended, particularly in the context of group layoffs, effective and legally compliant waivers are critical in protecting employers from  more...

Labor Law Update: Preparing for Upcoming Regulations nAttend this teleconference and learn the new laws and strategies regarding a variety of employment-related laws that are in effect or are expected to be in effect for 2009. From the new COBRA rules, FMLA regulations, EFCA and union initiatives, issues involving wage and hour and independent contractors, the latest drug and alcohol testing, confidentiality and security of personnel data,  more...

Impact of the New ADA Amendments on Schools nOn January 1, 2009, new federal legislation took effect that dramatically expanded the range of individuals eligible for protections guaranteed by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. ADA specified the rights guaranteed to individuals broadly qualified as "disabled." These rights applied to the areas of hiring and working conditions for all employees and also to students eligible for  more...

Green Contracting: the Federal Government's Procurement Policies nMany federal contractors will have questions regarding the effective implementation of the OFPP policy and will further be concerned as to whether its costs will impact their competitiveness or ability to perform economically. Additionally, the monitoring and reporting that the government will require will have an impact on time and costs and one wonders if contractual sanctions will be imposed  more...