The attorneys in Dean & Fulkerson’s Labor and Employment Law Practice Group recognize that all employers, whether small, medium or large, must comply with a myriad of federal and state law and regulatory enactments in the context of the labor and employment environment. These include: (1) the Americans With Disabilities Act (“ADA”); (2) the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”); Title VII of the Civil Rights Act; (3) the Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”); (4) the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”); (5) the Michigan Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act; and (6) the Michigan Bullard-Plawicki Right to Know Act. Moreover, changes in employment and labor law are constantly occurring. The combination of the above laws impact all aspects of the employment process from the application to the termination procedure.
Given the impact of these labor and employment laws, we believe it would be useful for each employer to periodically conduct an internal audit of its existing personnel policies. This exercise will help to identify which laws apply and if they do, whether the employer’s current personnel policies are in compliance with the federal and state laws which the employer is required to follow. While a personnel policies audit can be conducted in the absence of counsel, our labor and employment law attorneys are prepared to assist an employer during or after the audit to provide professional counsel to remedy any deficiencies discovered during the course of the audit.
Following are topic areas that are typically covered in an employer audit:
- Pre-Employment Inquiries
- General Pre-Employment Guidelines
- Offers of Employment
- Proper Handling and Organization of Personnel File
- Required Notices and Reports
- Equal Employment Policies and Procedures
- Hiring Practices
- Job Assignments and Performance Evaluations
- Terminations and Other Adverse Employment Actions
- Leaves of Absence Policy
- Sexual Harassment Policy
- Compliance with ADA
- General Contract Audit
- Wage and Hour Audit
- Exempt Employees – FLSA
- Termination Pay