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An Employer’s Guide To EMPLOYMENT LAW ISSUES IN MINNESOTA Minnesota Department

An Employer’s Guide To EMPLOYMENT LAW ISSUES IN MINNESOTA Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development A Collaborative Effort This document is made available electronically by the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library as part of an ongoing digital archiving project. http://www.leg.state.mn.us/lrl/lrl.asp An Employer’s Guide to EMPLOYMENT LAW ISSUES IN MINNESOTA is available without charge from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, Small Business Assistance Office, 1st National Bank Building, Suite E-200, 332 Minnesota Street, St. Paul, MN 55101-1351. Telephone: (651) 259-7476 or (800) 310-8323 | Fax (651) 296-5287 Email: deed.mnsbao@state.mn.us | Website: http://mn.gov/deed/business/help/sbao/ Upon request, this publication can be made available in alternative formats by contacting (651) 259-7476. The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development is an equal opportunity employer and service provider. A Collaborative Effort Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development Lindquist & Vennum LLP Copyright © 2014, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development ISBN 1-888404-64-7 An Employer’s Guide To EMPLOYMENT LAW ISSUES IN MINNESOTA Twelfth Edition, January 2014 i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Minnesota Small Business Assistance Office is pleased to join with the Minneapolis law firm of Lindquist & Vennum LLP in this collaborative publication. Particular thanks go to Ansis V. Viksnins, Marnie L. DeWall, Nancy Flury Anton, Anthony A. Lusvardi, Joshua T. Natzel, Nancy B. Vollertsen, Edward J. Wegerson and DeAnne Hilgers of the Employment Practice Group of Lindquist & Vennum LLP, Wallace G. Hilke of the Business Litigation Practice Group of Lindquist & Vennum, LLP, Katherine A. Roek of the Business and Commercial Transactions Practice Group of Lindquist & Vennum LLP, Christopher Sullivan of the Intellectual Property Practice Group of Lindquist & Vennum LLP, and to Madeline Harris of the Small Business Assistance Office. Charles A. Schaffer Small Business Assistance Office ii Acknowledgments ..................................................................................................................................... i Introduction ................................................................................................................................................v The Hiring Process .................................................................................................................................... 1 The Employment Relationship .......................................................................................................... 1 Hiring in General ................................................................................................................................. 3 Advertising .......................................................................................................................................... 3 The Employment Application ........................................................................................................... 3 The Application Process ..................................................................................................................... 4 Disclaimers ........................................................................................................................................... 4 Interviewing ......................................................................................................................................... 5 Out of Town and Recruited Candidates .......................................................................................... 7 Affirmative Action ............................................................................................................................. 7 Background Checks ........................................................................................................................... 8 Pre-Employment Testing ................................................................................................................... 9 Pre-Employment Physical Examinations ...................................................................................... 10 Drug and Alcohol Testing of Applicants ....................................................................................... 11 Offer of Employment ........................................................................................................................ 12 Notice of Rights Regarding Personnel Files .................................................................................. 12 Form I-9 and Immigration Law Compliance ................................................................................ 13 Court-Ordered Obligations ............................................................................................................. 17 Non-Competition Agreements, Non-Solicitation Agreements, and Intellectual Property Rights ........................................................................................................................................ 19 Non-Competition and Non-Solicitation Agreements ................................................................ 19 Copyrights ......................................................................................................................................... 21 Patents ................................................................................................................................................ 22 Trade Secrets ..................................................................................................................................... 24 Trademark and Service Marks ........................................................................................................ 25 Wage and Hour Issues ............................................................................................................................ 26 Fair Labor Standards Act Coverage ............................................................................................... 26 Minimum Wage ................................................................................................................................. 26 Tip Credits .......................................................................................................................................... 26 Deductions from Wages .................................................................................................................. 27 Hours Worked ................................................................................................................................... 28 Employees Exempt from Minimum Wage and Overtime Provisions ...................................... 31 Work Hours for Minors..................................................................................................................... 32 TABLE OF CONTENTS iii Age Certificates .................................................................................................................................. 32 Payment of Wages to Current Employees ..................................................................................... 33 Commissioner of Labor and Industry............................................................................................ 33 Employer Records ............................................................................................................................. 33 Employee Benefit Plans: ERISA, and The Internal Revenue Code Impact on the Employment Relationship ..................................................................................................................... 35 Continuation of Group Health and Life Insurance Coverage .................................................. 39 HIPAA Portability and Privacy ....................................................................................................... 47 Health Care Reform .......................................................................................................................... 51 Workplace Issues ..................................................................................................................................... 55 Discrimination in General ................................................................................................................ 55 Permitted Employment Practices ................................................................................................... 56 Disability Discrimination ................................................................................................................. 56 Alcohol and Drug Problems in the Workplace ...................................................................................... 63 Age Discrimination .......................................................................................................................... 66 Sex Discrimination ............................................................................................................................ 69 Sexual Harassment ........................................................................................................................... 70 Sexual Orientation Discrimination ................................................................................................ 72 Marital Status Discrimination ......................................................................................................... 73 Race Discrimination .......................................................................................................................... 73 Religious Discrimination .................................................................................................................. 73 Genetic Discrimination ..................................................................................................................... 74 Retaliation .......................................................................................................................................... 74 Social Media ....................................................................................................................................... 75 Smoking .............................................................................................................................................. 77 Polygraph Testing ............................................................................................................................. 78 Garnishment of Wages ..................................................................................................................... 78 Employee Handbooks ...................................................................................................................... 79 Prohibition Against Reprisals for Refusing to Make Charitable Contributions ...................... 81 Union Organization and Collective Bargaining ........................................................................... 81 Workplace Rules ................................................................................................................................ 82 Prohibiting Weapons in the Workplace ......................................................................................... 83 Discipline ........................................................................................................................................... 83 Attendance .......................................................................................................................................... 84 Leaves of Absence and Time Off ..................................................................................................... 85 Comparison of Federal and Minnesota Family/Medical/Parental Leave Laws ...................... 92 Employee Access to Personnel Files ............................................................................................... 97 Access to Employee Assistance Records ....................................................................................... 98 Personnel Record Retention ............................................................................................................ 98 Shareholder-Employees and Other Owner Employees .................................................................. 101 iv Workers’ Compensation ....................................................................................................................... 104 Purpose and Philosophy of the Workers’ Compensation System ............................................ 104 Employers Subject to the Minnesota Workers’ Compensation Law ....................................... 104 Insuring or Self-Insuring Against Workers’ Compensation Claims ....................................... 105 Employers Required to Post Notice of Employees’ Rights ....................................................... 105 Action to be Taken by the Employer in Case of an Injury to an Employee ............................ 105 Benefits Under the Workers’ Compensation Law for an Injured Employee ......................... 106 Informal Resolution of Disputes ................................................................................................... 107 Procedure for Resolution of Disputed Claims and Rights of Appeal ..................................... 108 Safety, Health and Environmental Issues in the Workplace .......................................................... 109 Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Act ......................................................................... 109 Terminations .......................................................................................................................................... 117 Reductions in Force ........................................................................................................................ 117 Plant Closing Laws ......................................................................................................................... 117 Employment at Will ........................................................................................................................ 118 The Termination Process ................................................................................................................ 120 Release Agreements ........................................................................................................................ 122 Severance Pay Policies as ERISA Plans and as Deferred Compensation ................................ 123 Payment of Terminated Employees’ Wages ............................................................................... 123 Notice of Reason for Termination ................................................................................................. 124 References ........................................................................................................................................ 124 Terminating Independent Sales Representatives ...................................................................... 125 Unemployment Compensation/Insurance ........................................................................................ 127 Overview .......................................................................................................................................... 127 Employers Covered by the Act .................................................................................................... 127 Employees Covered by the Act ..................................................................................................... 128 Determination and Payment of Unemployment Taxes ............................................................ 129 Benefit Eligibility ............................................................................................................................. 130 Disqualification from Benefits ....................................................................................................... 131 Aggravated Misconduct ................................................................................................................. 132 Misconduct ....................................................................................................................................... 132 Voluntary Termination ................................................................................................................... 134 Benefit Determination and Appeal Procedure ........................................................................... 135 Endnotes .................................................................................................................................................. 137 v INTRODUCTION This Guide is designed to alert Minnesota employers to issues which commonly arise in the workplace. It should be used only as a guide and not as a definitive source to answer your legal questions. The scope of the remarks contained in this Guide are largely based upon the authors’ own experiences dealing with employment law issues and are aimed primarily at private employers whose workplace practices are not subject to collective bargaining agreements. Employers who are subject to collective bargaining agreements will also be subject to most of the rules set forth in this Guide in addition to the applicable collective bargaining agreements. Whenever an employer needs to make an employment decision, various factors will affect that decision. Every situation is different. Therefore, as emphasized throughout this Guide, consultation with legal counsel is strongly advised as you encounter situations in the workplace which you must address. We hope that this Guide will raise questions and familiarize you with frequently arising employment law issues so that you will know when to seek professional advice before a workplace decision becomes a problem. This is the twelfth edition of what is a periodically updated Guide to assist Minnesota employers. Prior editions are superseded by this edition and are no longer deemed definitive. This edition is designed to reflect the law as it existed through December 31, 2013, although where possible, the authors have incorporated more recent changes in the law. Employment law is a rapidly changing area of the law, and what is true today may not have been true yesterday and may not be true tomorrow. Again, your own legal counsel should be consulted as you make your employment decisions. Lindquist & Vennum, LLP and the Small Business Assistance Office cannot and do not assume responsibility for employment decisions based upon the information provided in this Guide. 1 THE HIRING PROCESS THE EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIP This book is designed to be an employment law resource for Minnesota business owners. Before delving into the law surrounding the employment relationship, however, the business owner must determine whether the individuals it has retained to perform services are employees or independent contractors. Business owners who use independent contractors may think they do not have employees and, therefore, that employment laws do not apply to them. An individual’s status as an independent contractor, however, is not determined by agreement or by what he or she is called. Rather, the individual’s status is determined by what he or she actually does. If an individual performing services for a business is being treated as an independent contractor, but is performing the work of an employee, and an agency such as the Internal Revenue Service or the Minnesota Department of Revenue discovers this error, the results can be expensive to the business. To determine whether an individual is an employee or an independent contractor, the business owner must evaluate the degree of control exercised over the individual and the individual’s degree of independence in performing services. This assessment generally falls into three categories: behavioral control, financial control, and the relationship between the parties. Behavioral Control • Instructions. A worker who is required to comply with another person’s instructions about when, where, and how he or she is to work is ordinarily an employee. • Training. Training a worker to perform services in a particular manner generally indicates employee status. Financial Control • Payment of Business and/or Traveling Expenses. If the employer pays the worker’s business and/or traveling expenses, this uploads/Industriel/ mn-employer-guide.pdf