Though it is tempting to move on from the pandemic and to try and forget the deadly illness that started it, COVID-19 looks like it is here to stay in one form or another. As updated on February 16, 2024, the California Department of Public Health reported a 7-day weekly average of 1,882 hospital admissions
Work from Home
Court of Appeal Confirms No Employer Liability for Supervisor’s Off-Duty Sexting
In today’s technology-centered workplace, employees and employers have more options than ever before on how to communicate. Calling, video-conferencing, and even texting amongst co-workers has become the norm. And with the recent shift towards remote and hybrid work situations, many of these communications are happening from the comfort of employees’ homes. With the lines between…
Employees Near and Far: Considerations for Telecommuting and Remote Personnel Management
Telecommuting is a wonderful tool. Employees with compatible jobs can work from any location with an internet connection. They gain flexibility through ease of access. Telecommuting can reduce turnover and absenteeism, and modern technology has made remote work increasingly reliable. Yet, like any tool, telecommuting may cause issues if employers do not handle it competently.…
Safe at Work: Staying Compliant Amidst a Changing Workplace
The past two years have challenged employers’ resilience and adaptability in our rapidly-changing workplaces. One such change was the explosion of remote work, which swept across workplaces throughout the country and in some cases, landed a permanent position at the hiring table. As employers adapt to the increasing prevalence of remote work, one important question…
Working From Home in a Post-Pandemic World
At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, many employers allowed some of their employees to work from home (i.e., “telecommute” or “telework”) in the interest of public health. We are now entering our tenth month of the pandemic, and working from home has become “the new normal” for many employers and employees. Now, as vaccines…
Change the Channel: Improve Remote Work Life
Many of us have been working from home longer than we ever could have anticipated when shelter-in-place orders were rolled out in March 2020. As we’ve tried to settle into these going-on-five months of remote work, there is always room for improvement as to our work settings. As we ease into accepting this as “normal”…
Working From Home + Homeschooling – A Journey During A Pandemic
I’ve been working from home since March 16, 2020 when my children’s school closed. I am not alone – with the COVID-19 pandemic and safer at home orders, many employees across the country have been working from home. While restrictions may be easing, without schools reopening, many parents are balancing their roles as teachers, parents,…
Is Working From Home Really a Reasonable Accommodation?
This was the very question the U.S. Court of Appeals in Ohio was asked to consider in Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Ford Motor Company. The issue in this case is whether a telecommuting arrangement could be a reasonable accommodation for an employee suffering from a debilitating disability. In a 2-1 split opinion, the…