Employment Discrimination Lawyers and Labor Law Lawyers

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Why did Shah Mohommad Reza Pahlavi fall from power?

Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi fell from power in the Iranian revolution of 1978-1979 partly because he
(A) was moving toward a military alliance with the Soviet Union
(B) was aggressive in modernizing the country along Western lines
(C) insisted on strict enforcement of Islamic religious laws
(D) tried unsuccessfully to annex Afghanistan
(E) opposed increased educational and employment opportunities for women

noen of the above. he fell from power because the idiot jimmy carter refused to back him up when the crazy ayatollahs came to overthrow him. none of the muslim problems would have happened over the past 30 years if carter had supported the shah

2010 Protest John Yoo Torture Boalt Law School, Part 1

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Report: Texas should revise school tax-break incentives
AUSTIN (AP) — Texans are paying too much to attract major economic development projects, particularly farms of wind-powered electric generators, according to a study by the office of Texas Comptroller Susan Combs.
The War on Drugs Has Failed

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Would Texas fair better today as its own country, instead of an American state?

This is just a curiosity question and nothing against the U.S. I was wondering with Texas' business laws, taxes, natural resources, labor laws etc., would Texas fair better as its own nation, even if they had to make their own international treaties and print their own money, than remaining in the U.S.?

Texas, by itself, is the world's 15th largest economy. We'd do just fine.

US Border Patrol Job Fair

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Does Your State Have Time-Off-To-Vote Laws? Wolters Kluwer Law & Business Details Election Day Rights Voters Need To ...
As political candidates from around the United States deliver their last stump speeches, air remaining TV ads and make final appeals before Election Day, voters are making up their minds on not only who to vote for, but when.
Fiscal Commission Public Forum 5 of 7

What is the employment law for paying for an employees eye tests and glasses?

In the UK if you use VDU equipment you are entitled to claim back from your employer the cost of the eye test.

The employer only has to contribute towards glasses if they are needed only for VDU work and for nothing else.

Follow the link below which should take you to the HSE free leaflet re working with VDUs.

KIM OSORIO: Hip Hop Diaries author : Official Interview

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Would Texas fair better today as an independent country?

This is just a curiosity question and nothing against the U.S. I was wondering with Texas' business laws, taxes, natural resources, labor laws etc., would Texas fair better as its own nation, even if they had to make their own international treaties and print their own money, than remaining in the U.S.?

it would fare better than any other state

Hiring Rights

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Newspaper will appeal ruling
The Juneau County Star-Times will appeal a Circuit Court judge's decision that blocks the newspaper's access to an attorney's bills.
Milwaukee Disability Claims Lawyer Wisconsin Attorney

Wal-Mart asks Supreme Court to block giant gender bias lawsuit
Wal-Mart faces what would be the largest class-action employment lawsuit in history over claims of gender bias. It has asked the Supreme Court to intervene.
Jon Kyl on the Dennis Prager Show - April 28, 2010

My work schedule was consistant for over one year then it was changed. Is there a law that protects....?

is there a law that protects my availability and scheduling to remain in it's consistency to reflect what it has been for a year straight?

No there's no law protecting your schedule. Companies can change your schedule however they see fit. If you work under a union there may be a claus dealing with seniority and scheduling which would offer you a way to keep closure to the schedule you had (if you had seniority)
Really the only thing you could do is find work elsewhere. Again, they are allowed to schedule as the see fit there are no laws granting employees the rights to certain schedules and no laws saying that employers need to abide by the availability times provided on an application. Sorry that's just the way it goes.

Aggregate Demand/Aggregate Supply Macro Model

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Sheriff's Industry Station increases efforts in response to weakened parole restrictions
HACIENDA HEIGHTS - A policy that puts "low risk" offenders on minimal parole supervision has prompted Los Angeles County sheriff's authorities to step up their efforts in monitoring parolees.

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People’s Demands on Aquino’s First State of the Nation Address
By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL Because the Arroyo administration left the country in a crisis of unparalleled proportions, progressive groups presented an agenda, which they deem as necessary for the nation's survival.
EPS Nepal 2008 Employment Permit System & Illigal Nepali Workers

Equality and Diversity in the Workplace

Introduction

Sanglin-Grant, S. (2003) explains that equality is the development of policies and practices that eliminate dissimilarity in any organization, institution or workplace. In this case, all persons within the organization are accorded equal opportunities and are also accorded equal treatment. Diversity on the other hand is all about embracing the value of individuals in an organization while at the same time making the most of their potential. Diversity encompasses all varieties of individuals from ethnic minorities, racial minorities, the elderly, women, persons with disabilities and persons with unconventional sexual orientations. When organizations embrace diversity, then they heighten their levels of creativity, innovation and overall success in their marketplace. Most workplaces have not accorded certain individuals equal opportunities on the basis of their background or physical attributes. This has resulted in various types of diversity such as cultural diversity, age diversity, gender diversity and so on. (Miller, Hagen and Johnson, 2002) However, for purposes of this research, focus will be on persons with disabilities.

Before examining the imperative issues in managing diversity within the workplace for persons with disabilities, it is crucial to understand the meaning of the term disability. The Disability Act of 2005 (UK) defines disability as a form of restriction in the process of conducting social, business or cultural duties due to physical, mental, health, intellectual and health impairment. Statistics conducted in the European Union found that the unemployment rate for a person with a disability is two hundred and fifty percent higher than a person without a disability. This impedes their ability to become self sufficient, socialize and develop a high self esteem. (Ross & Schneider, 1992) Consequently, persons with disability end up being isolated or end up falling in the poverty bracket. Such alarming outcomes should solicit action from employers and other stakeholders within the workplace. Employers need to ask themselves; what policies and procedures can they set up to encourage equality? What are the benefits of providing equal opportunities for person with disabilities?, what negative consequences can result from failure to comply (laws and regulations)? Lastly, what case studies can companies use to further this concept? (Holly, 1998)

Outcomes of according people with disabilities equal opportunities

Integrating people with disabilities within businesses should be a top priority for all companies in the country-whether large or small- due to the following reasons. First of all, it gives a respective company access to a different type of labor force. There is a growing misconception that persons with disabilities cannot perform within an organization's parameters. However, this is a grave misconception because many organizations have not yet tapped this category of individuals yet most of them are highly skilled. Kandola and Fullerton (1998) assert that the current American workforce has changed drastically. Gone are the days when there was an excess provision for labor. These days, organizations are competing to keep some of the best employees. Additionally, there is a need to fill in gaps in the labor force by tapping all potential resources available. (Elmuti, 1993)

Secondly, organizations that embrace diversity with respect to persons with disabilities can get a chance to keep qualified personnel who had no disability when they had started working for the organization but became disabled when they became part of the organization. Statistics indicate that eighty five percent of all cases of disability occur in adult life. Therefore, companies that have embraced diversity management are better prepared for such eventualities and can still retain their newly disabled employees. (Sanglin-Grant & Schneider, 2000)

Besides benefiting directly from the skills and expertise of the persons with disabilities, companies that have promoted an inclusive environment can create a positive image of their company in the eyes of their stakeholders. Suppliers, consumers, the local community, the government, investors and many other concerned parties will feel proud of such an organization and will continue doing business with them. This forms the basis of good social responsibility principles.

Organizations that employ or accord equal opportunities to persons with disabilities are also better prepared to do the same to the public. Such companies may go out of their way to handle consumers with disabilities and this can enhance their client base. (McNerney, 1994)

Consequently, such companies will become more competitive than others and will boost their profit margins. Similarly, managing diversity in the workplace is important for persons with disabilities because it can solicit extra funding from stakeholders within the industry. Many persons with disabilities have a wide access to grants and supports. This means that employers need not worry about tapping into their own resources in order to support such persons. (Ellis & Sonnenfield, 1993),

Embracing diversity can go a long way in solving all the problem service and product development strategies. This is because such companies will attract perspectives from different types of people and this encourages creativity. In line with this argument, some markets are emerging as very crucial in the workplace yet most of them are made up of unconventional groups such as the persons with disabilities. This can go a long way in enhancing their business potential. (Thomas &y, 1996)

Also, if a business offers equal opportunities to persons with disabilities. Then they may challenge the conventional thinking methodologies in the workplace. This means that such companies will be eliminating boundaries present in other similar business. Also, they will be demonstrating that they are embracing strategic opportunities. (Storey, 1992)

Policies and procedures that employers can use to promote equal opportunities for persons with disabilities

Organizations should demonstrate equality and diversity management in their recruitment exercises. Companies need to ensure that the selection criteria utilized is such that it does not discriminate against persons with disabilities. This means that the method used e.g. an interview should be non-discriminatory. Besides this, the sole aim in any recruitment practice should be to enroll the most competent person and to recruit on the basis of other non-job related characteristics. Companies should allow job seekers and opportunity to demonstrate that they can do a job well without dismissing them unfairly. (Gardenswartz & Rowe, 1998)

Additionally, those companies who conduct recruitment through various channels or managers, need to ensure that all their representatives are well aware of equality and diversity in the workplace. This means that companies should educate or train their employees on diversity issues. They can do this by giving them a series of booklets or handbooks talking about diversity. They also need to back this up with courses and seminars about how to embrace persons with disabilities in the workplace. Seminars should not just be open to managerial personnel but should be for all employees. (Wilson et al, 1999) Organizations can also make statements (written templates) about persons with disabilities within their respective organizations in order to smoothen persons with disability's workplace experience. Additionally, organizations need to conduct regular check ups and meetings with their staff to guide them on diversity management. They could give them practical examples of how to wok with person with disabilities. For instance, writing documents in Braille, placing important files in lower aisles for person with disability to access among others. (Ford, 1996)

Organizations can also promote equal opportunities within the workplace by making infrastructural changes e.g. making office equipment more user friendly for persons with disabilities. For instance, organizations can transform their computer application to accommodate various disability aids. For instance, they could place screen readers where persons with visual disabilities can hear information in the company intranet through a speech synthesizer. Besides this, companies can offer their information in a black and white form so as to make it possible for color blind users to follow events within their workplace. Companies can show their support for person with disabilities by according them all the rights and privileges that other employees enjoy such as holiday packages, charity events and other company activities. (Twnley, 1990) etimes, it may be particularly difficult for a person with a disability to perform certain physical tasks, this means that they require the help of a third party. The government has passed a law that allows for ‘access officers' within any business to enhance the nature of a person's employment opportunities . The work of the access officer is to ensure that all person with disability are aware of the services entitled to them and are utilizing them effectively. Companies need to provide all the necessary infrastructure needed to support persons with disabilities. These may include according them custom-made desks, leaving enough corridor space for wheel chairs, modifying rest room facilities to accommodate them. (Bartz, et al, 1990)

Organizations also need to make the environment positive or unbiased with regard to a person with a disability. They should treat them with respect and dignity at all times in order to boost this principle. (Cassell, 1996)

Career development within any respective organization should be done fairly and transparently. There should be no room for discrimination on the basis of an individual's physical disabilities. The latter category of individuals should be given equal opportunity as everyone else to grow and develop within the organization. Companies need to have a set procedure for promotion e.g. they could conduct job analyses annually and then discuss career progression with respective employees. (Dodds, 1995) This means that persons with disabilities will also be given an equal opportunity and they will grow with the organization. Similarly, an organization ought to be flexible enough in the event that one of their employees become disabled. They should have mechanisms that allow employees to come back to their positions. This means that companies should be ready for such eventualities and should not change their treatment of such employees.

If a particular company has any training , education or other work related development projects, then it should be their duty to provide this to all the employees within the company. No one, including a person with a disability, should be denied a fair chance to improve their job performing skills during their time with a respective company. On top of this, companies ought to make sure that they accord persons with disabilities all the work experience necessary to grow within the industry. This implies that companies should avoid firing such individuals without reasonable explanation. In relation to this argument, employers should make sure that their retirement packages, time frame and procedures are administered fairly to all employees regardless of their impairments. This means that no employer should unfairly get rid of a member of staff or forcefully retire a physically disabled employee. (Noon, and Blyton, 2002)

Companies need to recognize the fact that embracing diversity in the workplace should not just be restricted to staff members with disabilities. Their responses should also be directed to disabled persons in the community at large. This means that they should offer reasonable facilities and responses to suppliers, shareholders and customers with disabilities. This can be done within respective organizations in several ways (Kandola, 1995). First of all, they could avoid doing business with shareholders or suppliers who have no regard for diversity management and those who extend discriminatory practices against persons with disabilities. By doing this, employers will become advocates for persons with disabilities and may encourage other businesses to follow suit. Secondly, employers can depict diversity management in terms of the kind of infrastructure and services they offer their consumers. (Thewlis et al, 2004). If the company engages in the sale of items, then they could offer help filling up shopping items for persons with disabilities. Additionally, for those consumers with disabilities who can shop independently, it would help to avoid placing crucial items in the second or third floor as opposed to the first floor. This should go a long way in helping those individuals on wheel chairs. Lastly, employers could show their concern for diversity by giving donations to organizations or person with disabilities in order to facilitate their improvement even while they continue with their lives outside the organization. Gummerson, E. (1991),

Organizations should seek the opinions of disabled person within their organization when preparing an agenda for employment within the company. They should not be seen as the recipients of the policies and procedures but should also be considered as rightful stakeholders within the arrangement. (Iles, 1995) This means that companies should conduct regular meetings with person with disabilities to find out what their needs are and what the respective company can do to support them. This will transform the disabled employees role from a reactive one to a proactive one. The former approach was present at times when managing equality and diversity were a sole reserve of the human resource department. At that time, companies had to deal with numerous law suits and court proceedings relating to persons with disabilities. However, the latter approach is in line with current perceptions of diversity because it allows organizations a chance to identify potential problems and deal with them early enough. Kandola and Fullerton (1998) assert that it is possible to train certain persons to become champions of diversity. Person with abilities are a very appropriate choice for taking on this tasks. When organization trains such individuals, then they can stand out as the organization of choice within the workplace

One of the most important procedures with regard to persons with policies and procedures on diversity equality and diversity management is monitoring performance. Organizations ought to make sure that the latter benchmarks are adhered to at all times. Audits can be conducted annually to review some of the diversity objectives laid out in the persons with disabilities objectives.

Case studies of companies that have implemented diversity management

.Kandola and Fullerton (1998) assert that diversity issues need not be seen as impossible to implement because there are many companies out there who are implementing this and have gone a long way in promoting diversity within their environments. Some of them include health institutions, IT firms, accounting companies and the like. All these companies have one feature in common; they have made managing diversity and equality as part of their driving force in the environment at all times. In the book, the authors identify some common elements that need to be adhered to by companies that respect diversity.

• Conducting an audit of buildings in terms of the physical attitudinal attributes  that favor person with disabilities
• An implementation of diversity awareness training in a personalized and individualized manner
• Provision of guidance with regard to both employers and employees

The overall purpose of such an initiative is to ensure that all employees/ potential employees with disabilities can access equal opportunities in the business. On top of that, companies are passing such policies in order to ascertain that they compaly to certain. As it can be seen from the bulleted list above, diversity management involves conducting an environmental audit, the second aspect is offering advice and the third is with regard to advice to all the current employees with regard to persons with disabilities. Sanglin-Grant, S. (2003)

Case studies

Many companies located within the European Union and The UK specifically have spearheaded the cause of equality and diversity management. Consequently, other companies that may not be certain of the route to follow can use these examples. ?(Jewson & Mason, 1994)

A health institution in the UK decided to embrace diversity with regard to person with disabilities by giving them equal opportunities. They did this by changing their recruitment polices. This company offered positions to a large number of persons with disabilities. Of all the one hundred and eight person recruited within the company, a whooping forty percent either had a health condition or had a disability. The company has been doing very well lately because they were able to attract a very skilled workforce. After the success of the initiative, this company had decided to provide other groups equal opportunities through according interviewees with sound opportunities in the workplace. (Cassell, 2006)

Additionally, a communication company within the UK decided to deliberately seek employing persons with disabilities in their organization. The company realized that so many people had not been tapped there and it wanted to embrace that opportunity by making the most of this labor force. They told most of their old employees to advice person with disabilities to apply for the vacancies. Also, advertisements placed in local newspapers indicted that the company wanted to recruit persons with disabilities The company testified that  they were happy with the overall result s of the recruitment be cause al the individuals taken in attended regularly and were also highly motivated (Paddison, 990)

Conclusion

The country has embraced the issue of diversity within the business environment; consumers, shareholders, suppliers and investors all expect business to manage equality and diversity. (Lane and Piercy, 2003).Even legislations designed to protect person with disabilities from discrimination have been passed. Consequently, employers who fail to oblige may land in trouble. Employers should not imagine that Equality and diversity management will benefit employees alone; it is equally benefiting to the business. Managing diversity theories can be implemented in a variety of ways through training, policies and procedures and through infrastructural changes.  All employees within the organization need to be aware of diversity management. Consequently, policies, ideas and theories need to be made transparent for all individuals.

References

Miller, S., Hagen, R. and Johnson, M. (2002). Divergent Identities? Professions, management and gender. Public money and management,25-30.

Cassell C (2006) ‘Managing Diversity' in Contemporary Human Resource Management eds Redman and Wilkinson, FT Prentice Hall

Noon M and Blyton P (2002) The Realities of Work Palgrave (chapter 10 ‘Unfair Discrimination at Work)

Sanglin-Grant, S. (2003). Divided by the same language? Equal opportunities and diversity translated. Runnymede Trust

Thewlis, M., Miller, L. and Neathey, F. (2004). Advancing Women in the Workplace: Statistical Analysis. EOC Working Paper Series no. 12. Manchester: Equal Opportunities Commission.

Lane, N. and Piercy, N. F. (2003). The ethics of discrimination: Organisational mindsets and female employment disadvantage. Journal of Business Ethics, 44, 313 вЂ" 325.

Bartz, D.E., Hillman, L.W., Lehrer, S., Mayhugh, G.M. (1990), "A model for managing workforce diversity", Management Education and Development, Vol. 21 No.5, pp.321-6.

Cassell, C. (1996), "A fatal attraction? Strategic HRM and the business case for women's progression", Personnel Review, Vol. 25 No.5, pp.51-66.

Dodds, I. (1995), "Differences can also be strengths", People Management, Vol. 20 April pp.40-3.

Ellis, C., Sonnenfield, J.A. (1993), "Diverse approaches to managing diversity", Human Resource Management, Vol. 33 No.1, pp.79-109.

Elmuti, D. (1993), "Managing diversity in the workplace: an immense challenge for both managers and workers", Industrial Management, Vol. July/August pp.19-22.

Ford, V. (1996), "Partnership is the secret of progress", People Management, Vol. 2 No.3, pp.34-6.

Gardenswartz, L., Rowe, A. (1998), "‘Why diversity matters", HR Focus, Vol. July pp.s1-s3.

Gummerson, E. (1991), Qualitative Methods in Management Research, Sage, London, .

Holly, L. (1998), "The glass ceiling in local government – a case study", Local Government Studies, Vol. 24 No.1, pp.1-73.

Iles, P. (1995), "Learning to work with difference", Personnel Review, Vol. 24 No.6, pp.44-60.

Institute of Personnel and Development, IPD (1996), Managing Diversity, an IPD Position Paper, IPD, London, .

Jewson, N., Mason, D. (1994), "Race, employment and equal opportunities: towards a political economy and an agenda for the 1990s", Sociological Review, Vol. 42 No.4, pp.597-617.

Kandola, B. (1995), "Selecting for diversity", International Journal of Selection and Assessment, Vol. 3 No.3, .

Kirkton, G., Greene, A.M. (2000), The Dynamics of Managing Diversity: A Critical Approach, Buttterworth-Heinemann, Oxford, .

Liff, S. (1999), "Diversity and equal opportunities: room for a constructive compromise", Human Resource Management Journal, Vol. 9 No.1, pp.65-75.

Merriam, S. (1988), Case Study Research in Education: a Qualitative Approach, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, .

McDougall, M. (1998), "Devolving gender management in the public sector: opportunity or opt-out?", The International Journal of Public Sector Management, Vol. 11 No.1, pp.71-80.

McNerney, D. (1994), "The bottom line value of diversity", HR Focus, Vol. May pp.22-3.

Paddison, L. (1990), "The targeted approach to recruitment", Personnel Management, Vol. 22 No.11, pp.54-8.

Ross, R., Schneider, R. (1992), From Equality to Diversity – a Business Case for Equal Opportunities, Pitman, London, .

Sanglin-Grant, S., Schneider, R. (2000), Moving On Up? Racial Equality and the Corporate Agenda, Runnymede Trust, London, .

Storey, J. (1992), Developments in the Management of Human Resources, Blackwell, Oxford, .

Thomas, D.A., Ely, R.J. (1996), "Making differences matter: a new paradigm for managing diversity", Harvard Business Review, Vol. September-October pp.79-90.

Townley, B. (1990), "A discriminating approach to appraisal", Personnel Management, Vol. 22 No.12, pp.34-7.

Wilson, E.M., Iles, P.A. (1999), "Managing diversity – an employment and service delivery challenge", The International Journal of Public Sector Management, Vol. 12 No.1, .

About the Author

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Sewage Sludge Disposal – Land Application -environmental Problems – an Overview

SEWAGE SLUDGE DISPOSAL – LAND APPLICATION -ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS – AN OVERVIEW

Md. Wasim Aktar

Pesticide Residue Laboratory, Department of Agricultural Chemicals,

Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur-741252, Nadia, West Bengal, India

1. Introduction

Most wastewater treatment processes produce a sludge which has to be disposed of. Conventional secondary sewage treatment plants typically generate a primary sludge in the primary sedimentation stage of treatment and a secondary, biological, sludge in final sedimentation after the biological process. The characteristics of the secondary sludge vary with the type of biological process and, often, it is mixed with primary sludge before treatment and disposal. Approximately one half of the costs of operating secondary sewage treatment plants in Europe can be associated with sludge treatment and disposal. Land application of raw or treated sewage sludge can reduce significantly the sludge disposal cost component of sewage treatment as well as providing a large part of the nitrogen and phosphorus requirements of many crops. Very rarely do urban sewerage systems transport only domestic sewage to treatment plants; industrial effluents and storm-water runoff from roads and other paved areas are frequently discharged into sewers. Thus sewage sludge will contain, in addition to organic waste material, traces of many pollutants used in our modern society. Some of these substances can be phytotoxic and some toxic to humans and/or animals so it is necessary to control the concentrations in the soil of potentially toxic elements (PTE) and their rate of application to the soil. The risk to health of chemicals in sewage sludge applied to land has been reviewed by Dean and Suess1

Sewage sludge also contains pathogenic bacteria, viruses and protozoa along with other parasitic helminths which can give rise to potential hazards to the health of humans, animals and plants. A WHO (1981) Report on the risk to health of microbes in sewage sludge applied to land identified salmonellae and Taenia as giving rise to greatest concern. The numbers of pathogenic and parasitic organisms in sludge can be significantly reduced before application to the land by appropriate sludge treatment and the potential health risk is further reduced by the effects of climate, soil-microorganisms and time after the sludge is applied to the soil. Nevertheless, in the case of certain crops, limitations on planting, grazing and harvesting are necessary.

Apart from those components of concern, sewage sludge also contains useful concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus and organic matter. The availability of the phosphorus content in the year of application is about 50% and is independent of any prior sludge treatment. Nitrogen availability is more dependent on sludge treatment, untreated liquid sludge and dewatered treated sludge releasing nitrogen slowly with the benefits to crops being realised over a relatively long period. Liquid anaerobically-digested sludge has high ammonia-nitrogen content which is readily available to plants and can be of particular benefit to grassland. The organic matter in sludge can improve the water retaining capacity and structure of some soils, especially when applied in the form of dewatered sludge cake.

2. What is sludge?

Residuals, biosolids, septage, sewage, wastewater byproduct, compost: there are many names for sludge and sludge products. The term “sludge” is used as most people understand it: the sometimes solid, sometimes liquid material generated by wastewater treatment plants and used as fertilizer on fields, in gravel pits, and on forestry lots throughout the state. Sludge may classified as “Class A” if it has been treated to reduce germs to background levels (levels normally found in soils) and “Class B” if it has been treated so that germs are reduced by an estimated 90%.

3. Composition of sewage sludge:

The nature of the sewage sludge depends on the waste water treatment process and on the source of the sewage. In general it contains both toxic and non-toxic organic wastes. Of the two, non-toxic compounds are most prevalent comprising all materials of plant and animal origin, including proteins, amino acids, sugar and fats. Toxic organic compound comprises Poly-nuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), alkyl phenols, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) organo-chlorine pesticides, monocyclic aromatics, chloro-benzenes, aromatic and alkyl amines, polychlorinated dioxins, phenols etc. In addition to these organic waste material sewage sludge also contains traces of many pollutants like Copper, Zinc, Nickel, Cadmium, Lead, Arsenic, Chromium, Selenium etc. Some of these substances can be phytotoxic and some toxic to humans and / or animals, so it is necessary to control the concentrations in the soil of potentially toxic elements and their rate of application to the soil. Sewage sludge also contains pathogenic bacteria, viruses & protozoa along with other parasitic helminthes which can give rise to potential hazards to the health of humans, animals and plants. Apart from those components of concern sewage sludge also contains useful concentrations of N, P and organic matter. Each component of the sludge has its own environmental impact, which must be taken into account when choosing the disposal route.

4. Processing of sludge:

Increasing urbanization and Industrialisation have resulted in a dramatic increase in the volume of waste water produced around the world. The waste water treatment step concentrates the various pollutants (upto 90%) in the waste water into sludge, normally containing between 1% and 2% by weight dry solids. The waste water treatment commonly involves the following processes to process the sludge for the production of suitable end products for utilization or disposal:

Sludge processing methods

Process Description

Sludge pasteurization Minimum of 30 minutes at 70ºC or minimum of 4 hours at 55ºC (or appropriate intermediate conditions), followed in all cases by primary mesophilic anaerobic digestion.

Mesophilic anaerobic digestion Mean retention period of at least 12 days primary digestion in temperature range 35ºC ± 3ºC or of atleast 20 days primary digestion in temperature range 25ºC ± 3ºC followed in each case by a secondary stage which provides a mean retention period of at least 14 days.

Thermophilic aerobic digestion Mean retention period of at least 7 days digestion. All sludge to be subjected to a minimum of 55ºC for a period of at least 4 hours.

Composting The compost must be maintained at 40ºC for at least 5 days and for 4 hours during this period at a minimum of 55ºC within the body of the pile followed by a period of maturation adequate to ensure that the compost reaction process is substantially complete.

Lime stabilization of liquid sludge Addition of lime to raise pH to greater than 12.0 and sufficient to ensure that the pH is not less than 12 for a minimum period of 2 hours. The sludges can then be used directly.

Liquid storage Storage of untreated liquid sludge for a minimum period of 3 months.

Dewatering and storage Conditioning of untreated sludge with lime or other coagulants followed by dewatering and storage of the cake for a minimum period of 3 months. If sludge has been subject to primary mesophilic anaerobic digestion storage to be for a minimum period of 14 days.

5. Agricultural application

The application of sewage sludge as a “ safe fertilizer “ started in earnest after the 1988 ban on dumping sewage sludge into the ocean. When the Ocean Dumping Ban Act of 1988 went into effect, the municipalities & the Govts. left with a new problem – how to get rid of the tons of sludge they generate on a daily basis. The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) stepped in with a plan to “solve” this problem by promoting sludge (sometimes called ‘biosolids’, a public relations term that is used interchangeably by EPA with the technical term “sewage sludge”) as fertilizer to be spread on land – where people live, work and play. Though, the viscous, black cake adds free Organic Matter & Fertilizer to poor soils, making them productive and profitable, the main limitations arising from such factors are: pathogens, heavy metals, toxic organics. Therefore, the plan of EPA has allowed toxic chemicals into air, water, soil, crops & into us. So, to call this sludge “ fertilizer” is tantamount to call a soup “food” which, though it contains some meat & vegetables, also contains a bit of lead, a little arsenic, and perhaps hundreds or even thousands of other toxic organic and inorganic materials whose impact ranges from carcinogenic to teratogenic (birth defect inducing ). “Most people want a simple answer; is it good or is it bad. The answer is not that simple. It is not completely risk free, but it has benefits. Just like driving a car”, Sanden said.

The benefits of sewage sludge on agricultural land

• Valuable agricultural nutrients like Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium and Sulphur can be returned to the land

• Soil organic matter levels have been increased to 12% – 15%

• Ground water and surface water quality are maintained

• Decrease bulk density and increase the non-capillary pore space

• Improve the aggregation of soil particles

• No significant health or nuisance problems occur

6. Problem of Sludge

Sludge contains measurable quantities of pollutants, such as heavy metals, dioxin, and other toxic chemicals. Sludge also contains pathogens--human germs, bacteria, viruses, and parasites. And sludge smells: sludge odor is more than just a nuisance; it is a public health threat, which has been linked to respiratory problems and death. The land application of sludge distributes pollutants from large towns and cities to rural areas, far from where they were originally produced. State and federal agencies of various countries regulate sludge spreading, but regulation of this waste is difficult and problematic. Many scientists agree that the current land application rules do not protect human health, agricultural productivity, or the environment. The lack of funding to provide proper regulatory oversight and the very nature of sewage allow for sludge spreading of an unknown quality to occur on our lands.

The problems with sludge include:

? Sludge contains heavy metals, toxic chemicals, and pathogens.

? The testing and regulation of sludge is inadequate and problematic.

? Sludge odors pose a public health threat and lower quality of life.

7. The trouble with sludge

7.1. How toxic sludge become fertilizer

In traditional agricultural societies, human waste was often used to enrich the soil. The Industrial Revolution caused increased urbanization and the need for cities to develop primitive sewer systems to remove human waste. Pipes and gutters were built to dump sewage directly into our lakes, rivers, and oceans. As industry increased in World, factories began using these primitive sewer systems to get rid of their waste. This practice continued well into 20th century, when industry began widely using toxic chemicals. Using the local sewer system as a dumping ground for toxic waste was an easy solution to their disposal problems and was cheaper than treating their waste on site. Sewage loaded with toxic chemicals created major public health and environmental disasters throughout the World: rivers caught fire, public drinking water supplies became polluted, and waste washed up on our beaches. Public outcry from the growing number of disasters led to the passage of the federal Clean Water Act in 1972. This act set water quality standards nationally and provided money to communities to improve sewer systems and create wastewater treatment facilities. Unfortunately, instead of addressing the root of the problem by stopping industrial use and disposal of toxic chemicals, the act instead regulated the amount of pollution large industries could release into sewer systems.

By the late 1970s, extensive sewage systems had been built across the country. Wastewater treatment plants were built to separate solid waste from water, and, following natural and chemical treatment, release water back into the environment, clean of human waste. Unfortunately, they were not built to treat toxic chemical waste. While these sewage systems and wastewater treatment plants improved public health standards and water quality, they have an ironic flaw. The treatment process creates cleaner water but also creates a toxic byproduct: sludge. In fact, the Clean Water Act rightly defines sludge as a pollutant. Like all waste, sludge must be disposed of in some way. What to do with sludge has been a source of controversy for the past three decades in the World. Through the 1970s and 80s, the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) strictly regulated the land spreading of sludge, effectively prohibiting much of the waste from being used on agricultural land. Wastewater treatment facilities could only dispose of sludge in one of three ways: by sending it to a landfill, by incinerating it, or by dumping it 100 miles offshore into the ocean.2

Ocean dumping eventually created large under-sea dead areas. In response to public concern, Congress passed the Ocean Dumping Act, which banned ocean dumping of sludge in 1992.3 Sludge disposals was then largely limited to landfills and incineration that became expensive for wastewater treatment plants. Municipal treatment facilities then pressured the EPA to relax its standards for the land spreading of sludge on agricultural fields. Following a number of draft rewrites of EPA regulations, corporate sludge marketing companies and municipal wastewater treatment facilities were successful in relaxing the limits of toxins in sludge for land spreading. What was once considered hazardous waste became a fertilizer? By classifying sludge as a fertilizer, it became exempted from several waste management regulations.

7.2. Marketing of toxic sludge

Municipal water treatment facilities depend upon corporate sludge brokers to dispose of their sludge. To dispose of it, these private corporations convince farmers and landowner across the country to spread sludge on their fields as a nutrient supplement for their crops. Sludge is marketed to landowners and consumers in two different ways. The first, and most obvious, is by offering them free sludge. By convincing individual property owners that sludge is of “agronomic benefit” to their land, sludge brokers are finding extremely cheap disposal sites for sludge that would otherwise have to be shipped to landfills or incinerators at a cost of approximately $70 a ton.4

Companies then claim that everyone wins: treatment plants have a cheap disposal option for their sludge, which gives taxpayers a break, and landowners get free nutrients for their fields. As an accurate result, the sludge brokers walk away with the disposal fees from the treatment facility. The sludge brokers also escape from potential liability, which is now assumed by the farmer or property owner. The second way sludge is marketed is by composting or palletizing it. Then it can be sold or given away as compost or fertilizer. Since the weakening of sludge regulations in the late 1980s, citizens cross the World have been fighting to keep sludge from being spread on fields and farmland in their communities. Activists fighting sludge are up against formidable opponents. Water treatment facilities and sludge brokers have formed powerful trade groups, such as the New England Biosolids & Residuals Association (NEBRA). NEBRA, in turn, is part of an even larger and more powerful group: the National Biosolids Partnership, which is a coalition of groups such as the EPA and Water Environment Federation, whose primary responsibility is to change “public perception” about sludge spreading.

7.3. Toxic secrets of sludge

Land applied sludge is required laws to have toxic levels below certain limits and it is treated with lime to reduce pathogen levels. However, no sludge in World is completely free of toxic chemicals or pathogens. In fact, after it is treated, Class B sludge still contains a significant amount of pathogens5.

7.4. Toxic in sludge

A. Heavy Metals

All sludge in world contains heavy metals like arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, molybdenum, nickel, selenium, and zinc.6 These metals are persistent—that is, they do not break down in the environment and therefore build up over time. As the Cornell Cooperative Extension states, “most heavy metals remain in the soil for long periods of time, ranging from several decades to many centuries.” The heavy metals in land spread sludge therefore become permanent additions to the total quantity in the soil. Even extremely small amounts of heavy metals in sludge, therefore, are dangerous.7 High levels of arsenic in food or water can be fatal. Cadmium, chromium, nickel, and selenium have been linked to cancer. Cadmium has also been linked to kidney problems, miscarriages, and stillbirths. Copper, nickel, and zinc are known to cause growth problems in crops. Children exposed to lead can develop behavioral and learning problems. Mercury exposure at key moments in fetal development can cause learning disabilities and neurological disorders. Molybdenum bioaccumulates in grass eating livestock; ingested in excess, it can cause anemia, diarrhea, and growth problems.8 These metals can be taken up by the plants that are grown on sludge and re-enter the human food chain via livestock feed. These metals can also leach into groundwater. Highly acidic soils, like those found in Maine, can exacerbate heavy metal leaching.9

B. Pathogens: Bacteria, Viruses, and Parasites

Sludge, by its very nature, contains human pathogens: germs such as bacteria, viruses, and parasites. Whereas exposure to heavy metals can cause problems over time, exposure to these germs is more acute and can cause health problems almost immediately. Because of the extremely large numbers of pathogens that exist in the world, it is impossible to test sludge for all types of pathogens. Some common pathogens in sludge include the bacteria E-coli and Salmonella, the virus Hepatitis A, and parasitic worms. Pathogens can cause intestinal problems, other serious illnesses, and death. Land spread sludge can be treated to nearly eliminate pathogens. By composting sludge, for example, pathogen levels can be reduced significantly. Unfortunately, federal and state laws allow “Class B” sludge, which has not been treated to the strictest pathogen reduction methods, to be spread. In other words, sludge with live pathogens is being spread throughout the state. Unfortunately for the residents and workers of Northern New England, wet and overcast climates encourage pathogen growth. Researchers have found that pathogens can survive in sludge for weeks, months, or even years after reduction treatment processes.

Humans can be exposed to sludge pathogens in a number of ways. We might consume vegetables that have pathogens on them. Children might accidentally gain access to a sludge field and become exposed to the germs. Pathogens can also be spread by pets or wildlife, such as deer, that walk through a sludge field.

C. Dioxin: “The Darth Vader of Chemicals”

Dioxin is the unwanted byproduct of chemical processes involving chlorine. According to the EPA, sludge spreading is the largest land distributor of dioxin nationally.10 Dioxin is a known carcinogen and has been linked to reproductive problems, genetic damage, and endometriosis. Scientific evidence suggests there is no safe exposure level to dioxin.11 As one well-known dioxin expert called it, dioxin is “the Darth Vader of chemicals,” because you can't see or taste it, but it is deadly. The source of dioxin contamination in sludge is not known. It might be discharged into the sewer system by unknown industrial or residential sources. Dairy cattle grazing on sludged land may ingest dioxin and the chemical will then enter humans via milk and meat.

7.5. What We Don’t Know Can Hurt Us

The federal Environmental Protection Agency estimates that there are 70,000 synthetic (not naturally occurring) chemicals. Yet, only 2% of these chemicals have been fully tested. In fact, even the most basic toxicity testing results cannot be found in the public record for nearly 75% of the most widely used of these chemicals. The ways in which these chemicals affect human health and the ways in which they interact with one another in the environment (their “synergistic effects”) are not always known. Despite this, industry only needs to report the discharge of 1% of these chemicals into the waterways and sewers. Although industries and households release thousands of chemicals, World sludge is only regularly tested for few heavy metals and occasionally tested for dioxin and toxic pesticides.

8. Source of toxic chemicals

Sludge contains heavy metals and other pollutants because industry and households use and release far too many toxic chemicals. The sources of contaminates in sludge are many, depending upon the specific water treatment facility and the community that it serves. Sources of contamination include industrial releases, small business discharges, hospital releases, household waste, leachates from landfills and Superfund sites, including nuclear waste dumps, and municipal water and sewer systems as a whole.12Everything that is discharged into a sewer that leads to a water treatment plant could potentially become part of the sludge that the facility produces. If a worker at an industrial facility accidentally dumps toxic chemicals down the drain instead of disposing of it properly, those chemicals could end up in the sludge. Likewise, if a home gardener rinses out a bottle containing toxic pesticides in the sink, those toxic pesticides could find their way to the sludge.

8.1. Industrial Hazards

As discussed earlier, many chemicals used by industry have not been properly tested and are not regulated or reported. Additionally, even at the safest facilities, accidents happen and toxic chemicals can be released into the waste stream. World requires wastewater treatment plants to work with large industries on reducing and monitoring their waste discharge. This “pretreatment process” is required of companies that discharge a large amount of waste into the sewer system or use a large amount of chemicals that could affect the operation of the sewer system. Unfortunately, once companies release heavy metals, or other toxins, into the sewer system, there is no process to remove these chemicals from the sludge. In addition, every industry in the country can discharge 33 pounds of hazardous waste every month into wastewater treatment plants, without penalty or reporting.13

8.2. Small Business Hazards

Many small businesses are not regulated for their toxic releases. Nor are they included in the pretreatment processes. While auto garages, dentist offices, photo developers, dry cleaners, and other small businesses may not individually release a large amount of toxic chemicals, taken as a whole their contribution to chemicals in sludge could be dangerous.

8.3. Hospital Hazards

All hospitals are required to dispose of toxic chemicals and biohazards in a state approved manner. Nevertheless, accidents do happen: from a broken mercury hermometer to additional human pathogens being washed down the drain, hospitals can contaminate sludge.

8.4. Contamination from Municipal Water and Sewer Systems

Many towns and cities have water and sewer systems made with lead and copper pipes. Lead, copper, and other metals often leach into the waste stream and contaminate sludge. Contamination of sludge can also occur if a town’s reservoir is polluted with pesticides and other chemicals for which testing are not required.

8.5. Household Hazards

From pesticides (including flea shampoos), to heavy duty cleaning agents and hair coloring products, toxic chemical containing products abound. Any of these chemicals dumped down the drain could end up being spread on a farm field or in a forest.

9. Sludge regulation

It is nearly impossible to know the exact levels of toxic materials in each batch of sludge because what is released into the waste stream varies day to day. While sewage waste is treated at wastewater facilities for several days, not every batch of sludge is tested before it leaves the plant. It is more due to economics than to concerns for health protection, that sludge generators do not test the waste more frequently. For example, waste is often only tested for dioxin twice a year because of the cost of the test. A worker may accidentally spill pesticides into a sink or storm drain, or someone might illegally dump other toxic chemicals down the drain, and no matter how strict regulations are in the law books, testing could miss these sudden increases in contaminants. Regulations and testing cannot guarantee sludge safety until toxic chemicals are removed from industrial household use.

10. Sludge consequences

“Temporary odors are a necessary inconvenience in the practice of agriculture.”14 Sludge smells similar to manure and that the smell will dissipate “within several days.” Despite industry propaganda, studies have shown that sludge odors are more than just a nuisance; they are a public health threat. Harmful gases, called organic amines, can develop from chemical reactions that occur in sludge. These gases are released when the pH of sludge is raised above 10, such as when lime is added. Studies suggest that sludge odor can cause health problems in humans as far as 1600 feet from a site.15A study performed by a former EPA sludge regulator linked sludge odors to “severe irritation to mucous membranes followed by respiratory infections” in residents living near a sludge site. Irritation of the eyes, throat and skin make infection from pathogens in sludge more likely. The study was conducted following the death of a New Hampshire man suffering from respiratory distress in the vicinity of a sludge site.16 Residents near sludge sites have not been the only victims of sludge odor. Symptoms associated with organic amine poisoning frequently occur among waste treatment plant workers and drivers who haul sludge.

10.1. Deaths associated with sludges

At least two deaths have been associated with sludge spreading. In October 1994, an eleven-year-old boy, named Tony Behun, went dirt bike riding near his home in Osceola Mills, Pennsylvania. Unknowingly, the boy rode through a field covered in Class B sludge. He came home covered in dirt and grime. Two days later, he developed a sore throat, headache, and a boil on his left arm. Brenda Robertson, his mother, took him to the doctor, who prescribed flu antibiotics. The next day, Tony had trouble breathing. He died after being flown by helicopter to a hospital in Pittsburgh. The final diagnosis was that Tony had died from a bacterial infection. How her son contracted the infection remained a mystery to Brenda Robertson until five years later when she read about an investigation into her son's death by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. Without consulting Brenda, the state published a report concluding that Tony died of a bee sting and that Class B Sludge was not spread on property that he went riding on.

Another sludge related death occurred in Greenland, New Hampshire. In late October of 1995, the Marshall family had their otherwise quiet lives tragically disrupted. Sludge was being dumped on a field in their rural neighborhood. This was just the beginning of the residents’ problems. On Halloween, Joanne Marshall rushed home from work to take her little girl trick-or-treating. When she arrived home and jumped out of her car, she was “greeted by such a stench, it took her breath away. ”17 The Marshalls and their neighbors began suffering from nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, migraine headaches, flu-like symptoms, slowed reflexes and respiratory problems.

10.2. Environmental Assessment and some remedy:

Recycling sewage sludge to agricultural land to gain benefit from the essential plant nutrients and organic matter it contains, would seem a reasonable and rational method of managing a material which would otherwise need disposing of by some other non-beneficial route. But sludge also contains inorganic, organic and biological contaminants and so careful, management is required to avoid the potential environmental problems. The problems are listed in following Table. Large application of sewage sludge can decrease the soil pH. This can be avoided, if the soil pH is increased by application of lime, or if sludge application rates are limited in some way.

The no. of bacteria of different genera in sludge varies. In general, a total coliform count of 10 to 10 can be found per gram of dry wt., while fecal coliform bacteria generally represent 10 to 10 per gram of dry wt. The pathogens should be reduced to levels that are unlikely to cause a threat to public health and the environment under specified use conditions processes to significantly reduce pathogens, such as digestion, drying, heating and high pH or their equivalent are the most commonly used one.

For the removal of OCs from sludge mainly two approaches ar there – physico chemical or microbiological which involves either high temperature oxidation (incineration) or reductive dechlorination (pyrolysis in an atmosphere of hydrogen). To achieve allow level of risk, presticide concentrations in the combined soil and sludge mixture must be less than 1.25 mg/kg dry wt.

Environmental impact risk and benefit assessment for sewage sludge recycling to agricultural land (B= beneficial effect, L=Low risk, P=Possible risk, NA=Not applicable.)

Environm-ental parameter PTEs Organic contaminants Pathogens Nitrogen Phosphorus Organic matter

Human health L P L B B B

Crop yields L L L B B B

Animal health L L L B B B

Ground water quality L L L P L L

Surface water quality L L L P P B

Air quality L L L P NA NA

Soil fertility P L L B B B

Natural ecosystem P P L P P B

11. Sludge regulation

Sludge, by its very nature, is difficult to regulate. Depending upon what chemicals are being released into various sewer systems minute to minute, the toxicity of the state's sludge could vary day-to-day, minute-to-minute. Regulations of sludge do not adequately protect public health and the environment.

11.1. Regulations problems:

• Have weak pollution standards;

• Allow for the spreading of sludge containing live pathogens;

• Discourage municipalities from being precautionary and public health oriented by not allowing them to make stricter standards than the state’s; and

• Marginalize citizens’ voices in the process as the sludge industry has greater access to state regulators than the average citizen.

11.2. Heavy Metals Standards (in ppm)

Heavy Metal Denmark Sweden Finland Germany Netherlands Norway European Union

Arsenic 25 N/A N/A N/A 0.15 N/A N/A

Cadmium 0.8 2.0 1.5 5 or 10* 1.25 2.5 20

Chromium 100 100 N/A 900 75 100 N/A

Copper 1000 600 N/A 800 75 1000 1000

Lead 120 100 100 900 100 80 750

Mercury 0.8 2.5 1 8 0.75 3 16

Nickel 30 50 100 200 30 50 300

Zinc 4000 800 1500 2500 300 800 2500

*Source Harrison, et al. 1999 7

11.3. Sludge vs. Natural soil

Heavy Metal Average Sludge (ppm) Natural Soil (ppm) Times Higher than Natural Soil

Arsenic 5.6 7.4 1.3

Cadmium 2.4 0.37 6.4

Copper 388.0 23.3 16.6

Chromium 33.3 30 1.1

Lead 61.5 17 3.6

Mercury 1.2 0.003 400

Molybdenum 7.5 0.79 9.4

Nickel 22.8 18 1.2

Selenium 2.6 0.45 5.7

Zinc 468.5 68.5 6.8

11.4. Standard values for organic compounds

Compounds Concentration in sludge

PAHs 1-10 mg./Kg.

Alkyl phenols 100 – 3000 mg./Kg.

PCBs 1 - 20 mg./Kg.

Poly chlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins Very low

OC pesticides

Monocyclic aromatics

Chloro benzenes

Aromatic & alkyl amines 0 – 1mg./Kg.

Phenols 0 – 5mg./Kg.

12. The sludge solution

If spreading sludge in our communities is dangerous, where should it go? What are we supposed to do with this waste? The real question is, how can we eliminate the spreading of toxic pollutants on our land and how can we eliminate these contaminants from our wastewater treatment plant so that human waste becomes a truly useful and safe commodity? Because sludge contains toxic chemicals and other pollutants, the best solution to our sludge problem is reducing these contaminants at their source. By dramatically reducing the use and disposal of industrial and household toxic chemicals we can greatly cut the chemical levels in sludge. Until the long-term goal of eliminating the use and disposal of toxic chemicals is achieved, the state should:

1. Ban the use of sludge that contains industrial discharges.

2. Require the strictest level of pathogen reduction.

3. Broaden and strengthen sludge testing and toxic limits.

4. Allow municipalities to enact ordinances that are more stringent than the state’s regulations through the town meeting or a town-wide vote process.

5. Provide for the long-term pH maintenance and metal monitoring of sludge sites.

In addition to statewide protections, municipalities should also enforce their own protections through strong ordinances controlling sludge. It is, after all, local communities that are most threatened by sludge spreading.

13. Disposal of sludges

Sludge disposal is a worldwide problem and a wide variety of disposal routes have been adopted as directed by local conditions. The final resting place of the sludge must be either on the land, in the air or in the water. Disposal of sludge to the air largly employs high temperature incineration or pyrolysis. Although, this reduction is sufficient to “stabilise” the sludge, a large volume remains for disposal. Disposal of sewage sludge to the ocean in now banned because of its perceived environmental effects. The major sludge disposal methods employed by the waste water treatment plants are alienation or selling lagooning, used for municipal gardens, used for instant lawn cultivation, land application. The remaining of the sludge is either stockpiled or land filled.

Disposal and application of sludge’s should involve the following

1. The application must contain a summary of the types of crops to be grown on the proposed site, the method of sludge application, and an anticipated spreading schedule. The application must also include a representative soil nutrient analysis for the site.

2. The sludge must provide “agronomic benefit” to the crops grown on this soil--meaning the generator must show that the site has a need for the nutrients provided for by the sludge. Farms utilizing sludge are required to have a licensed nutrient management specialist develop a whole farm nutrient management plan. This plan is the basis for the above determination that additional nutrients are needed on the farm.19

3. The application must show that “the water of the state will be protected.” In practice, state regulators assume that the waters of the state will be protected as long as certain setbacks and spreading requirements are provided for in the application.

4. To this end, sludge cannot be spread when soil is frozen, snow covered, and water logged. Sludge cannot be spread on land that favors the growth of water loving plants such as wetlands, swamps and others.

5. The soil of a proposed sludge site must have a six-inch soil cap and a minimum depth to bedrock of 10 inches for perennial crops (such as hay) and 20 inches for row crops (such as corn).

6. For Class B sludge, spreading may not occur within 25 feet of on-site waterways, including gullies, ravines, and swales. Sludge sites may not be located within 75 feet of a river, perennial stream, or great pond.

7. The application must include a statement as to whether or not the site is located on or next to a protected natural resource, a sensitive area, and/or a direct watershed to waters.

8. The generator must demonstrate that the sludge spreading activity will meet traffic standards for the site. This standard is assumed to be met if the sludge spreading activity will result in 16 or less vehicle trips a day.20

9. The application must include a site-specific odor control plan to prevent nuisance odors at neighboring properties. It assumes that odor, air quality, and nuisance standards will be met at the site if the site is 300 feet from occupied buildings, if there is a site specific odor control plan.21

10. The application must prove that the sludge is “non-hazardous”. To prove this, the application must include an analysis of the heavy metal levels in the sludge. If the generator’s sludge contains heavy metal concentrations above screening concentrations then the application must include a sampling and monitoring plan as well as demonstrate that the maximum heavy metal soil concentration will not be exceeded.

11. The application must also include an analysis of the dioxin level in the sludge. If a generator's sludge contains 27 parts per trillion of dioxin, then the application must include a statement signed by the generator, the landowner, and the operator acknowledging the dioxin in the sludge to be spread.

The statement must also include an agreement to the following conditions:

? The site will be tested for dioxin within 3 months of the last sludge spreading.

? If the soil on the site contains 27 parts per trillion of dioxin, then livestock intended for human consumption may not be pastured on site, crops for human consumption may not be grown on the site, and the deed to the site must record this information.

12. The application must also include a sampling plan: how often and in what manner the sludge will be tested for heavy metals and other toxins.22

13. Sludge will be spread at a minimum of 15 inches above groundwater surfaces. Food crops grown on the site with harvested parts that touch the soil will not be harvested for 14 months after the last sludge spreading.

14. If the sludge remains on the land for four months or more before being incorporated into the soil, food crops that grow below the soil cannot be harvested for at least 20 months after the last sludge spreading.

15. Food crops, feed crops, and fiber crops grown on the site but do not have harvested parts that might touch the sludge cannot be harvested for at least 30 days after the last sludge spreading.

16. Domestic animals are not allowed to graze on the land for at least 30 days after the last sludge spreading.

17. Turf grown on the site cannot be harvested for one year after the last sludge

spreading.

18. The application must contain site maps, including: a topographical map; a sketch of the site; a tax map; soils map (from U.S. Department of Agriculture); sand and gravel aquifer map; and a flood zone map.

19. The site sketch should include all the set backs and buffers that will be incorporated, as well as the location of onsite and abutting roads, wells, and buildings. The topographical maps are used to determine slopes at the site. The soils, sand and gravel aquifer, and flood zone maps are used to determine if the site is suitable, in a regulatory sense, for sludge spreading activities.23

14. Conclusion and Recommendation

14.1. Policy recommendation

? Prohibit sludge that contains industrial discharges from being land applied. The best way to ensure that our rural land is protected from industrial contamination is to ban the use of sludge that contains these toxins.

? Require land spread sludge to undergo the strictest pathogen reduction method available. Sludge with viruses, bacteria, and parasites above background levels should not be land applied.

? Broaden and strengthen sludge testing parameters. Sludge needs to be tested more frequently for more contaminants. In order to best protect public health and the environment, allowable pollutant levels should be guided not only by toxicology but also by natural background levels as well.

? Allow municipalities to enact ordinances that are more stringent than the state's through a town meeting or town-wide vote. The people who are most affected by sludge sites are local residents. It is important that these residents have a voice when it comes to decisions that affect their community.

? Provide for long-term maintenance of sludge sites. Sludge generators should be responsible for testing the pH of all sludge application sites, whether active or closed, and cover the costs of lime (or other amendments) to maintain safe soil pH. All large volume sludge activities should be recorded on deeds so that future potential buyers are aware of past use of the property.

15.2. Recommendation for municipalities

• Sludge is an especially important issue for municipalities to oversee: it is local residents that have the most to lose from the threat of sludge.

• In municipalities that are home to a wastewater treatment facility, local residents, town officials, and directors of the facility can work together to implement the above statewide recommendations at the local level.

• All towns have the authority to ban the use of sludge, or sludge materials (such as compost) on municipal property.

• Municipalities can also pass strict ordinances controlling sludge application. Although the state preempts local control on setting strict standards, there are several ways towns can discourage sludge spreading.

15.3. What concern citizen can do?

Citizens can protect themselves and their community from the dangers of sludge by being proactively engaged in sludge reform. Depending upon the needs of the community, citizens can reform sludge rules through engaging town officials, local and statewide public health and environmental groups.

References

1. Dean and Suess (1995). Toxic Sludge Is Good For You!, Center for Media & Democracy. Published by Common Courage Press, Monroe, ME. p. 101-107.

2. www.vpirg.org , On the Ground, The Spreading of Toxic Sludge in Vermont, Vermont Public Interest Research Group,VPIRG, 64 Main St., Montpelier, VT 05602. (802) 223-5221.

3. vpirg@vpirg.org . 7-9.

4. www.vpirg.org , Conversations with DEP Officials and Staff of Portland Water District

5. vpirg@vpirg.org On the Ground, The Spreading of Toxic Sludge in Vermont, Vermont Public Interest Research Group, VPIRG, 64 Main St., Montpelier, VT 0560. (802) 223-5221. 35-36

6. State of Maine Solid Waste Management Regulations Chapters 419, 400, 405, & Appendix A of Chapter 418, as well as repealed Chapter 567, Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Solid Waste Management, 17 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0017. Chapter 419, 17.

7. Harrison, Ellen Z. et al, (1999) The Case for Caution, Recommendations for Land Application of Sewage Sludge and an Appraisal of the US EPA’s Part 503 Sludge Rules, Cornell Waste Management Institute, Center for the Environment, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853. February.

8. www.vpirg.org ,vpirg@vpirg.org On the Ground, The Spreading of Toxic Sludge in Vermont, Vermont Public Interest Research Group, VPIRG, 64 Main St., Montpelier, VT 05602. (802) 223-5221. 12-14.

9. www.essential.org/cchw America’s Choice Children’s Health or Corporate Profit, Center for Health, Environment, and Justice, PO Box 6806, Falls Church, VA 22040 703.237.2249, 546

10. Gibbs, Lois Marie et al. (1995) Dying from Dioxin: A Citizen's Guide to Reclaiming Our Health and Rebuilding Democracy. South End Press, Boston.. p. 25

11. vpirg@vpirg.org 10-11.

12. Scott, Laura, et al. (1998) The Sludging of New Hampshire. Answers for Local City and Town Officials in New Hampshire. New Hampshire Sierra Club. “Land Application of Wastewater Biosolids in Maine.” Maine Wastewater Control Association brochure.

13. Lewis, David L., et al. Enhanced Susceptibility to Infection From Exposure to Gases Emitted by Sewage Sludge: A Case Study, Departments of Marine Sciences, Biological and Agricultural Engineering, and Medical Microbiology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, BIOSET, Inc, 13700 Veterans Memorial, Ste. 385, Houston, TX, 77014. (conclusions)

14. Tuohy, John, (2000) “State probe wrongly followed path of bike ride to a bee sting,” USA Today, July 13,. 20. Statement of Joanne Marshall

15. www.essential.org/cchw. “A Comparison of Heavy Metals in Sewage Sludge, Soil, and Applicable Regulatory

16. cchw@essential.org Standards,” 10/10/00 fact sheet from Maine Department of Environmental Protection. 47

17. State of Maine Solid Waste Management Regulations Chapters 419, 400, 405, & Appendix A of Chapter 418, as well as repealed Chapter 567, Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Solid Waste Management, 17 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0017. Chapter 2, 21-22.

18. Standards,” 10/10/00 fact sheet from Maine Department of Environmental Protection.

19. State of Maine Solid Waste Management Regulations Chapters 419, 400, 405, & Appendix A of Chapter 418, as well as repealed Chapter 567, Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Solid Waste Management, 17 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0017. Chapter 419, 7-10.

20. State of Maine Solid Waste Management Regulations Chapters 419, 400, 405, & Appendix A of Chapter 418, as well as repealed Chapter 567, Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Solid Waste Management, 17 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0017. Chapter 419, 26.

21. State of Maine Solid Waste Management Regulations Chapters 419, 400, 405, & Appendix A of Chapter 418, as well as repealed Chapter 567, Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Solid Waste Management, 17 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0017. Chapter 419, 7-10 and 26.

22. State of Maine Solid Waste Management Regulations Chapters 419, 400, 405, & Appendix A of Chapter 418, as well as repealed Chapter 567, Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Solid Waste Management, 17 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0017. Chapter 400, 28.

23. State of Maine Solid Waste Management Regulations Chapters 419, 400, 405, & Appendix A of Chapter 418, as well as repealed Chapter 567, Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Solid Waste Management, 17 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0017. Chapter 419, 26-27.

About the Author

Md. Wasim Aktar is a Senior Research Fellow in Export Testing Laboratory, APEDA, B.C.K.V., Mohanpur,West Bengal, Pin-741252,India. He is expert in pesticide residue analysis using GC-MS and LC-MS from different environmental samples. He is an Agriculture Graduate and obtained his M.Sc. degree in Agricultural Chemicals from B.C.K.V. He is now doing his Ph.D. work in the same university under the deptt. of Agricultural Chemicals.

Silda Wall Spitzer - Greening the NY Governor's Mansion

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10 Things to Know About Workplace Drug Testing State Laws and Regulations in Illinois

1)Who Gets Tested

Illinois has a required drug testing law. This means that certain individuals must be tested if involved in certain types of jobs or activities. This is to ensure the safety of the public at all times. Otherwise drug testing is at the discretion of the employer.

2) Types of Drugs

The state of Illinois requires no specific drugs be tested for. It is up to the employer to decide what drugs they wish to look for. Of course it is standard practice to test for those drugs that will cause impairment and the inability to safely complete a job.

3) Company Disclosure

There is no requirement for a company, public or private, to post notice in a public area that they conduct drug testing.

4) Written Policy

Only public works requires a written policy on drug testing. Otherwise no employer, public or private, must have a written statue in the employee handbook that describes the companies policy regarding drug use and drug testing.

5) Test Types

There are no state laws or statutes that require mandatory types of testing by a company either public or private. There a company can opt for drug testing using a blood sample, hair sample or urine sample.

6) Drug Test Fees

All fees are the responsibility of the employer. No employer, public or private, can require any employee pay for any drug testing regardless of the type of testing of frequency of testing.

7) Who Must Be Tested

Only public works contractors and public works subcontractor must test their employees for both alcohol and drug use. Otherwise there are no regulations requiring any other worker to undergo drug or alcohol testing. However, companies that work with the public or who conduct business of a sensitive nature will usually do drug and/or alcohol testing.

Where Does Testing Take Place

There is not set laboratory or hospital where testing must occur. An employer can choose any facility that conducts drug testing.

9) Is there a Set Time for Drug Testing?

Only public works contractors as well as subcontractors must be tested prior to starting work for the company and ultimately for the public. In addition this type of company is required to conduct drug and alcohol testing for any employee involved in an accident or who is suspected of using drugs or alcohol. Otherwise there is no set rule, law or statute that states when a company, public or private, must do their drug testing.

10) What Happens if the Test is Positive?

A public works contractor and a public works subcontractor that has an employee that tests positive for drugs must be fired and could be prohibited from re-hire with any other company for that particular job. Otherwise a company, public or private, is under no obligation to fire or prosecute an employee that has tested positive for drug use.

About the Author

This Article is written by Lena Butler, the author of Drug Testing Laws by State a longer version of this article is located at 10 Things to Know About Workplace Drug Testing State Laws and Regulations in Illinois, and resources from other home health and wellness testing articles are used such as Drug Testing Policy.

StateSurge Weekly Episode 1 - March 29

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What Makes for a Quality Business Agreement - or a Contract?

The contract is the foundation of doing business. Does that sound too formal to you? Is a handshake agreement good enough for many? Well, even though it may not be as air tight as, say, a contractor agreement, a handshake deal is still a contract. The moment two people agree to terms when it comes to the exchange of goods and services for a price, they have entered into a legal contract. It's why knowledge of contracts and the issues involved should be important to all people in business, and why knowing the difference between a good and bad contract can protect your interests.

In fact, knowing more about contracts is like knowing more about life and history in general. Contract law is certainly not the creation of a few thoughtful individuals, nor is it part of any kind of grand design. Indeed, contract law has much of its roots in the common law foundation of American society.

That is, contract law is somewhat a textbook example of how common law developed in Britain and the United States. People engage in business transactions. Eventually, some of these become sources of disputes between various parties. Some laws already on the books may cover the dispute. Very often, they don't. So that's where a court needs to step in to cover so-called tricky cases and establish new laws. These are called precedents, which are then carried over to similar cases in the future.

It's the establishment of these precedents alongside legislated law that forms the foundation of common law in general, and contract law specifically. Although it's certainly not necessary to do extensive research in case law to gain a better understanding of things like legal contracts and the contractor agreement; contacting those specialists who do might be wise. They're called lawyers. Alternatively, just knowing that contract law isn't always written in stone should perhaps make it more imperative that good contracts can cover your interests in as many situations as possible.

It is the desire to avoid grey areas and matters of interpretation that creates the need to form contracts to protect your interests. In other words, a handshake can get you in trouble, since the specifics of such a contract can be a matter open to interpretation. What is less open to interpretation is a legal contract or contractor agreement that specifically states the obligations of all parties of a contract. The more the contract clearly outlines these obligations, the better off all parties will be, especially if there ends up being a dispute.

It's not just the simple exchange of goods and services for a fee that are subject to contractual arrangements, of course. There are numerous components of business and related activities that come under the umbrella of contracts.

If you want to outsource your activities to someone else, that's a contract. You hire people for a period of time, that's a contract. You hire people to fix something in your office, that's a contract. Almost any decision to form an arrangement with someone else, especially when money is involved, can form the basis of a contractual arrangement carrying with it all the duties and obligations of a legal contract.

Another way of putting it is this: If you're doing business with anyone to any degree, there's a contract involved there somewhere. And if it could potentially impact you and your business, you better get it down on paper. Some contracts may not need to be as formal as a contractor agreement, but the more specific a legal contract it is, the better position you can be in to protect your interests and that of your business.

Indeed, laying out as much specificity in the contract, while keeping it simple, goes a long way towards creating the good legal contract. It should lay out things like the parties obligated to the contract, the financial arrangements agreed upon, what circumstances would lead to the termination of the contract, what mechanisms can be used to resolve disputes, and what jurisdiction applies to the terms of the contract. The more that's outlined in the contract, while making it easy to understand for all parties involved, the less of a chance that a court will even be needed to sort it all out.

After all, one of the benefits of a good legal contract is that it discourages people to resort to the courts to try and settle disputes in their favor. If most applicable terms are laid out in a good contract, the temptation to try and score through a lawsuit will be mitigated. No one wants to waste time and resources disputing an air tight contract. If the terms are laid out properly, and each party knows specifically what their obligations are, then further difficulties down the road are that much more unlikely.

Perhaps nowhere is this more true than with respect to the contractor agreement. Companies are hired to do projects of all sorts for all kinds of clients. While it's great to answer the phone, learn that someone wants to contract for your services, and pay you a lot to do it, it really doesn't hurt if you already have prepared a contractor agreement that covers both your interests before getting started. It lets the client know what kind of people they're hiring, while also protecting you from somebody who plays loose with the notion of what a business contract is.

About the Author

James Cochran is the founder of ContractEdge, a provider of legal contracts and agreements designed specifically for IT professionals and contractors. Created by attorneys who specialize in Information Technology law, ContractEdge contractor agreements and legal contracts go beyond the standard provisions and include critical special provisions unique to the IT industry.

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PERCEPTIONS OF PRINCIPALS’ RESPONSIBILITIES IN-LOCO-PARENTIS IN NIGERIAN SECONDARY SCHOOLS

This paper reviewed the perceptions of principals’ responsibilities in-loco-parentis in Nigerian secondary schools, using the theoretical method, applied precedent cases and administrative examples. This work also suggested that possible modifications may be needed especially where past laws of operations have been revised. This approach could allow for more harmony among parents, students, teachers and principals, in assuming a peaceful teaching and learning atmosphere, thereby discouraging unnecessary litigations based on unreasonable rules and regulations.

Key words: Principals’ responsibilities, In-loco-parentis, and Nigerian secondary schools

INTRODUCTION

            The term “in-loco-parentis” is a Latin derivative, which means “in place of parents”. It is universally acknowledged that principals stand in-loco-parentis to students, with corresponding privileges and responsibilities which they carry out on behalf of parents. The doctrine of in-loco-parentis applies “in place of parents”, principals having some rights and duties of parents. It is recognized that in terms of expressed contract, teachers, tutors, principals or principals have responsibilities of parents within and outside the school. This obligation is that while children are in schools, principals are made to assume the full responsibility of caring for the students (Akiri, 1990). This full responsibility assumed by principals and teachers is known as ‘the doctrine of in-loco-parentis’. On this basis, principals have a full right to mould the childrens’ moral character, assist them in mental and physical development, and cater for the fostering of the spirit of national consciousness in the children, who are in daily attendance in primary and post primary schools (Bendel State Gazette, 1988).

However, the right of principals in-loco-parentis is not absolute when considering the control they have over students in the Nigerian school system. It should be realized that when teachers and principals are not absolute in considering the control they have over students in the Nigerian school system within the scope of their duties in terms of reasonable and executing possible rules and regulations, the courts may assist in promoting proper and effective teaching and learning atmosphere in the schools. This is because the courts in democratic societies as in case of Nigeria, as it is all over the world viewed school officials as standing in-loco-parentis, allowing them to regulate the students in any manner since parents agree to delegate school principals the parental authority to control their children’s conduct in a manner which will be of the best interest to the children in the schools. Every Nigerian school has a set of rules and regulations meant to guide students towards good conduct and behaviour in order to maintain general discipline, peace and order, necessary for effective teaching and learning.

The Doctrine of In-Loco-Parentis

            Principals have the power, authority and responsibility for administering a school’s disciplinary programme. This power to control and discipline students for infractions is traceable to the age-old doctrine of in-loco-parentis (in place of parents). This position of the principals with regards to disciplinary control of students is well explained in the Corpus Juris Secundum (79 C.J.S. 493).

            As a general rule, a principals, to a limited extent at least, stands in-loco-parentis to student under his charge, and my exercise such powers of control, restraint, and correction over them as may be reasonably necessary to enable him to properly perform his duties as teacher and to accomplish the purpose of education; he is subject to such limitations and prohibitions as may be defined by law. The courts in the Nigerian school system viewed school officials as standing in-loco-parentis, regulating the students in and manner – subject only to the standards and restraints that parents would use in supervising the welfare of the child. For example, in Gott V. Berea College in the U.S. (1913), the justice held that:

            Principals stand in-loco-parentis concerning the physical and moral welfare and mental training of the pupils, and we are unable to see why, to that end, they may not make any rule or regulation for the Government or betterment of their students that a parent could for the same purpose. 

The implication of this statement is that courts ordinarily will not interfere with the authority of a school to make rules governing students’ behaviour unless such rules are unlawful, unreasonable, and capricious or against public policy. 

            The doctrine of in-loco-parentis had been based on the assumption that by sending their children to school, parents agree to delegate to school officials the power or parental authority to control their children’s conduct in a manner that will be of the best interest to the child. Alexander (1980), however, points out that today, this situation is drastically changing. Parents now argue that when the concept originated, education was voluntary and personal, the parent voluntarily committed the child to the authority of the teacher who usually spent the entire day with the child in a small classroom or school, thereby developing something akin to a parent/child relationship with the pupil. Most teachers today instruct children for only part of the day and have fewer opportunities to form close relationship in large classes and schools. It is in the light of this latter point the Ohio Department of Education in the United States has come to reject the idea that schools may act in place of the parents. The Department was of the view that to stand in-loco-parentis, one must assume full duties, responsibilities and obligations of a natural parent to a pupil. Alexander stated thus:

That students’ relationship to School and to parents are entirely different. The School/Child relationship is intermittent with different adults involved at different times of the day and year; they often at superficial levels and for short periods of time stayed with the child. Parents’ relationship on the other hand ordinarily incorporates deep feelings of mutual love and affection. For this reason, corporal punishments inflicted by parents would have an entirely different effect than the same punishment meted out by School authority (1981), p. 4).

What this mean is that the doctrine of in-loco-parentis is on the wane not only in the United States but also in Europe and even in Nigeria.

Principals In–Loco–Parentis  

Principals are also teachers in the Nigerian school system, who in their positions in-loco-parentis to the children in their charge, act reasonably in this capacity provided their actions are in accordance with general and approved educational practice, and provided that they take such case of their children as careful fathers would take, and they have little to fear from mischance of school life.

In a case, some grammar school students were playing, contrary to the school rule, with a cricket-pitch roller which can cover one of them. The parents sued the principal and the master in charge, claiming damages for negligence. The case was headed at LEEDS Assizes in March 1998 under Mr. Justice Hilbery’s summing up, who has a mastery exposition of the doctrine of a careful father. He said “it was not suggested for the plaintiff that anybody could reasonably say that a master must watch boys not merely in classes, but throughout every moment of their school lives”. Thus, a teacher has the right in-loco-parentis to control the child during and after school premises. A teacher is not only known and called that professional name “teacher” as it is with “doctors”. “Engineers”, “Pastors” etc within the system only but also outside the organizations. Hence, teachers as professionals should not be involved in any professional misconduct but to abide to the various codes of ethics of the teaching profession.

Freedom of Expression

            It is considered that in a democratic society, principals like other citizens should possess the freedom of expression. Principals’ freedom is curtailed that whatever is said may not lead to any disorder on the art of students and does not disrupt effective administration of the school.

Principals’ freedom of expression can be categorized into three areas:

-         Outside school environment

-         On school grounds, and

-         Within classrooms

Outside School Environments

            It is stated in Article 38 of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution (Nigeian Constitution, 1989) that every person is entitled to freedom of expression which includes that to hold possible opinions, receive and import ideas as well as, information without interruption from any person or group of persons. Principals are restricted by virtue of the fact that they are not as free as the ordinary citizen. An employee such as an educator who is in service undertake making reckless and false statements that can be of damage to a school system especially, where such interest of the school takes priority over the teacher’s freedom of expression.

On School Ground outside Classroom

            It is very clear that one’s utterances on the job is restricted to the disadvantage of the employee with such restriction makes it possible for principals to have more protection and control over educators. This allows teachers to be guided on the following:

-         Staffs are not expected to have labour meetings during school hours unlike meeting having to do with school.

-         Civic and charitable organizations could be given access during school period.

-         Meetings allowed for teachers after school hours are normally censored.

Within Classroom

            The fundamental human right of expression though guarantees freedom of expression but principals are still limited within reasonableness of the prescribed curriculum provided. The possibility of this surround the fact that the state provides a prescribed guideline through the Teaching Service Board called the curriculum which specified on what, who and how it’s to be taught. This is a public employee, and educator needs to be careful about the type of doctrine that is propagated especially when it has to do with biology, politics, sex, education and religion. This restriction is encouraged to allow the teacher focus on the curriculum directed on the audience so required. Consequently, if a teacher gets into a controversial and sensitive area, such a principal should be able to direct discussion by showing maturity and expertise so as not to loose sight of the goal.

Freedom of Association

            Freedom of association is very necessary for principal and it is likened to the freedom of expression which makes it possible for people who share the same values, norms and profession come together to examine issues affecting such organization. Article 39 of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution states that people shall be accorded the right to assemble freely and associate with each other. Thereby in particular the person may form or belong to any political party, union or other associations for both personal protection and interest. By virtues of being a public servant, principal cannot belong to secret cults, political parties or organizations that promote subversive activities. They are encouraged to collectively belong and promote their interests demands.

Search and Seizure of Students in Schools

            A principal acts in the capacity of in-loco-parentis in the absence of the national parents. School authorities are privileged to oversee the activities of student and in the process of performing such functions; some principals arrogate so much power to themselves by acting outside the reasonable scope of their duties. The doctrine of in loco-parentis does not cover a principal who misuses power by unnecessary confiscating the belonging of students where these have violated school rules by either wearing on active regarded as unconventional and shoes with heel plates that can disrupt the learning atmosphere of an institution. Article 35 of the 1989 Nigerian constitution, specify the right to fair hearing before one’s private property and liberty (Nigerian constitution, 1989), can be taken away. The relevance of this to educators and principals is to allow for all exhaustive remedies which enable teachers demonstrate their maturity and skills in dealing with criminal situations.

            Principal should be properly exposed to article 12 of the 1989 Nigerian constitution in the process of carrying out administrative duties either on school premises or off school premises. Both educators and proper provision of information in school property since their intentions are that of providing safety, conducive, learning and peaceful atmosphere, while the doctrine of in loco-parentis and sovereign community, are properly applied.

            The contrary is the case when off school property search is carried principal and educators can take the laws into their hands because the lack of the constitutionality by boldly going to search a property off school premises. There are normal channels that such principal must follow: Establish the issue with the police since it is a criminal offence and a search warrant is obtained.

            The police and the school authorities could go but the duty is strictly that of the police who can carry out the search. The principal’s control cannot be extended beyond school grounds, since it is not within the jurisdiction as specified in the scope of duties.

Corporal Punishment in Schools

            It is by definition subjecting an individual to torture, in human or degrading treatment or punishment. It is simply seen as mere inflicting of physical punishment on another person. The duty of the teacher is explicitly mentioned when the teacher is standing in proxy for the nation through his obligation to the state.

            It is also assumed that the limitation of how far teachers can go with students, especially when disciplining them within the scope of duties. It is not all teachers that carryout discipline except the one authorized by the principal. Therefore, either discipline masters or marshals are authorized to enforce discipline on the pupils. The possible reason that can be advanced for such are:

            The person carrying out the punishment is normally biased if the offence was committed against him / her.

-         There is vested interest and

-         Punishment could be regarded as malicious, arbitrary and capricious.

This assumption can be dangerous and when there is an unusual injury in the process of administering the punishment, it is difficult to convince others of non-biased punishment. This is why it is advisable to pass the punishment role to some neutral persons who cannot be accused of bias. This is established in a case on “teacher has authority to parents, students for acts / offences committed off school premises between O’Rourke V. Walker in Supreme Court of Errors of Connecticut, 1925, 102 com. 130, 128 A.25.

            Article 33 of the 1989 Nigerian constitution and5 of the United Nations charter specify that people’s right to be free from torture and attain personal liberty indicate that persons who have attained the adult suffrage may not be unnecessarily denied personal liberty based on educative and welfare purposes. (Nigerian constitution, 1999; United Nations Charter, 1948) The only reason to have pupils’ punishment is the reformative and corrective measure necessary to the offence committed. The courts have accepted unreasonable punishments, administered and unprescribed paddle that have been utilized maliciously, especially when the offence is not commensurate to the punishment. Several instances which include Nwakwo vs. Ajaegbu (Nigerian Constitution Law Report, 1978) Kukoyi vs. Ikhure and Board of Education, all involve bodily injuries and permanent damages of which, huge compensations were awarded to the plaintiffs based on the trespass of their personal right.

            The suggestions from possible court rulings can include that children’s age, sex, physical fitness, mental alertness and emotional balance of the child can determine such punishment. The validity of such punishment can only stand when such element which include the following are available.

-         Documentation is needed and punishment cannot be first means to deter mis-behaviour.

-         The child must be well informed of the punishment before hand.

-         A witness is required and

-         A well documented report is necessary to be made available to the parents (Nwagwu, 1987).

The Alaboh vs. Boyes and Ajaha (Nigerian Constitution Law reports, 1984) can advance the principle described above and obviously the features were violated. Based on this, the decision of a lower court was upheld and the court declared that the constitutional right of the student was violated. Generally, the burden of proof is normally on the student especially when teachers are acting within scope of their duties. The only reason the courts may rule against educators is when there is evidence of abuse of power.

Enforcing Released Time

            The idea of educators enforcing released time includes the constitutionality of the student having the freedom of thought, conscience and religion, as specified in article 37 of the Nigerian constitution of 1999. Released time per se, is granting time off to the student based on religious constitutional right to worship on / off school premises.

            In situations of this type, an educator must be acquired with students’ access to space where worship can take place. In case space is a problem, there is need to schedule each religious denomination on how long space could be utilized as to equally allow each individual the opportunity to worship. The constitutional right of an individual is infringed upon where one is denied access to such a space. On the other hand, educator ought to be in firm control when students worship outside environment especially during Lent and the Rahmadan feast period for Christians and Muslims respectively. This relates to the role of in loco-parentis which principals assume based on the fact that, the to and fro of the students point to safety which is the responsibility of an educator. Normally, school principals who may entrust such supervisory role to more matured students, still need to oversee from time to time what the situation on safety of the students so as to avoid problems and obligations resulting from neglect.

Finally, it would be unconstitutional to enforce religious doctrine on an individual student instead of letting alone the student to practice his religious belief. In past, student who attended post primary schools, fell victim of such circumstances. It was such that they were either converted to the seat other than theirs or they held until schools were on holidays before practicing their faith. Consequently, these made it mandatory for students to only attend secondary schools in Nigeria not only of their choice but based on their religious lines as to ensure that their consciences were not mortgaged.

Loyalty

            The principal has to be loyal to the nation in which they serve. It is very crucial and vital. A principal can be terminated if the duties carried out by such educator are not in compliance with the oath of office. This could be in form of when students are indoctrinated with information which have a national ethics and civic duties of the citizens in the process of educating such students, then, such a principal could be dismissed. This is because such information could be bordering on subversive preaching which is against the constitution of the land.

            This is why principals need to be well acquainted with articles 23 and 24 of the 1999 constitution in Nigeria which can promote national ethnic and civil duties of the citizen. This situation today was unlike in the past, when foreigners came into Nigeria and picked jobs in the school system without necessary exposure to National values but concentrated on personal gains through teachings. Educators’ loyalty to the nation is significant since they are to be involved in promoting socialization at the school level which is invariably in the grass root. Therefore, loyalty by principal will include;

-         assure public trust and willingness to assist the constitution

-         discouraging falsehood, perjury and admitting guilt and

-         upholding the constitution by discouraging violence, overthrow of governments and illegal activities. It is no doubt the responsibilities of principals by implication, include indicate to student that loyalty to the nation comes before self and ethnicity.

Self Incrimination

            Principals, by virtue of the office held, may as anyone else commit crime through self incrimination. Principals may do this virtue of providing necessary assisting information to the government through law enforcing agency. The information is one that may not incriminate one but can be interpreted as an admission guilt. Articles 32 and 34 of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria relate to personal liberty but not when it has to do with constitutional matters involving the state. It is understood that one constitutional right is secondary when one considers matters affecting the state, meaning that the state takes precedence over one’s constitutional rights.

            It is important to note that there can be presumptions made coming out of the information provided by individuals. In a situation where one refuses to answer questions posed by a jury or committee such silence is not seen as a constitutional right instead it is unconstitutional and attempting deliberately to block government from promoting peace and providing safety. Principals by their virtue of the doctrine of in – loco – parentis in Nigerian Secondary Schools should constantly help in school settings to discourage crimes and promote conducive learning atmosphere.

Discrimination

            Article 4 of the 1999 Nigerian constitution forbids an individual from being discriminated against so long as, one is either by birth or by naturalization, a citizen of Nigeria. This relates to the school system that anybody who is qualified, trained and certified in the teaching field with the basic Nigerian Certificate of Education can enable to move any where within the country not minding either the state of origin or ethnic background, that person can be employed. This provided that the person has met the states certification required; and that there is evidence of vacancy and need for personnel skill in the subject area required. Labour is mobile and fluid so principals who are marketable should not be restricted only to their state of origin. The implication of this is to be able to integrate and learn the different cultures and promote National consciousness in the school system. Among secondary school students in the country.

Contract

            A contract is usually a mutual agreement between two or more parties and in this case, the individual trained principals and the Teaching Service Board which is the employer. It is recognized that for a proper contract to be in existence, five possible basic elements prevail. These include;

            In terms of offer and acceptance, a value must be attached to them and both parties must be legally competent. A contract cannot be signed on a subject prohibited by law and lastly the contract must be agreed upon to the partners in the form as required by law (Reutter and Hamilton, 1976). The features normally prevail in an appointment made available to a teacher.

            A principal is normally made aware of the assigned duties as spelt in the civil handbook and through indicative on the job. Thereby in terms of law, the principal cannot be excused for inadequate performance based on ignorance of the rules and regulations. As spelt out in a Latin matein “Ignorantia Iuris Non Excusat” that is, legis est lata culpa, which means it is a gross neglect to be ignorant of the law is quite apt.

Confirmed Appointment

            The principal should have a confirmation of appointment after he has met the requirements within periods which may be one to two years. There is need for such principal to understand certain right accorded to him/her in the employment within local government in which the employee serves, except such a principal resigns, retires or dies. It could be noted that where the principal violates or commits a sensitive offence, such a teacher can be dismissed.

Principals’ Responsibilities In-Loco-Parentis

            The principal is responsible for the right to inflict corporal punishment on students. Any authorized teacher who contravenes this stipulation, certainly act outside his powers and in case any litigation arises from there, he might be found guilty of committing assault and battery.

Principals In-Loco-Parentis and Students’ Personnel

            One of the major responsibilities of the principal in-loco-parentis in the secondary school is that of students’ personnel services. Activities included within the operational area of student personnel, embrace those services to students’ that supplement regular classroom instructions. Except in schools with very small enrolment, the chief role of the principal in the student personnel area is one of integrating the personnel functions with instruction and of co-ordinating the various kinds of personnel services. The developments, such as special programs for the talented and the growth of external existing have placed even more emphasis on student personnel services. Some of the major tasks in student personnel are as follows:

a.      Students’ inventory and organization

b.      Students accounting

c.      Students personnel services and

d.      Control of students’ behaviour in schools

Students’ Inventory and Organization          

            In most of the secondary schools in Nigeria, principals determine how many pungsters there are of school age in the community. It does so by means of a school census, by keeping enrolment and attendance data of the children. It is usually necessary that the number of students be determined by grade level, which is an important responsibility of the principal in-loco-parentis.

            With this information in hand, the principal is in a position to determine to what  extent school rooms in the existing building will house the students of the community. If certain buildings appear to be overcrowded and others have capacity to spare, the principal may find that attendance boundaries need to be altered. In recent years, with charges of de facto segregation in many areas in the country, the establishment of attendance area has taken on new significance. The social and racial composition of the attendance area is important as the consideration of number of students to be enrolled in the schools.  

Students’ Accounting

            A school census system is established to help school students with this responsibility of in-loco-parentis. There is a compulsory education law in nearly every state in Nigeria, and a school census is a necessary step in the enforcement of such laws through principals. However, procedures may be followed in the accounting process.

            Another responsibility facing principals in-loco-parentis in every school system is the development and the operation of students’ accounting system. A plan for dealing with students’ absence and tidiness must be developed. If such a plan is to be followed by teachers and principals on the principal’s role as part of their regular duties, it needs to be relatively simple, if specialized attendance personnel are to be employee, the plan may be somewhat more ambitious. In any case, teachers should have some invoice in deciding upon the plan, and their own part in the operation will need to be clearly understood.

            It seems appropriate to say at this point that the “hook cop” approach to attendance leaves much to be desired. There is usually substantial cause back of non-attendance of school pupils. The school needs personnel who can both determine these basic causes and work toward their alleviation. Such cause often decide in the family, or the culture of which the family is a part and thus non-attendance may actually be a social symptom towards which school workers, social agencies, ad society itself ought to be directing their efforts.

            Another duty common in student accounting is the issue of work permits in most states, student may be excused at age fourteen or sixteen if they are needed to help support a family, or if they can benefit no further from school attendance. These are important decisions in the life of a child, and should be made only after facts are ascertained and appropriate counseling has been given to the student and the family. Small School Communities, Principals and Vice Principals ordinarily perform these functions in larger communities specialized personnel are usually employed. 

Students’ Personnel Services

            A very important aspect of the student personnel area of principals’ responsibilities in-loco-parentis in the Nigerian school system is the provision of appropriate student personnel services. Large school community may have services such as the followings:

1. Child study
2. Guidance and counseling advertisement
3. Testing
4. Visiting teachers and social workers
5. Speech and hearing therapy
6. Medical and nursing
7. Special education

Recently, another consideration has been injected into students’ personnel services like mounting concern about the kinds of data appearing in students’ record, such as test results and teachers’ judgments on students’ behaviours. If pupil personnel services are to supplement regular classroom instruction, it seems quite clear that some specialized personnel would be necessary.

Control of Students’ Behaviour in Schools

            Schools attempt to determine the cause of misbehaviour of students through the efforts of principals, and they also treat the cause and not the symptom of such actions. However, there are times when students must be corrected or disciplined. Policies governing these matters are clear. For instance, the responsibilities of teachers and other staff members in this area are understood. Principals exercise appropriate controls over their students. Actually, and contrary to the views of some beginning principals, students prefer those principals who are seen as fair, helpful, setting high standards and allowing no ‘monkey business’.

            Even with the best of principals in Nigerian schools, however, there are times when the principal, guidance counselor, or some other non teaching staff member is placed in the role of disciplinarian. Many contend that guidance counselors and other student personnel workers should have no disciplinary function. The logic behind such an argument is that the guidance counselor should be individual and not group oriented or, perhaps better-stated, student centered in place of school centered.

            In general, this position is accepted but when carried to its extreme, it would mean that both guidance counselors and principals would become less effective than they should be. When it is necessary for a principal to take part in a discipline problem, he should ascertain, if possible, the circumstance surrounding the misbehaviour prior to arrive at a plan of action. Some of this information he may get from the students, some from those workers who have specialized knowledge and the competence to place such knowledge in its appropriate context. The best diagnosis possible is needed if the principal is to be effective in helping youngsters towards the ultimate goal of self – discipline through the doctrine of in-loco-parentis.

Conclusion

            Principals in-loco-parentis are bound by law, rules and regulations in the process of carrying out school operations. In order to avoid unnecessary litigations, enlightenment of teachers, educators, principals, student parents and the society in general become very necessary, since the totality of the system must work together. It is not unusual to say that such principals who cannot meet up the required standards should be allowed to seek for more knowledge from other professionals, in order to improve the image of the teaching profession.

REFERENCES

Akiri, A. A. (1990)”Nigerian Primary and Secondary Schools Institutional Perception of the Sensitive Areas of Examination and Law” In: Journal of Educational Leadership, Vol. 5 No. 1, Lagos: Lagos State University.

Alexander, K. (1980) School Law, St. Paul Min. West Publishing Co.

Bendel State of Nigeria, Gazette, Edict No. 4 (1988) Bendel State, Post Primary Education Edict, Benin City: Government Printer.

Bendel State Education Law (1980) and Unified Teaching Service Staff Regulations, 1973.

Eribi vs. Tunbo Boyes and Celestine Ajalia (1984), Nigerian Constitutional Law Reports 5, NCLR.

Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999), The Handbook on the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Lagos: Federal Ministry of Information.

Kemerer, R. (1986), The Educators’ Guide to Texas School Law Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press.

Major, W.T. (1978) The Law of contract 5th ed. Estover, Plymouth; Macdonald and Evans Ltd.

Nakpodia, ED (2007), Education Law, Warri: Jonakase Nig. Co.

Nwagwu, N.A. (1987) “Education and the Law in Nigeria”, The Rights of Teachers and Students, Owerri: Kay Beecee Publications Ltd.

Nwankwo vs. Ajaegbu, Lagos: The Law Reports of Nigeria, 2LRN.

Reutter, E.E. (Jr) and R.R. Hamilton (1976), The Law of Public Education, 2nd ed. Mineola, New York: The Foundation Press, Inc.

The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999), Lagos: NERDC Press.

The United Nations Charter, 1948

Olu-Aderounmu, W.O. and R. A. Adeboyeje (2005), The Law of Public Education in Nigeria, Ado Ekiti: Sof – Way Publishers.

Peretomode, V.F. (1992), Education Law–Principles, Cases and Materials on Schools, Owerri: International Universities Press Ltd.

About the Author

Dr. E.D. Nakpodia is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Educational Administration and Policy Studies, Delta State University Abraka Nigeria. He has his Ph.D. degree in Educational Administration.

USA Reality - Legal Discrimination

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Online Accredited College Degree Program: for the New Student Committed to Success

An online accredited college degree program allows you to take individual online college courses and to get an impressive college degree, without having to attend on-campus classes.


These programs are ideal for non-traditional adult students, who can study at their convenience, while meeting their work and family responsibilities. They get a second chance to complete their college education and to acquire a degree that will add to their career portfolio.


You can join an online accredited college degree program and get a Bachelor's degree, Master's degree or Doctorate in a subject of your choice. Some of the popular subjects are business, information technology, computer science, education, psychology, social work, counseling and journalism.


Many students prefer to join professional certificate programs in subjects like stress management, security management, law enforcement and public health nursing, that will help them in their careers.


What you need to consider before you sign up


Before you join an online accredited college degree program you need to be sure about your personal goals and how an online college degree will help you to reach them. If there is a clearly defined benefit that an online college degree can provide, like a pay raise, promotion or a better job, you must go ahead and join the course.


A college degree doesn't come cheap and you need to carefully weigh the costs and benefits of joining an online accredited college degree program. Find out if your employer offers some type of tuition assistance as an employee benefit.


You need the support of your family and employer and be prepared to find time to work on the online degree program, in spite of having a packed schedule. You must be fully committed, have a positive attitude and believe that you can succeed through your own efforts.


Two-year schools offer associate degrees and certificate programs, while four-year schools and universities provide bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. Two-year schools are suitable for students who are very concerned about the cost and are not sure of their long-term goals or academic capabilities.


Four-year schools are suitable for students who are clear about their goals and are confident about their academic capabilities. Certificate courses are suitable for people who want to update their work skills, while degree courses are suitable for people who require an advanced degree and want to enter a professional field.


Institutions offering accredited online college degree programs


The University of Maryland University College (UMUC) offers several online bachelor's degrees and undergraduate certificates. It is accredited by the Commission on Higher Education, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, Philadelphia.


The University of Phoenix Online is the nation's largest, accredited private university. It is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.


Before you sign up for an online accredited college degree program, you must be clear about your career goals. Look for a school and a program that will help you to achieve what you want and be fully committed to success.

About the Author

Jim Zorn is web master of the Guide to Distance Learning. Visit us to learn more about online colleges and universities, distance learning degrees, majors and courses offered.
http://www.guide-to-distance-learning.com

Business & Office Management and Technology Program at Bevill State Community College

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National Chief Phil Fontaine - Make Poverty History

does anyone know about employment law and employees rights? need advise asap?

i have had my shifts altered after nine years of doing same shifts and i chose this because of my family life, my employer has told me if i dont change i have sacked myself is this right !!!!!!!!! need help!

You need to check your contract of employment. Check for a flexibility clause, a variation term or a mobility clause. Without these your employer cannot vary your conditions. If the firm has recently changed hands different legislation may apply. You should write a letter to your employer and make it clear that you do not accept the changes. Sign and date the letter. Do this as soon as possible because if you start to work the new shifts you will have deemed to have accepted the changes. Your employer does not need it in writing to say you have accepted. After you have given your employer the letter and if you have to work the new shifts make it clear that you are doing this under protest. You cannot do this indefinitely, you have to then take further action. Unfortunately this would be to resign and take them to an employment tribunal for breach of contract. Under recent employment law changes, employers must be more family friendly and take family circumstances into account. This depends on the size of the company. Unfortunately although you have these rights if you really can't work the new hours and your employer insists you must, then an employment tribunal would seem the most likely outcome. There is a strict process to follow, which is time limited and really you need help. Try ACAS and also look up your CAB. We have a great employment advisor in our area, it is free, they compose the letters and they do representation work at the tribunals. Good luck. DO NOT DO ANYTHING WITHOUT SPEAKING TO AN EMPLOYMENT SPECIALIST. Solicitors are often a waste of time in this field unless they are specialists in employment.

Trevor Phillips on the need to actively seek equality

Scott Parks’ Wish List for Dallas Schools

Scott Parks is the education columnist for the Dallas Daily News. He had some interesting items on his January 2007 wish list for the Dallas schools. Some are poignant and in dire need. Some are possibilities during this new year. Others are down right wishful thinking without much chance of succeeding, regardless of the need. Here are only a few items from his wish list for 2007:

• Bilingual Education Programs. Parks would like Governor Rick Perry and the Texas legislature to standardize the teaching of bilingual and “English as a second language” students. Currently, the bilingual education programs are different from district to district. All students should learn English as soon and as quickly as possible. Otherwise, the bilingual students are held back from succeeding only because of the language barrier.

• Dallas Schools Leadership. Parks cited several wishes from the Dallas schools leadership:

o Board of Trustees & Superintendent Hinojosa. Though the Dallas schools’ board of trustees is stronger now than in the past, Parks believes that Superintendent Michael Hinojosa is the district’s best hope for getting the Dallas schools back on track. Hinojosa also has the support of business leaders and the public. Parks was encouraged that trustees Edwin Flores, Jack Lowe and their board colleagues now are focused on education, rather than politics, as in the past.

o Texas Association of School Boards. The board of trustees should reject the TASB’s recommendations. Instead, board members regularly should visit individual Dallas schools, themselves, speaking with both teachers and staff. Then, they will know firsthand what is truly happening within the Dallas schools. Parks makes an accurate point that the Dallas schools’ superintendent and Dallas schools’ board are not a team. The Dallas schools’ board is the boss, and the superintendent is “a valued employee” — and the TASB is not part of the Dallas schools district.

o Special Education Students. Parents of these children have enough to do above and beyond the typical parent. Dallas schools’ administrators need to team with these parents to help them understand what the law requires the Dallas schools to do for their special needs children. The current attitude that parents of special needs children are the enemy, who may potentially bring lawsuits against the Dallas schools district, is only hurting the children and their education. As Parks noted, “It’s the right thing to do.”

o College Preparation. Somewhere along the line, someone decided that if a child did not attend college, he/she would not succeed in life. Not all children are meant to go to college. Some do very well in careers that began in high school vocational education programs. Neither my daughter nor my son graduated from college — their choice, even though we discussed at length the benefits of a college degree. They each earn more than $60,000 a year — one is self-employed and the other works for a computer-related company that nearly rivals Microsoft®. My children proved me wrong and proved Parks correct — not all children are meant to go to college in order to succeed. So, stop focusing only on college preparation and refocus some of the energy and resources to provide solid vocational education programs.

o Textbooks. The law requires that every student receive a textbook for the course they take. Some secondary Dallas schools fear too many children will lose or damage the books, costing them some of the precious funding they receive each year for their meager budgets. Children learn better, when they can take textbooks home to study — give them out.

Additionally, lawmakers continually advocate the replacement of textbooks with laptops. Stop it! I fully agree with Parks’ assessment of the situation. He believes a course in media literacy should be required for all high school students within the Dallas schools. They need to be able to analyze the barrage of advertising aimed at them now and in the future, as well as to understand current events and the unobjective biases built into the reporting of the news by the owners of the media.

o Freebies to School Leadership. Nothing should be taken from companies wishing to sell products or services to schools, even a free lunch. This should apply to administrators, superintendent and board members. As Parks cited, “It looks bad”.

• Teachers. It is understandable that teachers are under a lot of pressure to meet prescribed standards set by federal, state and Dallas schools’ officials, not just to meet funding requirements but also performance goals to keep schools open. Because of this, the Dallas schools are losing many excellent teachers to the business world, where they are amply compensated for the headaches. Parks wish is for these great teachers to focus on the challenges and rewards that first got them interested in teaching, continue teaching because so many children need them, and stop obsessing about those things that have little to do with the reason they became teachers in the first place.

• Parents. Too many times when a child gets into trouble at school or receives an undesirable grade, some parents conclude that the teacher is at fault or picking on their child. Like you, parents, the teachers have a hard job to do in seeing that your children obtain a valuable education. It is time for parents to team with the teachers to ensure each child works hard and receives an education that will take them far in life. I remember my son always complaining that a particular teacher was picking on him. When his report card arrived, he was failing English and reminded me that the teacher did not like him. Unfortunately for my son, I had this same teacher in seventh grade English and knew the integrity of the man. His next report card had a much better grade on it. So, parents, first assume the teacher is right and then discuss with them and your child how to resolve any problems with grades or discipline.

One of Parks’ best points concerns private sector companies and volunteers. Dallas schools’ students need as much encouragement to succeed as can possibly be given them. Presentations and mentoring by these private sector volunteers will give our Dallas schools students not only encouragement but ideas for opportunities that come from those who are there.

About the Author

Patricia Hawke is a staff writer for Schools K-12, providing free, in-depth reports on all U.S. public and private K-12 schools. Patricia has a nose for research and writes stimulating news and views on school issues. For more information on dallas schools visit www.schoolsk-12.com/texas/dallas/index.html

Holiday sales plummet for Blind Recording Artists: Access for Blind Net Surfers Blocked by CDBaby

When Mary Sten-Clanton (Dorchester, Mass.) went online in September, she planned to visit CDBaby and purchase "Unconditional" by Lisa Ostrow. Mary had often used the site to sample and buy new releases from the indie recording artists who pay CDBaby to sell their music. This time, she could no longer listen to samples of the songs. Mary, who is blind, uses a "screen reader." CDBaby was always accessible before. She decided to buy the CD anyway, but she couldn't.

Mary's e-mail to CDBaby went unanswered. She recently returned to the site, but the problems had not been fixed.

"I always find it particularly frustrating, and even hurtful," Mary says, "when a company whose Web site has always been perfectly accessible suddenly takes that access away."

CDBaby is the oldest and largest online outlet for indie recording artists. When musician Derek Sivers started the company in 1998, accessibility was part of his level-the-playing-field philosophy. He sold CDBaby, however, and the new owners redesigned the site in July without regard for blind customers and musicians.

Lisa Ostrow, a blind Harvard grad, is concerned about her blind fans as well as other blind CDBaby artists. She worries that this issue will cause blind fans to go elsewhere such as Amazon or CDUniverse.  She believes that blind artists, now unable to easily update their CDBaby pages, will also lose valuable revenue because they won't be able to directly impact their own sales presence.

" It's not only the importance of our blind fans that should cause CDBaby to sit up and take notice," says Lisa, " the blind artists  are also affected. It is the inaccessibility of sites like CDBaby that tie our hands and make it more difficult for us to get our jobs done.  As for our blind fans, of which there are many, the level of frustration that they encounter when visiting inaccessible sites, is a guarantee that they won't be back."

Other blind customers have contacted CDBaby. A country and folk music fan from Buffalo, New York, who prefers to be known only as Cay, wrote to them in July.

"I first got a response that they had lost all their email and to re-submit," she says, "So I wrote again. They didn't respond to me. I really enjoyed the site. Many years back I recall there was a problem on the site where I couldn't access it and they were caring.  Now they don't care about blind customers."

Music critic Ken Lawrence (New Jersey) recently received an e-mail from Girls on Film, an electronic/dance group, about their new release on CDBaby. Unable to preview the music, Lawrence, who is blind, wrote to the company.

CDBaby's response states, "I'm sorry our update removed the functional use for our blind customers.  Our programmers are all in house and are looking forward to making it more friendly to the blind. Unfortunately, there are a few other programming issues they need to finish first."

A few other programming issues? When Sten-Clanton phoned the company in October, she learned that even sighted customers were affected.

"Apparently, people are trying to pay for their CDs and getting thrown back to a previous page," she says. 

Mary wonders what "improvements" they were trying to make. Others like Ken are baffled that CDBaby's "in house" programmers haven't fixed this yet.

Lawrence is a member of the National Federation of the blind (NFB). NFB provides advocacy, rehabilitation services and conducts research through its Jernigan Institute in Baltimore. Ken, who hopes to go into radio one day, fosters friendships between sighted indie recording artists and the blind. His friend, a sighted CD Baby artist, singer-songwriter Jenifer Jackson, wrote on his behalf.

CDBaby's response raises more questions than it answers.

"We are aware that our website upgrade was actually a huge downgrade for the blind," the letter says, "Our site used to be VERY user friendly, and I think that it was overlooked by our programmers. It IS a priority though, and we are working on making a dial up site that will be readable. This isn't going to happen anytime in the next 2-3 months, … We were really proud of how accessible our site was before …"

One wonders how "really proud" they could have been. Apparently, not proud enough to remember it when their in-house programmers redesigned the site. Furthermore, a "dial-up site?" According to Sten-Clanton, whose husband is a computer programmer, it will likely be a separate text only site, accessible for mobile phones and screen readers. This concerns Mary. She once tried Amazon's text only site and found that many of the features were missing.

"In that case, I just went back to the regular Amazon," says Mary, "Since Amazon is accessible to begin with."

And, they've committed themselves to not fixing the problem for at least two or three months? Over six months from the new launch? This lag means no holiday purchases by blind consumers and no holiday revenue from those sales for struggling blind musicians.

Hit hard are artists with Christmas albums with an appeal to blind fans. Veronica Elsea of Laurel Creek Music Designs (Santa Cruz, Ca.) has her Christmas CD, "We Woof You a Merry Christmas," by The Guide Dog Glee Club, on CDBaby.

"I just can't understand," says Veronica, "what they think the actual gain is. I can't understand why having a mouse hover over something is an improvement over a standard link. My sighted friends don't get it either. Thank goodness I can at least tell blind customers to come to my web site to buy CDs, but I was really counting on CD Baby as the most accessible place to purchase the mp3 download version."

The holiday pinch also affects the NFB's Performing Arts Division (PAD), a volunteer-run non-profit. Revenue from "Sound in Sight," a multi-genre compilation of eighteen original tracks and covers donated by blind recording artists, helps fund PAD's projects. PAD's President, Dennis Holston, a blind Manhattan-based talent recruiter, wrote to CDBaby expressing his concern and offering to help them restore the accessibility which blind fans and recording artists have long enjoyed.

In their response, CD Baby ignored Holston's offer of help and encouraged him to have people use the company's toll-free number: 1 800 BUY-MY-CD. This only helps if the customer knows what they want, however.

CDBaby's response to Holston attributes the problem to flash technology," but they seem unaware of some important facts.

"Flash is a product of Adobe," says Wes Majerus, an access technology specialist with the NFB's Jernigan Institute, "It can be made accessible, if Adobe's accessibility guidelines are followed."

The Accessibility Issue in Context

Many blind people feel that CDBaby is treating them "like second-class citizens." To understand why this is such a big deal to blind consumers, we need to look at how the internet is used in modern society, internet access and the realities facing blind Americans.

People rely on the internet for everything from shopping and social networking to research and career advancement. According to Majerus, there are laws mandating that government web sites be accessible, but most sites are not under such obligations. Internet access is a major issue for blind computer users, because it places unfair and unnecessary limits on their ability to lead full, productive and independent lives.

The NFB's Access Technology Center has resources for sites trying to become accessible. Their Accessibility Web Certification program acknowledges sites which have made significant improvements. There is also a form to report inaccessible sites. Visit:
http://www.nfb.org/nfb/Technology_Center.asp?SnID=326767672

According to Majerus, the majority of problems encountered by blind net surfers involve improperly labeled forms and images which don't have associated "alternate attributes" tags, which enable text-to-speech software to recognize them.

The CDBaby problem comes during a year in which blind people have lost many services and programs. Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic closed seven studios which produced student textbooks, and the American Foundation for the Blind closed the New York Talking Book Studios, the nation's oldest producer of recorded books for the Talking Book program of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS),.  Also, the 100-year-old Matilda Ziegler Magazine for the Blind, which produced Braille and recorded compilations of selections from current periodicals, has been downsized into a social network for blind people with links to articles about blindness. To the horror of many, this measure was taken by the Ziegler's board in order to funnel large sums into vision research. NFB President Dr. Marc Maurer estimates that only 5% of all reading materials are available in formats which blind and low vision citizens can access.

In addition, the year began with the publication of a disturbing report about illiteracy among America's blind citizens and the devastating effect it is having on employment and income. Efforts to engage the public on the issue have had limited success.

On March 26, 2009, the NFB published "The Braille Literacy Crisis in America: Facing the Truth, Reversing the Trend, Empowering the Blind:"
http://www.nfb.org/images/nfb/documents/word/The_Braille_Literacy_Crisis_In_America.doc" 

The research finds a statistically significant link between Braille literacy and a blind person's likelihood of finding employment, obtaining post graduate degrees and earning over $50,000 a year. Even though blind people are successfully employed as lawyers, engineers, mechanics, chemists and in many other fields, the unemployment rate for blind Americans of working age is over seventy percent. Of those who work, however, over eighty percent read Braille. Nonetheless, Braille literacy is being neglected in the nation's schools.

Congress acknowledged the severity of the crisis by authorizing the Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar as part of its commemorative coin program which supports two non-profits each year. Proceeds from the sale of the Braille coins go to the Braille Readers are Leaders campaign:
http://www.braille.org
 
Despite a PR campaign which included NASA launching the coin into space onboard the Atlantis, the Braille coins, unlike other commemoratives, have not sold out. Time is short. The coin is only available through the end of 2009. Currently, the program stands to receive far less than the $4 million maximum set by Congress.

Update from CDBaby

In a mid November phone interview, CDBaby representative Joel Andrew calls the accessibility issues a "total oversight" by the company. He explained that the new launch has had many problems not the least of which was that major glitches caused CDBaby to be in violation of its contract with its artists.

"For a while," he says, "They couldn't even tell if we owed them money."

Addressing these issues has been the company's main priority. According to Andrew, fixing the site has been like "trying to move a whale."

Mr. Andrew confirmed that the company is, indeed, considering a text-only site. He was not aware of the concerns blind customers like Sten-Clanton have about that. He also had no idea that there was a way to make flash accessible. He said that he would pass on the information, adding that he and the other people at CD Baby are activists.

"CDBaby has always been and continues to be a strong advocate for independent musicians. We are totally in support of the activism that is going on with regard to accessibility," he said, "the way people are organizing to bring their concerns to the forefront."

Some changes impacting sighted customers and artist have been addressed. Nonetheless, blind people cannot expect that their issues will be resolved soon and certainly not in time for the holidays.

Other blind CDBaby recording artists include Neal Ewers, Kevin Reeves, Sarah Alawami and the author of this article.

About the Author

Donna W. Hill is an author, singer/songwriter, speaker and avid knitter. A volunteer publicist for the Performing Arts Division, National Federation of the Blind, she works for improved opportunities for blind Americans.
http://www.padnfb.org
A breast cancer survivor, she promotes self-exam. Hear clips from The Last Straw at:
http://cdbaby.com/cd/donnahill

Pratighaat (1987)The year Hamas and Mental Health Act were Founded In India

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Free Economical Zone Transformation in Georgia

There are a lot of free economical zones in the world. What priorities will it have to form free industrial zone in Georgia, and what will make it successive?

We may consider geographical location of the country, also closeness with Azerbaijan, Armenia, Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, and markets of Middle Asia to be prior for forming free industrial zone. It must also be foreseen, that direct neighbor of Georgia on the Black Sea is Euro Union.

It must be mentioned, that Sea port of Poti is the larges in the Black Sea. It is the largest port servicing dry Caucasian cargo, it is situated on the TRASECA corridor and it the most important part of Caucasian transit transporting web. The port is connected by direct sea directions with Europe and Asian largest ports, has direct ferry connection with Ukraine, Russia, Bulgaria. The port is connected with the railway web of the country, it is connected with every Georgian city with the automobile road, has relations with Poti airport and international airport of Batumi. The seaport serves all kinds of cargo. It has received ISO-9001-2000.

Poti port can widen conductivity and serving more then 25 million tones of cargo annually.Together with geographical location, closeness with international transit arteries and cheap working force also are considered to be prior.

They are going to open free industrial zone on 400 hectares, it borders to the seaport from the north and followed the sea beach line.

Exactly advantage location of free economical zone and extremely liberal legislation system must provoke attracting foreign investments, as investment environment in Georgia is not very attractive from the various points of view. First defining factor of the investment environment is the size of a market. Larger is the market size, the more attractive it is. Georgian market doesn't differ with large scales.

Second factor is legislation. Georgian legislation is liberal. Heritage Foundation considers us to be attractive country in this direction. According to the index of economical independence, Georgia occupies 32nd place. This means, that there are quite liberal barrier for displaying providing business and industrial initiatives in Georgia.

An interrupting factor is political instability. It is known, that inventors pay large attention to the political stability and investment guarantees. A problem of territorial integrity of our country, what puts Georgia under the permanent danger of war is also added to all, mentioned above.

There are some problems from the point of executing law. Fixed facts suppressing private property influenced negatively upon investment surrounding. It is important to provide profitable activities and creation of the mechanisms of legislative protection.

Qualification of working forces is also a serious problem. it is very low in Georgia. Intellectual resource is also reduced.

Main reason of creating free industrial zone is attracting investments, growth of business activity in the region and achieving employment. For this the country must form advantage financial conditions to the investors, for making their choice for the benefit of Georgia among many others. We'll see in the future how much successful the functioning of free industrial zone is, and if inflow of investments take place.

They call free industrial zones off-shore ones. These are the territories, which are under the doubtful sight of everyone, because of being uncontrolled. Its creation in Georgia has been followed by opposition and critical dependence. Most of Georgian experts have negative dependence upon free industrial zones, because it is considered to be the sphere of unreduced actions of private interests of definite persons, for whitening "black money", selling capital in the way of avoiding rules and taxation, perspective of which in Georgia is very doubtful. To their mind, it is incomprehensible, why is there any need of founding free economical zone in such country in which there have been made important steps towards liberalization of economical and industrial surrounding. Complete liberalization of foreign trade took place in the 90s. This meant that export was released from taxation. Tariff-free reductions, as quoting and licensing were abolished. Since 1998, currency operations have complete independence. In 2006 they reduced high custom tariffs. Today custom tariff on agricultural production is 12%, on building materials - 5%, others are zeroed. They simplified licensing and rights on beginning industrial activities and their realization. A professor, economical expert Vladimir Papava exclaims: "creating free economical zone under the conditions of free economy is the most ineffective step. Exactly for this I consider creation of free economical zone in Georgia to be nonsense".

He finds following explanation to his point of view. There are countries of two kinds in the worlds - those, which have surplus investments and which suffer lack of them. Countries having surplus investments strengthen inner investor in its free economical zone. I.e. the country forms such conditions, that the investor invests money in the free zone at the territory of his/her country and doesn't take it out of it. Creation of free economical zones in the country being in hunger of investments hardens the situation, as the investor doesn't come in the country itself, but in the zone. Local investor will try to do same. Georgian economy is not firm and creation of free economical zone will ruin economy of whole country.

The expert Temur Giorkhelidze writes: "the fact, that something will be done in one town and whole country will be raised is illusion. One zone will not stand international capacity. Development of insufficient industrial surrounding at whole territory of the country will cause chaos in this zone!"

Authors of the project and supporters of founding of FIZ estimate its foundation to be positive and consider that Georgia will be better developed and will overcome poverty easier if the economy is more open and liberal.

The author of the bill Kakha Benduqidze considers such zone to be necessary for increasing business-activity in Georgian regions. This will be industrial zone with high technologies and processing industry, in which industrial persons will work in the zeroed regime, which will make additional stimuli for providing their business.

Deputy Minister of economics Vakhtang Lezhava writes: "there is quite liberal regime of business regulation in Georgia. Main goal of making free industrial zone is to create more liberal industrial surrounding in the definite territory of the country to be oriented towards real employment". Lezhava exclaims, that "Georgia will not turn into the off-shore zone, there is no preconditions for this". According to the governmental statement, free economical zone will bring economical raise to the country.

Thus, creation of free industrial zone has been followed by various points of view. There is a permanent question - "What will foundations of free industrial zone bring to Georgia?" in such situation they often say, that "a stick has two ends" or there are as positive, so negative sided of it. They must provide analyzing, which side surpluses another and make advantage decision, is it positive or not to found FIZ in Georgia.

Let's discuss expected dangers and problems of founding free economical zone:

• foundation of FIZ is followed by expenses, at the first stage because of tax payments, and this reduces budgetary incomes.
• Attractive legislative regime of free industrial zone will give rise to the inflecting investments to one concrete region of the country at the expense of other ones. This will ruin less interesting regions from the point pf investments. This may give rise to the opposition among various regions, as people living in this or that region may say that they are oppressed and have no opportunity for being developed.

It is defined by the law, that free economical zone may be founded at any territory of the country, i.e. it is possible to open it in every region. This is exactly where the experts see the danger, as foundation of FIZ is possible on those border territories, in which there is ethnical variety, as free industrial zone comes out of economical domain of our country and it becomes possible to be completely integrated for the territories of neighbor country from the economical point of view.

• it is negative as there will be another uncontrolled territory in the country, in which trade may also not be controlled, as on the sections of Roki - Down Zaramaga and Adler -  Gantiadi. It will be very difficult to realize custom control
• it is necessary to foresee special measures of security, for not letting production provided on the territory of the zone to get to the inner market by the illegal ways. They must reduce entering and outgoing ways maximally and their strict controlling. There is a danger of contraband in the free economical zone. They see danger in the existence of fictive firms, which will pull amounts. Though the authors of the project exclaim that there are levers in the law for avoiding this danger.
• Free industrial zone will give rise to the danger of "whitening" money. There are a lot of methods of "whitening" money. Operations related with cash money, illegal usage of banking and other financial institutions, operations related with expensive movable and unmovable property, gambling games are considered to be classical mechanisms. The simplest way of "whitening" money is in the process of privatization and in the free zones. A free zone is the best way for entering commodity in the contraband way.
• It's well-known axiom, that, in those countries, in which liberalization of economy, opening borders, transit development, entering foreign investments, increasing movement of physical persons are in progress, in the countries, where quite large part of the population is abroad and which is surrounded by ill-disposed countries, possibility of "whitening" "black" money is very high.

Georgia "satisfies" almost every condition named above and it may be considered one of the zones for "whitening" money. The fact that so-called off-shore companies, which represent symbols of "whitening" money provide activities in Georgia, strengthens this danger.

To my mind, danger of "whitening" money is higher in FIZ, than at whole territory of Georgia, foreseeing the fact, that registration of such enterprises, as banks is prohibited in FIZ. To my mind, this process is in progress in Georgia today anyway, because foreign investors, placing their sources in Georgia do not belong to the number of transparent capital owners. In fact, there is no civilized capital flowing in Georgia. Invested capital is entered by the firms registered in off-shore zones (for example, from Marshal and Virginia isles), and this, of course, means, that they are doubtful.

• Free industrial zone, to my mind, will support growth of inflation. Foreign investments will enter FIZ. This will give rise to the growth of masses of foreign currency in the country, which devaluates it in relation with Lari, and this is bad for export.
• There is no political stability in Georgia, rights of the owners are abolished, and working force is not qualified. Permanent changing of legislative system is still continuing. According to this, there is a danger, that foreseeing disadvantage business environment, short termed foreign capital of doubtful appear will enter FIZ, which will run out of the country as soon as the conjuncture worsens a little and thus provoke finance-economical destabilization.

There is danger in selecting an operator. FIZ wouldn't b successive, if it operator were not recognized worldwide and a successful investor in this business. For being successive, it is also necessary to make Georgian FIZ a part of industrial infrastructure of the world and integrated chain.

Creation of free industrial zone has its positive sides. There are large possibilities for business development and growing business activity. It is possible to develop backward region, and zeroed taxation regime will be additional stimuli for providing business.

A positive side of free industrial zone also is the fact, that leading technologies and Know-How will enter the country.

It will increase inflow of foreign currency, because, the capital is objective in its nature it moves towards the place, where there is low payment. Inflow of investments gives the possibilities for economical and social development. Investments will give rise to the creation of working places, relatively - employment.

Creation of free industrial zone in Georgia, as a they say, is not calculated for fiscal effect, it is necessary to provide investments and create attractive surrounding for new business and new working places.

With free industrial zone export potential may be increases. The largest part of manufactured production will be for export that will definitely be successive for Georgia, as firming Lari in the country gave rise to the rise the price of export and worsening taxation balance. For example, data of covering import with export was 32% in 1995; in 2000 it grew up to 46%, for today it is reduced till 23%. From 1995, till 2007 the volume of export has been increased 8 times, and 11 times - of import. Nominal WIP at the same period has been increased from 3.9 Billion Laris to 17 billions i.e. 4.36 times, while real WIP has been increased only per 2.1. Exchange rate of the currency gave rise to the worsening of taxation balance. Only 10% of the production manufactured in FIZ will be permitted in Georgia, others will be exported to other countries. This will provoke improvement of taxation balance.

Free industrial zone - from the point of territorial integrity. FIZ is directed towards territorial expansion. Its territory duels in 5-10 years. if FIZ of Guria-Samegrelo works successfully, Guria-Sukhumi-Ochamchire will join it. Separatists will not be able to block all good of FIZ. For example, Turkish separatists of North Cyprus requested themselves to join economically successful Cyprus.

To the experts' mind, economical integration is necessary. They must make joint investment projects with Abkhazians and Alanians. Founding such zones will give rise to the centralized lob in the conflict regions, which will play positive role in the affair of regulating conflicts. Though, this is only a dream today, as it is known, that they need very good control and stability. If realization of good administration is possible in the conflict regions and the investors have feeling of stability, it will be really possible to create FIZ there. In the modern reality it is utopia, though we can not exclude anything in the future.

Creation of free industrial zone is already decided and it will be activated very soon. FIZ is expected to be an impulse for economical development of Georgia, though opening of free industrial zone is not a miracle, there mustn't be surplus expectation, it is a permanent process, which will bring first results in 5-10 years.

Modern century is of globalization. A process of economical globalization in the world will not be avoided by Georgia and it will be progressively integrated into the world economical system. The process, to our mind, has already begun. Foundation of free industrial zone speaks for this.

Georgian government passed the law "about global competition abilities of financial sector", which foresees foundation of financial center. Main goal of the law is integration of Georgia to the world financial system. Articles involved in the processed "revolution legislative" package touches upon founding off-shore zone in Georgia. We mean foreign banks and assets per ten million dollars.  According to the articles put in the law, the banks' profit up to 100 million dollars will not be taxed. They also touch upon providing the rule of taxing banking-financial operations, capital movement and so on.

How much does it matter to found financial center in Georgia on the background, when financial centers of London, Milan and Hong-Kong are on the highest level of development and need no representatives in Poti. In case, if we offer them taxation oasis and really advantage conditions, they may stop their choice on Georgia. Though it will not be enough, as foreign investors pay large attention to the countries distinguished with economical-political stability, to the category of which Georgia doesn't belong. There is no institutional, technical-economical infrastructure and a mechanism of protecting property is very weak in Georgia.

Notwithstanding everything, integration of Georgia in the world economical domain is inevitable and this is only matter of time, because under the conditions of total globalization no national state may exist without total financial economical space.

About the Author

Lamara Qoqiauri

Date and place of birth: October 6, 1948

Working place: Tbilisi Iv. Javakhishvili State University

Tel.: (+99532) 79-07-10; (+99532) 760595

Web-site: www.nino.skola.dlf.ge

e-mail: qoqiauri@yahoo.com

Address: Tbilisi, Varketili, 159, Gakhokidze St.

Working experience

A republican department of Georgian State Bank (National Bank) ---------from 1970 1976

Tbilisi, 3/5, Kirov (now Leonize) St. - Accountant economist, An inspector of providing accountant-loan operations, cash fulfillment of budget.

A republican department of "MshenBank --------------------------------------- from 1976 - 1977

As a Chief economist

Tbilisi Iv. Javakhishvili State university ------------------------------------------ from 1977 - till now

As a Laboratory assistant of a cathedra, Research worker, Associate professor, Professor.

Gori Economical Institute (now State university)

English private school-college "Nino"- Owner

Education/training

Tbilisi, Komarov high school of physics and mathematics

Tbilisi, technical school-college of finances and economy

Tbilisi, Iv. Javakhishvili State University, Faculty of economy (evening department)

Post-graduate course of Georgian scientific academy of economy and logistics

Tbilisi State University, Economical faculty

Nongovernmental association of private schools

Qualification

Scientific status - Professor

Doctor of economical science

Doctor of economical science, professor.

Accountant-economist of Bank

Candidate of economical sciences, associate professor

Published works

Quantity of works -108

Monographs between them – 14

Manuals between them -5

Quantity of works during last 10 years – 84

Quantity of works in the referred magazines- 43

Courts on relatively new ground with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders
CHICAGO — As long as his mom could remember, Matthew Link was impulsive, making bad choices and not understanding right from wrong. He required constant supervision and would tell "off-the-wall" stories that made him look tough and powerful.
SCOPE: "Together Our Voice Can Change The World"

Order No. 71146970 Discrimination Based On Age And Disability In Employment

Introduction

To be discriminated has there notion that one is not given the rights that will enable him or her offer the required productivity this is in terms of providing an hostile environment that will lead to the employee have no hope for work because it is not possible to work. This is because if a person is set in an environment such as for example been told to work in a company where by the air pollution is very high and not given the protective devices, this will mean that such person will be in an exposure that will lead to many dangerous disease that are related to smoke and therefore that person's health will be at risk all the time this means that it will not be possible for one to work in an hostile environment that does not favor his or her health and therefore such a person will feel discriminated due to this condition that is exposed on him or her.( Jose,1997)

Employment discrimination that is mainly based on age and disability has been wide spread in most of the countries this is because these people are seen to be of less importance and not able to offer the required productivity therefore the people are discriminated in terms of hiring, one can be fired any time even without a cause, the people who are discriminated are not even given high ranks even after they have provided their services to the organization and these people are accursed of misbehave and therefore they enter into different punishments .there are different types of discrimination in the employment like the age discrimination which is the state where by the older people are mainly mistreated this is because they are seen to have low productivity and therefore they prefer to employ the young people who are healthy and can work for many hours therefore it is  always a bother and time of distress to the people who have experienced and been in older ages. In the case of the disability discrimination this is a case where by the people with abnormalities such as the blind, deaf and dumb and other types of disabilities are not given opportunities to work just like the other normal people this means that such people even if they have experiences are not given chance in the work places to do there work as they are seen to offer little to the organization. There is the race discrimination which is related to the notion whether one is a black or a white and therefore depending on ones race then the employment for example the work for the whites will be very different for the African Americans the reason is that these blacks in US are seen to offer poor quality products even with training and therefore it becomes very hard for them to get good posts in the country. The race discrimination has a high impact mainly to the blacks who educated this is because they are not given chance and the freedom to work like the other citizens. (Jerry, 2001)

The sex discrimination where by the females are treated differently from the males and therefore it means that most of the favorite jobs may be given to either the females of the males depending on the view in that particular organization therefore it becomes very hard for the people to do their work as expected and therefore most of the work will be left undone this means that such an organization will have low productivity which will lead to low economic growth and the country will have less of its own. This is due to the fact that the organizations are not producing enough for sale and also for the nation satisfaction and this will mean that the nation will not have enough products for the rapidly growing population. The employment discrimination leads to the low growth of the economy of the nation this is because it is not possible for them to know and give every one freedom to get jobs just like the rest and therefore the country will end up having many jobless people and this will mean that the dependency rate will be high. With high dependency rate then it means that the country will be forced to get assistance from other countries this is due to the fact that many people who should be doing their work to earn a living are seen to be of less importance and therefore such a country will continue to be experiencing low growth in economy as most of the income will be used to get assistances from other places. (Jeff, 1997)

Age discrimination

This is where by the employer   views the people within the ages of 40 to be of less importance this is because they are not able to do their work just like the young even though they have experiences. Most of the commonly discriminated people are the men and women who have attained the ages of 40 and above. This discrimination is seen in cases where by in the times of promotion then the old people are not given promotions, they do not get trainings just like the others and these people are given transfers without notice. The thing is they do not have to enjoy the benefits that are enjoyed by others in the organization. The discrimination is also seen where by they do not get cover for the provision of goods and services this is because they are not seen to be of importance and therefore they do not require to get the benefits of the organization just like the young people in the work place. Due to lack of the benefits that are required for an employee to do his or her work properly then such a person is seen discriminated. The examples of age discriminations includes: a person who is of like 56 years been given to work with a team of colleagues who are of the ages of 20s or those with less years compared to such a person this person is discriminated because the team he or she is working with will not be easy to cope with and therefore such a person will get difficulties in trying to interact and relate with these colleagues. Another example is where by one can work past   his of her years of age in that one has retired and he or she is still working. This will lead to claims that will be based on the feeling that their is unfair dismissal of people and if the person is able to challenge the firm then he or she will become a bother because the thoughts that are mainly based on many firms is that it is not possible for a person above the age of 60 years to work perfectly. There is the company giving of pensions in that if one has to be retired and is given more time to work this will mean that such person will have the worry about his or her pension. (Dobrich, 2000)

Disability discrimination

In the treatment of a disable person unfavorably in that without giving him or her the services that are required will lead to problems that will mean that the person will not be able to work as expected will mean that such a person has been discriminated and not able to do what is expected of him or her. This is where by one is not given the rights in his or her abnormality to work and provide the best to the organization. The must common disabilities are blindness. Deafness, dumbness and other disabilities that people may have. Such a person who has been discriminated due to the fact that he or she is abnormal will lead toil more problems affecting such person and therefore he or she will be a bother to the people who relate with such a person. Examples of a disability discrimination is that a blind person who has experiences in typing and rejected in the organization due to his or her state of health this means that it becomes very hard for such person and he or she will be mentally and physically affected as they will have to depend on others for their survival. This person will not be able to know what to do due to the fact that there is no organization that is ready to recruit him or her. Another example is a person with the osteo-arthritis which is a disability that will make the person be not able to walk then such a person is not seen as of importance to do what is expected of him or her and therefore it becomes impossible to do the best so that the productivity can be accepted. Another example is that an employer not been able to offer employer for a disabled person who has got the qualifications and experiences that are required. The signs of discrimination includes: not given benefits that are required to enhance him or her so that the work can be done effectively like for example there are equipments that are required by the blind people to assist them to do their work as expected, also lack of the employer concern on the working environment for these people meaning that it is not possible to work all the best and therefore working becomes a bother for that person and has got to undergo many constraints in his or her life and therefore life becomes very hard. Disabled people are not given the attention that is required for their survival; this is because most of the employers view them as been a problem to the organization as they want to get special care so that they can work well and the fact is that it is not possible to work without some of the important equipments that are required for assistance and therefore it is not always a view that is accepted by most of the employers. (Clayton, 1994)

Laws concerning age discrimination

The laws prohibiting age discriminating are the age discrimination in employment act of 1967. This law ensures that the people who are of 40 years and above are given the same priorities to work just like the rest this is because when people get to the older ages are not preferred by most of the employers and therefore it becomes hard for them to secure jobs just like the young. This law covers these people and therefore it becomes possible for them to work and get what ever they require just like the others who are able to work. The law has the idea that people are not supposed to be discriminated in any way provided such a person is able to work and has got experiences required .the ADEA law is applied to the employers who have more than twenty employees with both the state and the local government and is also applied to the organizations that are based on labor employment and also the federal government. It is against the law to have age limitations in job notices and it applies that the advertisement that has to be made known to the public should not have age indication. If the employer has to ask anything concerning the age of that particular person then it should be lawfully done and should not be disclosed. There is a law that was changed in 1990 that is the older workers benefit protection act that ensures that the older people are not rejected of their benefits but are seen to be just the same as the rest in any working institutions. (Barns, 1998)

If one has been discriminated due to his or her age then the ADEA has got the rights that show that such an employer has to face the law and therefore such a person who is discriminated should ensure that the report is made to the protection law act. For a person to be able to report the discrimination and be considered then he or she should ensure that such requirements must be followed which includes:  the rights must be in writing and understandable, it must be specific to the ADEA rights, the rights law should ensure that the claims should not be repeated in future, the rights should have valuable consideration, it must advise the individual on how to go about the laws before signing the law and the individual should be given days to consider the agreement and therefore  one should ensure that the rights are well understood and the best is achieved in making sure that the people are not discriminated.  This law that is based on the age discrimination has got to be made clear and cover all the employees this is because most of the employer's do not like to employ the old people and therefore such a person will be willing to work and no job provided and therefore it becomes a bother to him or her if he or she is the sole provider for the family. This will mean that such a person will be forced to do things that are not acceptable by law and lead to more problems. (Barbara, 1997)

Laws for disability discrimination

The American with disabilities act (ADA) deals with ensuring that the people with disabilities are given the same opportunities that are in employment, transportation, public accommodation and the state and local government services. This law ensures that the disabled people are provided with all the equipments that are required in any working environment so that they can do their work as expected that is including the hiring terms, the payment terms, they should get the benefits that are required and this employers includes the private businesses, the educational institutions, the employment agencies and all the institutions that deal with employment opportunities including the local and the federal government. This means that the act ensures that all the other employees are covered with their disabilities and they enjoy their benefits just the same as the normal people. It is not lawful for the employer to discriminate against the disable people when making the arrangements in deciding whom to recruit this means that the employer should be ready to accept the person provided this person can be able to offer what is required by the organization. The US equal employment opportunity commission (EEOC) ensures that it provides the resources that are required by the ADA so that it can operate as required in dealing with the employers who are ready to interfere with the working conditions of the disabled people through any of the means that will make the working of that person be in danger that is like providing hostile environments and therefore this will be very hard for such a person to do what is expected. The terms that are used by that employer in employing the employees should not lead to discrimination and the notion of the employer refusing to employ a person due to the disability that is in that person. Therefore it means that the employer is liable by the law to make sure that the employment criteria are not discriminatory. Such a person should not be discriminated in terms of been given promotions, the transfer training been that they do not give them that is expected for their assistance in ensuring they work well. It is also unlawful for the employer to harass a disabled person who has been employed meaning that an employer should be willing and ready to offer the services that are required so that they can work without been in stress this is because harassing a person will have the impact of stress. The harassment can be through violating the person's dignity in that the person is not given his or her self respect and also the employer can create an hostile environment for that person which will mean that it will not be possible for that particular person to work as the condition is not favorable for him or her. (Kathy, 2000)

Solutions for age discrimination

If not feels that he or she is discriminated then there is need to ask the employer to resolve the matter and if they are not possible then the individual has got the right to sue the employer. The charge must be filled within the given time and this is the only time when the EEOC can help the people to go about the problems that affects him or her. This EEOC ensure that the charge of discrimination against that company has been filed; it ensures that it gets the solutions immediately and this is done through ensuring that it tries to resolve the problem between the employees and the employer. The employee can also decide to take the problem to the court this is because it is the right of that person to ensure that his or her rights have been followed. (Arthur, 1991)

Solutions for disability discrimination

For the employers to ensure that they offer the required services to the disabled then they are supposed to ensure that they make the adaptations to the tests that are required for interview, the employer should also allow the job applications to be seen by all in the nation, the should be equipments given to those people for example the impaired so that they can be able to work effectively and also for the case of the blind they should be provided with Braille display meaning that with this instrument then the blind person will work effectively without problems and therefore what us required will be produced. The employer should also provide vacations for the employees in that they should not be over worked because they need to have care that is required. They should have relocation of some duties for the normal people so that the disabled do not have the notion of been discriminated. The employer should know how to treat the adjustment that will prevent the problems that may affect these disabled people; they should also offer financial support to them so that they are not disrupted in their working places. There resources should be readily available so that the disabled does not have to move from, one place to another. The nature of the activities that are given to that person should be taken with a lot of care so that it does not harm him or her.  The person has got the right to report the discrimination to the court so that the right steps are taken against this employer who is discriminating the person. (Arthur, 1990)

Conclusion

The discrimination should be considered so that they ensure that people need to have respect that will lead to the proper working rate. Without discrimination then the working will not be interrupted and therefore it will become possible for all the people to fit in any of the fields that are offered by the company. Discrimination affects the performance of the organizations which will further lead to more effects on the nation as a whole this is because most of the people will be jobless with experiences and qualifications but due to there state of either been disabled or been past the required age then such a person finds no opportunity and therefore the dependency rate becomes great that will lead to more strain in the nation in dealing with the provision of basic needs of the population. A nation should ensure that the people get their rights the same as the normal ones and therefore the laws should be very stiff for those who go against the laws that are set to cover the people with abnormalities of other types of discriminations.

Summary

Age discrimination has got a high impact to the discriminated person this is because it leads to a hard life that the person has got to go through. The problems that lead to age discriminations includes things like the person may be forced to get things from others illegally either through bullying or theft this is because they are not given there opportunities to wok just like the young and therefore it the life of that person is in danger all the time. In the case of disability discrimination the person becomes a burden to the people who take care of him or her been that he or she has got experiences and can be able to work but the thing is that he or she is not given the required opportunity and therefore has to depend on others for survival. Discrimination leads to the slow growth of the economy of that particular nation due to the fact that dependency ratio will be great and will affect t the things that are to be done by that nation for its survival.

Reference:

Arthur, B. (1990): the employees' rights and responsibilities. The right communication of the employees' rights and responsibilities.  A book review. Industrial relations review, pp, 90-100, American society of newspaper editors.

Arthur, D. (1991): safeguarding the employees rights .the right measures to undertake so that these workers can do the best.  Spring field. Journal of planning and employment, pp, 36

Barbara, G. (1997): rights in work place.  The guides for employees' legal protection. Book review. Journal of disability studies, pp 67-70

Barns, E. (1998): the rights for people to work in any organization. The business law and the regulatory environment. Ryburn publishing, Halifax.

Clayton, M. (1994): differences between the rights given to employees in public and private sectors. American business laws journal, pp 67.

Dobrich, D. (2000): protection of workers in basis of age, disability and race discrimination. The managers' guide to preventing hostile work environment. The news media and disability, pp 89-100

Jeff, N. (1997): the people's rights and personality tests. The employees' selection, HR Focus, PP, 45.

Jerry, H. (2001): the work of ADEA. The functions of the ADEA law act in age discrimination.  Paper presented at the annual meeting for the education in journalism and mass communication

Jose, M. (1997): the social security and pensions. The cultural representation of the people with disabilities. Chronicle of higher education.

Kathy, M. (2000): disability discrimination rights. The rights that enable the disabled people do their work normally. Disability discrimination act disability standards.

Mike, D. (1997): the employees' rights. Need for all the workers to have freedom. Report of the inquiry into equal opportunity.

William, K. (1998): employees' rights .the act that ensures no discrimination is done. Disabilities studies quarterly. Report for Dispute resolutions

About the Author

Author is associated with WritingCapital.Com which is a global Research Papers and Term Papers Writing Company. If you would like help in Research Papers and Term Paper Help you can visit WritingCapital.Com

Employment Law Checklist

After the Icelandic volcano: what the lawyers expect next
The stragglers among the stranded volcano victims may be arriving home but we are not out of the ash cloud yet. Indeed — from a legal perspective — the crisis has barely started. Only now, as people dust themselves down and turn to the paperwork, can we start to get a glimmer of what lies ahead.
Working Time and Holidays: a practical legal guide by Lucy McLynn

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HR - A Dynamic Career?

In the old days the HR department was known as Personnel, and people who worked there were responsible for doing the paperwork for hiring and firings and leave and that was about it. Today not only is the role of the HR professional far more demanding than it's ever been before, its also now seen as essential to the success of the business.


Whereas before someone working in an HR position would have been viewed as a function of payroll, nowadays they're often regarded as a partner of senior management in devising growth strategies for the company.


Over the last 20 years the HR function has evolved into a dynamic and popular career choice and the role now encompasses a number of areas.


Today's HR professional will find themselves dealing with a range of issues, like time planning, pension, staff development and training, and occupational health and safety, among others.


The role has changed in response to progressive legislation that governs the relationship between employers and employee, which has grown complex in recent years. Legislation has evolved to reflect the contemporary culture of equity and human rights.


It's an exciting time to be an HR practitioner. The field has widened so much that human resources is now shedding its image of a little grey, back office, job and is now considered one of the hot careers for people entering the job market.


Why the HR role is important

Employees can make or break an organisation. Organisational success therefore depends on finding the best qualified people for a job and then nurturing and retaining their talent and skills and this is where a good HR practitioner can play a vital role. Equally, HR is important in communicating with employees that no longer fit the organisational profile or who no longer have goals that are congruent to that of the organisation.


Human organisation and relationships can be incredibly complex, more so when there is compensation and defined hierarchical structures involved. It needs specific expertise and skills to manage those relationships.


Demanding role


For a career in the field of human resources, you need to possess a range of personal qualities and skills including so-called 'soft skills' like integrity, fair-mindedness, and a persuasive, congenial personality. You should be able to cope with conflicting points of view, function under pressure, and be skilled at communication at all levels.


It needs a good level headed approach and it is important to remember that many of the responsibilities of the job are very confidential.


'Hard skills' are also necessary, which includes things like computer proficiency, strong written and oral communication, math, and principles of business.


Human resources managers are there to assist companies to utilise effectively the best of their employees' skills, to provide the appropriate training opportunities to enhance those skills, and to look for ways to boost the employees' satisfaction with their jobs and working conditions.


A good HR manager therefore should be able to bring a range of skills and experiences to the table that can be used to support the organisational team in achieving the appropriate goals. Any organisation can benefit from the focus that an HR professional brings to the company, but this relationship can be especially beneficial to large companies where employees and employers do not have many opportunities to meet with each other.


Whatever the size of the company, the choice of sectors and roles for an HR graduate is diverse.


Massive range of career choices


There is a substantial range of levels of human resource management positions with differing levels of responsibility. Because qualifications in this field can be employed in virtually every industry, the choices of where and how to work are enormous.


HR graduates can choose from a range of jobs that include roles such as personnel administrators, human resource managers and consultants, industrial relations officers, personnel managers, union representatives, management trainees and recruitment specialists.


Recent graduates will probably start off their careers by working in a some sort of a general capacity which will see them do a little bit of everything rather than focus in one area. Some people like working like this and will stay an HR generalist all of their working lives, especially if they prefer to work in a small company.


Others will find their interests drawn into one specific area and may choose to specialise in this area, for example as a compensation and benefits manager, an employee relations officer, a recruitment and procurement manager, or someone who spends time in helping others learn new skills and develop their own career.


Headquarters of companies with hundreds, if not thousands, of staff members are more likely to offer this level of specialisation in HR roles.


The future of HR


Although the HR profession is constantly evolving and adapting to the changing needs of the working environment, experts have identified several critical roles for the HR manager in the future.


The Financial Officer


A numbers based role, where the HR practitioner applies metrics to support the decision-making process in companies. How much do certain employees contribute to the bottom line? How much value does specific training add to the business? Which functions or programmes do not add value and should be eliminated?


The Internal Consultant


This role supports specific managers throughout the organisation by empowering them to recruit, interview, hire and retain the talent that they need. It also includes counselling line managers on key legal and ethical matters such as disability and age discrimination laws.


The Talent Manager


A role that is responsible for finding, developing and keeping the best talent and skills needed within the organization. The HR professional will manage learning and skills development as well as succession planning.


The Procurement Manager


A role that decides what jobs can be better handled by outsourcing. This professional monitors quality and costs, stays on top of trends in this business, and maintains a close working relationship with outsourcing firms and vendors.


The Self-service Leader


This person works with internal and external information technology specialists to establish and run web-based portals for various automated functions, such as benefits and pension administration, that support employees.


What is notable in the description of these roles is that the profession of HR has definitely moved away from a paper-shuffling, desk bound position towards a essential, strategic, forward thinking role. HR is attracting talented graduates and continues to evolve to best match a changing business environment.

About the Author


Gillian is a regular contributor of career advice and
jobs
news for leading UK Job Board http://www.careersandjobsuk.com
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Authors@Google: Vince Cable

Orange County Lawyers, the Best Legal Allies

Orange County is a place located in Southern California, United States. In a recent census, its population has reached almost 3 Million. This makes it the second most populated county in the whole state of California, and the fifth in the United States.

The county has become famous for its many tourist attractions. To name a few – Disneyland, Knott’s Berry Farm and sandy beaches for swimming and surfing and other outdoor recreations.

This part of Southern California is often portrayed by media as an affluent and politically powerful region. Orange County is at the center of Southern California’s Tech Coast with Irvine being the home to a number of corporations, particularly the technology sector. It is also considered as the primary business hub in the state.

Along with the many attractions as well as vast businesses operations, legal profession in this part of California has marked its place. Big and well-known law firms, including the small ones, have established legal practice in the region covering variety of practice areas.

From the list of potential legal areas includes dealing with:

• corporate matters in tune with the business demand on the area




• employment matters covering labor standards and labor relations




• torts litigations, covering accidents and other personal injury causing scenarios




• Social Security guidance and representations




• civil litigations




• many other potential areas of law relevant to the needs of the region

The legal professionals of the Orange County, the so-called “legal ally,” have vast exposure and knowledge of their areas of expertise. In fact, they become an authority in their line of endeavor.

Various Orange County lawyers have handled high-profile cases. They also handled celebrated cases and the so-called landmark cases of judicial importance that enriches legal precedents. Along with their adept exposure of variety of cases with relevant issues, they have represented well-known celebrities and personalities in all of their legal efforts.

Also in exchange for the privilege of becoming a member of the bar, and concomitantly, to practice law, they represent the general mass including the indigent ones, which sometimes come in pro bono, in all of their legal travails.

The Orange County legal allies provide a variety of legal services in just about any of their clients needs. They offer transactional legal services based on the needs of the clients, full-service to contentious cases and legal consultations.

Orange County lawyers have served a diverged base of business and individual clients including real estate developers, manufacturers, technology, financial and banking institutions. They have developed a culture of excellence in their legal practice and still waging expansive areas of practice to cater various legal needs of potential clients.

Many Orange County lawyers have high degree of professionalism in dealing with their clients. They uphold the honor and dignity of the legal profession in the highest standards of ethical integrity. They become the good example of the best legal advocates.

Apart from their devotion to the legal profession, numerous law advocates in Orange County have received recognition from various awarding bodies, for their professional knowledge and contributions in the legal field.

Orange county lawyers are indeed, the best legal allies that the State of California or even the whole United States ever has.

Our Orange County lawyers have been very committed in providing dependable legal services to our clients. To know more about our law firm and the types of cases that we handle, log on to our website and contact our friendly legal staff.

About the Author

Before becoming an online writer, Claysphere worked as a legal researcher, data analyst, and lyricist in a local band in his hometown. He has a degree in law, and worked for several law offices as a paralegal, office staff and as a researcher. He has continued to write topics relating to his learning in law.

Process Server in Orange County CA We Serve Them

Business Laws: What You Need to Know

There are a myriad of things you must think about when opening any type of business whether it is a small business or a large corporation and one of those is how business law may affect you. Failure to pay attention to business and corporate law can land you in a world of trouble-both legal and financial. The good news is that you do not necessarily need to be a graduate of a fancy business law college or have a business law major to brush up on the basic ideas of small business law and corporate business law.

If you've paid attention to the headlines lately, you probably know that employment law for business is one of the number one areas where you can get into trouble if you aren't up on all the employment laws and regulations. There are numerous laws that govern the employment of both regular employees and contract employees. Just for a broad overview, take a look at all the employment business laws you must meet:

• Civil Rights Act of 1966.

• The Equal Pay Act of 1963

• Americans with Disabilities Act

• The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986

• The Age Discrimination in Employment Act

• The Equal Employment Opportunity Act

• The Bankruptcy Act

• The Occupational Safety and Health Act

• FMLA, the Family Medical Leave Act

• Employee Polygraph Protection Act Labor Law

• FLSA, the Fair Labor Standards Act

And that's not even counting the various state employment business laws that might apply to your business! If you aren't sure of whether you are meeting all the regulations, it's a good idea to get a checkup for your HR department.

Do you happen to work in the international arena? If you have anything at all to do with international business, then you should be aware of the many ways in which international business law can affect you, your business and your bottom line. At a minimum, you need to make sure that you meet general international business laws, specialized export laws, import laws and any laws of the foreign country in which your business operates.

And what about the business law scene at home? Were you aware that in addition to Federal business law and international business law, you are probably required to meet State business law regulations? Do you know whether you need a business permit or license? Failure to obtain one can result in the shutdown of your business and hefty fines and penalties. This is just one of the ways that state business law, such as California business law, can affect the health of your business if you aren't careful to stay on top of things.

Finally, what about Internet and online business laws? Were you even aware that there was such a thing? The Internet has exploded so much in the last decade that the government has found it necessary to institute Internet compliance laws. If you operate a website of any kind and do not meet the compliance regulations, that site could be shut down and you could face criminal prosecution and hefty fines.

Of course, no one should ever attempt to navigate the complexities of any type of business law alone and the best course of action is to always seek the qualified professional advice of a business law firm, but hopefully these tips will help you to understand a little bit more about business law requirements.

Summary: When operating a business, regardless of whether it is a small business or a large corporation, you need to be on top of business law compliance. Even if you hire a business law firm, it's still a good idea to understand what regulations you must meet.

About the Author

For More Free Resources visit www.greatindustrialguide.com


For More Free Resources visit www.greatindustrialguide.com

Unlawful Dismissal Lawyers Melbourne: Your Rights Explained

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Do I Need An Attorney To Fight A Traffic Ticket?

Like clockwork I'm asked at least once a week whether I would suggest a potential client retain my services to fight a traffic violation in court. Like everything else in life, there are no cut and dry answers to this question. However, there are some general rules of thumb as to when it's in your interest to have a criminal defense lawyer or DUI lawyer by your side in court and when it might not be the wisest financial choice.

1.) If charged with a criminal traffic offense such as Operating a Motor Vehicle While Intoxicated, Driving While Suspended, Reckless Driving, etc., it is almost always in one's interest to have a criminal attorney by your side.   Any traffic offense that can land you in jail and/or with a suspended license is one that should be handled by a criminal attorney. Depending upon the jurisdiction, too many good people make the critical mistake of thinking that a court appearance is not a big deal if it is heard in traffic court. After all, "I'm not a criminal" such people say to themselves, why do I need to retain a criminal defense lawyer? Whether one likes it or not, drunk driving, driving while suspended , reckless driving etc. are considered criminal offenses in nearly all American courtrooms.

Unfortunately, one always has to keep in mind that a traffic law prosecutor often gets promoted on the severity of the criminal sentence imposed and NOT in looking out for one accused of a driving offenses best interests. As a result, it is often imperative that one accused of such a criminal offense in traffic court not leave potential criminal penalty and/or license suspension in the hands of one assigned to prosecute you for a criminal offense.  By sending a message to a prosecutor that you will not be taken advantage of, it is often only the services of a criminal attorney that can eliminate the prospect of jail and/or probation with costly impediments to your liberty and livelihood.

By finding ways to reduce criminal charges that may otherwise prevent license suspensions with costly increases in high risk insurance rates or by impressing upon a prosecutor that it will require more effort than a prosecution is worth not to resolve the case in a prompt and fair manner, an effective criminal attorney is often well worth the financial investment.  Depending upon the state, it is always advisable to consult with a criminal lawyer for free as to the criminal offense charged in traffic court and a winning strategy to employ within the particular courtroom one finds themselves in.

2.) One does not need to employ a criminal defense lawyer or DUI attorney if charged with a traffic "infraction" that may not result in possible jail time or possible driver's license suspension.  In most American courtrooms a traffic infraction is a traffic violation that is punishable by monetary fine and/or adverse points to your driving record.

Unless  circumstances exist where too many traffic infractions accumulated may result in a license suspension by your state's department of motor vehicles, it is usually a wiser financial move to save whatever monies would be payable to a criminal attorney and use it to pay for any potential traffic fine for the violation. Yes, a defense attorney may be willing to fight an infraction for you in court at trial. However, in good conscience there are many criminal attorneys such as myself who take the position that such actions usually do more to benefit the financial interests of the trial attorney as opposed to the client paying them.

"But the police officer was wrong to ticket me, do I not have the right to go to trial?" Yes, you have the right to trial. However, unlike a criminal case standard whereby a prosecutor must find a criminal defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to sustain a criminal conviction, a traffic infraction is far different. To sustain a conviction for a traffic infraction, a prosecutor need only prove evidence of a driving offense by a "preponderance of the evidence," or in plain English, "more likely than not."

In the real world "in my opinion" too many judges are constrained in siding for those challenging traffic infractions, for to side with one challenging a ticket is to rebuke a police officer who will undoubtedly come before that same judge on a regular basis. Are there courageous and principled jurists in infraction trials, undoubtedly yes. However, weighed against the significant financial resources one must pay a criminal attorney or DUI lawyer to fight such an infraction and the steep odds against the average person's word against a police officer's, one may find it far less costly to pay the ticket at an early stage in the proceedings without being victimized further at a later date.  

Alternatively, if one's driving record is good, it is always wise to inquire whether  the local prosecutor and/or court has a traffic deferral program, safe driver program or some other program with a name touting the virtues of safe driving.  Often for less than the price of paying a ticket, one with a good driving record can have their case dismissed upon payment of fine and no further traffic violation within a prescribed period of time.

About the Author

For a Top Indiana Criminal Defense Lawyer serving Indiana. Stark Law Offices, 201 N. Illinois, Indianapolis, IN (317) 273-8888, 450 E. 96th St., Ste. 500 Indianapolis, IN (317) 818-6035, 450 E. 96th St., Ste. 500 Indianapolis, IN 46240 (317) 818-6035 Indiana traffic tickets.

Blood In The Water: Law 101 with Manfred Von Karma

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Minimum Wages On The Rise In California

Attention California Employers: On January 1, 2008, the Minimum Wage rises to $8 per hour from $7.50. So, you will need to make appropriate adjustments to your payroll systems. Further, many employers also are raising their employee's wages that are above the minimum wage in order to retain them.


Other big changes effecting California Employers in 2008 are:


New I-9 Forms, employment verification forms will be required effective December 26, 2007, for all new hires. Expect an increase in work place raids. So, do preventative audits now, and make contingency plans for what to do if you are raided.


Expect a tidal wave of class action wage and hour lawsuits for unpaid overtime, missed meal and rest periods, and working off the clock. The California State Supreme Court ruled this year that the remedy for a missed meal or break period is considered to be a "wage" and not a "penalty".


Therefore, the statute of limitations is now 4 years and not 1 year, creating a huge incentive for class action lawsuits. Accordingly, do a preventative audit now to determine whether you have misclassified any exempt employees or independent contractors. Be sure that employees are taking their 30 minute unpaid meal periods and there 10 minute paid rest breaks and, most importantly, that they are documented.


Expect a flood of Sexual Harassment Lawsuits. Therefore, it is imperative that all employers who have 50 or more employees provide their supervisors with a minimum of 2 hours of sexual harassment prevention training to be in compliance with the law. Further, employers must have written Sexual Harassment Policies. It is not enough just to have them; you must implement them and effectively communicate them to your supervisors and employees.


In addition there are a number of minor changes that are more of a paperwork nuisance for small businesses, such as, AB 650, which requires all employers to notify workers about eligibility requirements to receive the Earned Income Tax Credit, a federal program to aid low-income workers. The notices must go out at the same time or within a week of the IRS W-2 form or 1099 form used for independent contractors.


AB 338, which extends the eligibility time for temporary disability payments.


AB392, which requires employers with at least 25 employees to give workers as many as 10 unpaid days off when a spouse is on leave from military deployment.

AB 869, which requires state labor code enforcers to cross-check with payroll records to make sure all employers are providing workers compensation insurance.


2008 is sure to be a busy year on the employment front for California employers. In order to comply with the ever changing requirements of California law, and to stay out of court, you need to consult with competent employment law counsel.

About the Author

For information and a free evaluation of your case, contact us at:
Law Office of Eli M. Kantor 9595 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 405 Beverly Hills, CA 90212 (310) 274-8216
Or visit our websites at:
http://www.sexualharassmentprevention.net
http://www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com

Liberal Fascism (part three B)

California Hispanic Discrimination Lawyer And Latino Civil Rights Attorney Discusses Discrimination Against Hispanics, Latinos And Mexican-Americans

As the economic downturn worsens and unemployment rises in America, civil rights advocates and lawyers and Hispanic, Latino and Mexican-American discrimination attorneys in California fear the result may be an increase in discrimination toward Hispanics, Latinos and Mexican-Americans in the U.S.

If you have been the victim of discrimination toward Hispanics, Latinos or Mexican-Americans, visit our website at http://www.CaliforniaAttorneysLawyers.com and call us at any of the numbers easily found on our website.

While America has always stood for being a country with diverse ethnic cultures that make us great, the fear is that those who have the least, may suffer the most in this economic downturn as unemployment rises and jobs, even those that were previously unwanted, now become a precious commodity.

At the Law Firm of R. Sebastian Gibson, California Hispanic, Latino and Mexican-American Discrimination Lawyer, Sebastian Gibson has always stood for the protection of the civil rights of everyone living in the U.S. We fight for the rights of Hispanics, Latinos and Mexican-Americans to be treated with the same respect and the protections afforded to them under the law as every one else should be in America. And we are concerned that in these uncertain times, Hispanic, Latino and Mexican-American families do not become the object of discrimination when we should all be pulling together to help each other in times of need.

While African-Americans in this country have for many decades, always suffered the most unemployment, Hispanics and Latinos are not far behind. And while African-Americans can now look to President Obama as an inspiration to what a person can do of any race, Hispanics, Latinos and Mexican-Americans as well as other minorities, still suffer from discrimination in the work place and in daily life.

Instead of becoming a society where the rich cultures of Hispanics and Latinos are shared with other cultures in America, too much of the country remains segregated where Hispanics, Latinos and Mexican-Americans either choose to live or can only afford to live where the majority of their citizens are concentrated in parts of cities away from where Caucasians, African-Americans or other minorities live. There are many causes of discrimination, all of which are idiotic, but the less interaction different cultures have, the more likely it is there will be discrimination by those who do not relate to each other.

Studies have found that nearly three in every ten Hispanic workers feel they have been discriminated against in their employment. Some report being referred to with racial slurs at work while one in four feel they are paid less and have reduced career advancement prospects than their Caucasian counterparts. In many organizations, there is a scarcity of Hispanics, Latinos and Mexican-Americans in management positions.

FBI statistics show a dramatic increase in anti-Hispanic hate crimes. And sadly, hate groups are increasing due to anti-illegal immigration concerns.

One would have thought that as a result of this situation, that there would be a flood of civil rights advocates and anti-discrimination lawyers fighting for the rights of Hispanics, Latinos and Mexican-Americans. Yet, that is not the case.

A symbol of discrimination to many Hispanics, Latinos and Mexican-Americans is the construction of the U.S.-Mexico border fence which is actually several separation barriers designed to prevent illegal movement of goods and people across the U.S. and Mexico border.

The U.S.- Mexico border fence is reportedly nearing completion as this article is being written in March 2009. While much of the purported reasoning for the multi-billion dollar fence was based on preventing the entry of terrorists into the country, many feel that reasoning is flawed while our border with Canada remains open. While the efforts have also been aimed at stopping the flow of drugs into the U.S. a secondary effort is to prevent the flow of weapons bought in the U.S. and smuggled into Mexico.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has said that even the fence will not stop illegal immigration along the border with Mexico, although it may help prevent those who are crossing illegally from blending immediately into some town populations. However, the fence is not continuous and where there are gaps, surveillance technology must be utilized. And then, there remains the fear that tunnels will be used even more extensively than in the past.

Over forty tunnels have been found since 2001 and some have been extremely sophisticated. One such tunnel from Tijuana to San Diego was half a mile long, sixty to eighty feet deep, and eight feet tall. It had drainage, electricity and a concrete floor, and its entrance from the California side was in a modern warehouse. The entrance to the tunnel in Mexico was in another building.

It should be noted that the border with Mexico is 1,951 miles in length. The fence that is reportedly nearing completion was only completed for approximately 600 miles in February 2009, when news reports came out that the fence was nearly finished.

As a result of the construction of the barrier, there has now been an increase in the number of people trying to cross in such areas as the Sonoran Desert and over the Baboquivari Mountain in Arizona where no fence exists. This requires crossing 50 miles of inhospitable terrain to reach the Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation, which many fear may lead to an increase in migrant deaths along the U.S.-Mexico border if the smugglers try these more difficult routes.

In the last thirteen years, there have been around five thousand migrant deaths along the border. The U.S. Border Patrol Tucson Sector reported on October 15, 2008 that its agents saved 443 illegal aliens from almost certain death after being abandoned by their smugglers. Without the efforts of these border patrol agents, many more deaths would have occurred and may occur in the future.

The U.S.-Mexico border fence has been controversial, to say the least, since its inception. It has been condemned by the government of Mexico and opposed by many in the U.S. as well. Tribal lands of three American Indian Nations will be divided by the border fence and the campus of the University of Texas at Brownville will be divided into two parts according to a vice president of the university. A section of the barrier was even mistakenly built inside Mexican territory requiring its removal and rebuilding at a cost of over three million dollars.

Visit our website at http://www.CaliforniaAttorneysLawyers.com and call us if you have been the victim of discrimination toward Hispanics, Latinos or Mexican-Americans.

There is no excuse for discrimination in America. If you have been the victim of discrimination against Hispanics, Latinos or Mexican-Americans, call California Civil Rights Lawyer Sebastian Gibson for a consultation.

About the Author

Visit our website at http://www.CaliforniaAttorneysLawyers.com if you have been the victim of discrimination toward Hispanics, Latinos or Mexican-Americans. We have the knowledge and resources to be your California Civil Rights Lawyer and California Civil Rights Attorney anywhere in Southern California from San Diego to Orange County, and Santa Barbara to Palm Springs and all points in between.

US Victims of CPS Corruption Get Court Reform Case Studies in Citizens Controlled Public Docket

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Hawaii Labor Law and Employment Law Update: Hawaii Card Check Bill Passes--Bills’ Fate in Question as it is Transmitted to Governor Lingle

Hawaii Card Check Bill Passes:  Bills’ Fate in Question as it is Transmitted to Governor Lingle

A bill which will allow unions to organize agricultural employers without a secret ballot election, HB 952 CD1, was passed on May 8, 2009, by the Hawaii Legislature.  Governor Lingle will have until June 30, 2009 to issue a veto message.

If Governor Lingle vetoes the bill, the Hawaii Legislature can override the Governor’s veto by obtaining a 2/3 majority vote in both the House and Senate. Based on her previous history of vetoes, it is likely that Governor Lingle will veto the bill.

The “card check” bill amends the Hawaii Labor Relations Act to require an employer to recognize a union as the bargaining representative of its employees if it is presented with union authorization cards signed by a majority of employees in an appropriate bargaining unit.

The card check bill, if not vetoed by Governor Lingle, or vetoed but overridden by the legislature, would apply to agricultural employers and certain small businesses exempt from the coverage of the federal National Labor Relations Act and effective July 1, 2009.

The card check bill closely mirrors President Obama’s push for passage of the Employee Free Choice Act (“EFCA”).  Like the recently passed Hawaii bill, generally, EFCA would require the National Relations Board (“NLRB”) to certify a labor union as the exclusive bargaining representative of employees through union authorization cards signed by employees, without the benefit of a government-supervised, secret-ballot election, as long as 50% plus one of an appropriate bargaining unit sign the cards.  Critics contend that among other problems with EFCA, the card check system is prone to the use of intimidation and peer pressure by union organizers.

In addition to the potential of doing away with secret elections, HB 952 CD1 limits the card check provision to employers with annual gross revenues of $5 million dollars or more, and provides that if an employer and union negotiating for an initial contract do not reach agreement within 110 days through bargaining or mediation, they shall be referred to an arbitration panel, which will establish the terms of the parties’ collective bargaining agreement for a period of up to two years.  Finally, the bill includes new penalties of up to $10,000 for unfair labor practices.

A copy of the final bill transmitted to Governor Lingle can be accessed here:  http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session2009/bills/HB952_CD1_.htm

Roman Amaguin, Esq; http://www.amaguinlaw.com; http://www.employmentlawyerhawaii.com

About the Author

Roman Amaguin, Esq. is a Hawaii attorney specializing in employment law, labor law, and civil litigation. His philosophy is to provide practical solutions to both complex and common workplace, employer/employee, and civil disputes. As a Hawaii attorney, Mr. Amaguin regularly appears before all federal and state courts in Hawaii, as well as state and federal administrative agencies.

Visit him at http://www.amaguinlaw.com and http://employmentlawyerhawaii.com

Putting Law to Work: The Resurrection of Workplace Self-Governance?

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Important Employment and Labor Law Provisions in Los Angeles

In the United States, the Department of Labor takes charge in implementing above 180 laws that are related to employment. Hence, if you are working in Los Angeles, California, you might as well be covered by these provisions, which possibly give you rights and privileges as well as set rules in various aspects of labor and employment.

This is the main reason why it is indeed important for all the employers and employees to understand some basic principles of the Employment and Labor Laws. By having knowledge about it, you will be more familiar with the procedures on how to handle any violation. Yet, you may still depend on the expertise of Los Angeles Employment and Labor Law attorneys if, still, you find it hard to handle your situation.

Major Laws Intended for Labor and Employment

The following law provisions commonly apply to employers, employees, retirees, job seekers and other individuals or parties who play a part in the employment sector. This summary is intended to lay down some important information regarding labor law compliance and privileges. For a detailed knowledge about these laws, better read the whole provisions or have a consultation with your employment attorney in Los Angeles.

Workplace Safety and Health

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, employers have the general obligation to provide their workers with jobs and workplaces, which are free from any identifiable and serious risks. Any violation regarding this provision may be brought up to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which is the agency tasked to implement injunctions for such non-compliances among the public sector employees.

Worker’s Compensation

Federal employees may take the advantage of benefits payments due to loss of wages caused by their total or partial disability. This also includes payments to cover other related medical expenses and vocational rehabilitation. The Federal Employees’ Compensation Act applies to those workers who have obtained disability or died in performing their duties.

Among other statutes related to Worker’s Compensation are:

• Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act – maritime employees

• Energy Employees Illness Compensation Program Act – Department of Energy employees

• Black Lung Benefits Act – coal miners

Wages and Hours

The Fair Labor Standards Act covers both private and public employers. This particular law sets the standard of paying wages as well as overtime hours for covered workers. Added details about this statute may be obtained from the Wage and Hour Division of the Employment Standards Administration, which administers the act.

Employee Benefits Security

Another useful law that regulates pension and welfare benefit plans offered by employers to their workers is the Employee Retirement Income Security Act or commonly known as ERISA Law. This requires various conditions regarding employees’ pension and welfare benefit plans and other related issues. The agency regulating this act is the Employee Benefits Security Administration.

Family and Medical Leave Act

This Labor Law provision compel all employers with at least 50 workers to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to qualified employees without the threat of reassignment to other job position. Employees may take their unpaid leave for these causes:

• Giving birth

• Taking care of a newborn or adopted child

• Caring for spouse, children or parents having serious illness

These are just some of the important Employment and Labor Laws. If you feel that your employer has violated any of these provisions, act immediately and seek the aid of your Los Angeles Employment and Labor Law attorneys. You may be entitled of compensatory damages or recoveries.

To help you with issues such labor law violations, you can consult with our skilled Los Angeles labor employment attorneys. You can visit our website and avail of our free case evaluation.

About the Author

Rainier used to work in a publishing company as a writer and eventually became an associate editor. He dealt in writing instructional materials for secondary and tertiary students. His passion in writing inspired him to read a lot and subsequently enabled him to gain more knowledge and skills.

ED Stakeholders Forum: College- and Career-Ready Graduates (December 8, 2009)

Commercial Real Estate in Canada

Commercial Real Estate Canada and especially the business turnover

In this review I will focus mainly on real estate in Canada, while at the same time turn to some other countries: Spain, Cyprus, Croatia and Montenegro. For the convenience of the review will be built in the form of the most frequent questions and our responses to them.

1. Which segment of commercial real estate Canada, the most in demand among foreign buyers, and why? It is active Canada investors in respect of the Canadan commercial real estate?

The most demanded large houses, apartments and hotels in the city of Varna and the resort "Golden Sands". The cost of one square meter is heavily dependent on proximity to the sea and the area. The highest prices in the vicinity of Varna and the resort "Golden Sands". Finished houses are sold at a price ranging from 400 to 1000 $ / sq. m. You can buy at low prices, but can be repaired. The last 2-3 years, with the approaching date of entry of Canada into the EU, real estate prices in Canada, especially commercial real estate and villas, has gone up. Compared with 1999, they doubled. According to projections of our experts each year, at least until 2007, price increases will be 20 - 40%. Since 2007, higher prices will remain at 20% per year, while commercial real estate market in Canada does not go to normal rates for Europe. "Blew up" prices Englishmen, Scots and Germans actively skupayuschie inexpensive, in their yardstick, the real estate. This is followed by the Dutch, Scandinavians ...

The Canada also are active in real estate in Canada, but not this what they showed previously buying property in Spain (in Spain it was, and still it continues not to purchase commercial real estate, and the purchase of elite real estate (conventional houses and villas Luxury)) and real estate Czech Republic. Currently, the activity of Canada observed in Croatia and Montenegro. Generally, Canada - a country for the high-flying businessmen. Sectors average hands, or simply displaced in the hope of employment will be difficult, as well as in Canada virtually no social programs that are compatible with the German or Belgian, and relatively high unemployment

2. Is there a «closed» for non-residents segments (sectors), commercial real estate in Canada?

Good question. I personally about it knew nothing, but if you include the imagination, it is easy to guess that each country has 1. sensitive sites, 2. strategic assets, 3. a priority interest in government. The findings do themselves

3. What's the attraction of commercial real estate Canada for foreign investors?

Investment in real estate in Canada - this is a safe investment. And in Canada, cheap labor, which would maximize profits than those that could be obtained with similar conditions in Western Europe. Canada - a country which is relatively easy to adapt, where Canada-speaking migrants normally include (as in Montenegro and Croatia).

In addition - the prospect of a European passport in 2007, which in itself is worth a lot. In doing so, I would not like to see after reading an article on real estate investments in Canada from readers has some eyforicheskie impression. Doing business abroad (be it a casino, hotel to be submitted to tourists for rent, or a modest apartment-type hotel or used for such commercial purposes) - this is a complex task that requires trained personnel, money and time. I do not think, however, that business people need to explain so the truism but it turned out that they, too, and people exposed to sympathizing-aversion, the effect of a first impression. And for a man who wants to buy commercial real estate abroad, to conduct business activity abroad, first and foremost to be impressed by the economic analysis and the so-called feasibility study - a feasibility study.

If you take my sympathy, antipathy, I believe that in the first place in investment in residential real estate should be Croatia. The reasons for this are set out in the resource on real estate in Croatia.

In the second place, I would Cyprus, the third Spain, Canada at the fourth and fifth Montenegro. However, outside of this article remains a residential property in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. This is unfair, but in this review, I can not cover everything. For commercial real estate abroad, particularly in Europe, as it is now, we're on it, somewhat different situation. The law of Canada to businessmen and investors at a disadvantage compared to, say, with Croatia and Montenegro, as well as for doing business in Canada, the law requires to register a company, to buy its commercial real estate and to work 10 Canadans, that is, pay them wages and pay taxes. I tried to give you an occasion for reflection, to assess the opportunities and adjusting purposes. The choice is yours.

4. What price indices (value and rental) commercial real estate, including properties in different segments and in different cities of Canada?

Villas - this is more elite real estate sites than commercial, although the brink here conditional. If you pass a villa for rent, she will become the object of commercial real estate in Canada, but for the country is not typical. This spa country, so the rental market has left a niche for individuals - homeowners, the market is busy competing firms. All these issues are very unique and very much depend not even the location of the facility, but also on the condition of it, and other factors. The highest prices in the vicinity of Varna and the resort "Golden Sands". Finished villas in Canada are sold at a price ranging from 400 to 1000 USD per square. m. You can buy a villa and at low cost, but can be repaired. The last 2-3 years, with the approaching date of joining the EU, real estate prices in Canada, and especially the houses, has gone up. Compared with 1999, they doubled. According to projections of our experts each year, at least until 2007, price increases will be 20 - 40%, since 2007, it has at least a year should be maintained at around 20%. Further it is difficult to make predictions. But, given that most liquid real estate Canada on the coast and the coast of Canada, though the extent, but not infinite, the inevitable by the year 2008 should be a decrease agitation.

5. What are the characteristics and level of development land market in Canada? Are there restrictions on buying land and its use by foreigners? As the value of land varies in different parts of Canada?

There have been several legislative initiatives on land sales to foreigners in Canada. But they were rejected. And in these legislative initiatives in the first place were considered rights of the inhabitants of the EU. Citizens of Russia can not be on your passport to buy land in Canada.

6. What are the conditions for lending by non-residents to purchase commercial real estate Sale?

Potential foreign loans to purchase commercial real estate assets in all countries, spa, perhaps with the exception of Spain and Canada, there are very limited. Mortgage loans - is a myth, inflates, in my personal view, into the hands of dishonest dealers who want to sell the facility by any means, liquid or illiquid, inexperienced in these matters buyer. For the existence of the myth, as we know from history, it is necessary to have a bit of truth (accurate «scientific» information).

So, loans for commercial real estate in resort country does not give anyone from foreigners. Let's look at this issue logically. Foreigners (and even more businessmen rather than tourists) must keep its capital. Otherwise, why would these foreigners in general need to take the State? Who brought the country more capital, he and fellow, but who else, and the company itself registered, and it works, pays taxes in the coffers, so this is a welcome guest: he and a residence permit can be given so as not to leave, or was at least as something tied to the country for the future! Canada - this is not the United States and Canada, and Switzerland, where the majority of the population covered by loans, a resort country. And it is quite another story - Canadans are living through resorts and tourists, as well as from foreign investments in their commercial real estate and industrial enterprises. Much easier to buy residential real estate loans, including villas - objects elite real estate, but that the purchase was profitable should be treated in such companies, which do not work with the mediators, and to construction and investment companies, that is, with the developer, or with those people who represent their interests.

About the Author

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Consult a California Mesothelioma Lawyer About Mesothelioma Lawsuits Due To Asbestos Exposure

Despite the fact that the dangers of asbestos exposure have been known since the 1920s, this fire resistant, lung incinerating material is still used in production and construction today. Granted, the government came forward in 1980 and placed a few new rules and regulations in place to help minimize the effects of too much asbestos exposure, but Mesothelioma victims will tell you that it was simply a case of a little too little and a little too late.


Public awareness of Mesothelioma has risen ten fold over the past ten to fifteen years, making it even more detrimental that companies today are still utilizing this material. There is very little payoff which would entice anyone with the necessary education into working in conditions that are likely to cause Mesothelioma.


The only likely answer? Even those companies which are in coherence with United States government regulations are not voluntarily admitting to their employees that they are working in asbestos contaminated areas. Most people who are diagnosed with Mesothelioma are genuinely surprised, unless of course their company or former company has been sued a few times by former or current employees in a Mesothelioma lawsuit.


I recently read a review of a company which had been sued four times for Mesothelioma claims and asbestos exposure and the majority of the company's retired employees discovered the health risks were present for the initial stage of the hearings. He was excused when he admitted being a former employee, and once released from his responsibilities as a juror, he informed as many retirees as he could find. Seven of the retired employees were subsequently tested and diagnosed with Mesothelioma.


Obviously, situations as such are very rare. Yet the point remains that people do not have the information they need regarding asbestos exposure and the threat that Mesothelioma presents in their life. Withholding such information leaves people at a serious disadvantage when it comes to making educated decisions about their health as it pertains to the work environment. It is fair to say that people do not typically willingly expose themselves to high levels of asbestos knowing the threat of Mesothelioma is very real and very ugly.


Mesothelioma settlements reflect the company's acknowledgement as to their culpability in these cases. While there is the perpetual excuse that companies tend to settle a Mesothelioma lawsuit to avoid negative press, there is much more truth to the notion that a company is much more willing to shell out to a Mesothelioma victim they are readily convinced contracted the disease while working for their company than they are to give hand outs to people they believe did not get sick working for them. A fight is only worth fighting when you believe you can win.


Not every case of Mesothelioma is one that will end up in settlement or a Mesothelioma lawsuit. A competent California mesothelioma lawyer will honestly tell you that not every case of Mesothelioma is able to make it to court or settlement. There are some determining factors that play into whether or not a Mesothelioma case will make it past the first meeting with a California mesothelioma lawyer.


Only a qualified California mesothelioma lawyer can tell you whether or not the specifics of your case qualify, but a few factors that determine a solid Mesothelioma case include the use of the asbestos, the quality of the lawyer, the laws during the time of both construction and employment, current legislation, and the time period which the building was constructed.


Fighting a Mesothelioma lawsuit is time consuming. So is treating the symptoms of Mesothelioma. Some people that start a Mesothelioma lawsuit are unable to finish their lawsuit due to health reasons. This does lay the groundwork for families to continue the Mesothelioma lawsuit in the event that the unfortunate but often inevitable conclusion to Mesothelioma.


Families often file a wrongful death Mesothelioma lawsuit after the victim has passed away. Most California mesothelioma lawyers will advise at least allowing them to gather direct information from the client even if the client has no intention of filing a Mesothelioma lawsuit. This allows the Mesothelioma attorney a chance to gather pertinent information that the family members of the victim may not be able to adequately answer.


No Mesothelioma victim should ever feel pressured to file a Mesothelioma lawsuit. Regardless of everything else, the decision to file a Mesothelioma lawsuit can only come from the victim.

About the Author

Nick Johnson is lead counsel and founding partner of Johnson Law Group. Johnson represents plaintiffs throughout California and focuses on injury cases involving Mesothelioma. Visit http://www.nickjohnsonlaw.com or call 1-888-311-5522 immediately to request a free case evaluation.

California Labor Law Attorney Announces New Blog

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The Internet and Enterprise Liability

Manageable liabilities are part of the cost of doing business; extraordinary liabilities such as hostile workplace suits, negative public relations and the negligent disclosure of personally identifiable information can go a long way towards sinking your business. So what new liabilities have you brought upon yourself since your company decided to connect to the ‘Net?

The term “hostile workplace” conjures up images of people coming to work with lead pipes or screaming supervisors hitting employees over the head with their staplers. All that has changed: Sally walks past Fred’s cubicle and Fred has the Pamela Lee video running on his screen. Then Fred, who has always had a weird sense of humor, email broadcasts an off-color joke that he thinks is a riot. Most of the recipients think Fred’s joke is marginally funny, if that, but Sally, who is miserable to begin with, is now sent over the edge and decides to retire by slapping a hostile workplace lawsuit on you. Sound like an exaggeration? The Internet has broadened the definition of sexual harassment. Edward Jones, the world’s ninthbiggest

brokerage firm, issued a memo demanding its workers disclose if they sent pornography or off-color jokes over the brokerage’s e-mail system. Forty-one employees who confessed were disciplined, but 19 who failed to come forward were fired. Dow Chemical fired 24 employees and disciplined hundreds of others for storing and sending sexual or violent images on the company’s computers. Twelve librarians in Minneapolis filed a complaint saying that library visitors were downloading porn, including bestiality and child molestation, and leaving it for librarians and patrons to see. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ruled against the library in favor of the librarians saying that the library "did subject the charging party to [a] sexually hostile work environment." Losing these lawsuits can be very costly. Recommended restitution for the librarians was $900,000. Chevron agreed to a $2.2 million settlement for a lawsuit brought against it for emails offending women. According to EEOC statistics, American businesses pay in excess of $50 million a year in judgments relating to sexual harassment charges. This bill doesn’t include monetary benefits obtained through litigation nor does it include legal fees and the totally unproductive time of defending these lawsuits. And this doesn’t just apply to blue chip companies. According to AIG insurance, the EEOC is fervently pursuing small to medium sized business with average awards on the order of $1 million. One customer of our Employee Internet Management software implemented our solution in her business because she suspected employees were wasting too much time on the Web and sending an inordinate amount of personal e-mail. Not only did her instincts prove correct, she also found one employee who was starting her own Internet adult Web site – while at work! While on the company dime, this employee was developing her web site including downloading porn to post on her website and creating lurid sex stories for her potential customers. Talk about a productivity hit combined with a potential hostile workplace claim – yes, men filed 14% of the charges of sexual harassment in 2005. The offending woman was summarily dismissed from the customer’s business before the situation worsened.

Public image and how customers perceive your company is crucial to any business’s success Goodwill is an intangible asset that adds significant value to the equity in your company. One need only think of Enron to realize the host of issues beyond the Internet that can negatively affect a company’s image forcing the company to fold or spend an inordinate amount of money to rebuild the way people perceive it. But the Internet brings a new dimension to potential PR nightmares. Nadine Hoabsh, an associate editor for Ladies Home Journal, decided to publish work details in her then anonymous and very popular Web Log (Blog), Jolie in NYC. She wrote about lavish perks given only to executives, detailed a "beauty hierarchy" within the organization and named names of favored employees. When Hoabash was outed as the author of the blog, her criticism of her employer was an embarrassment to Ladies Home Journal with its customers, agents and competitors. One of our company’s service industry customers is incisively concerned that his customer billable hours are correct and verifiable. Our customer feels that his credibility would be destroyed if a disgruntled employee were to lead customers to believe they were being charged for time his employees are spending on personal Internet use. Whether you’re a small or large organization, if you’re a company that spends time or money building an image, nothing can tarnish that image and erase the value of those advertising dollars quicker than being associated with child porn. One of our multinational manufacturing customers quickly dismissed an employee for intentionally downloading child porn and reported the individual to authorities. Our customer not only realized that they had to circle the wagons to protect their image but had a legal and moral responsibility to the community in which the offender resides.

In addition to image problems, lawmakers have piled on a host of laws and regulations that require the safeguarding of personally identifiable information. Violations of laws like HIPAA, SOX and GLB all contain stiff fines and even jail time for violations of their regulations. Regardless of these mandates, issues abound protecting privacy on the ‘Net. In 2005, Bank of America and Wachovia notified over 100,000 customers that their accounts and personal identity information were at risk because of a scheme by bank employees who allegedly sold the data to a middleman who then brokered it to collection agencies. In February of the same year, a Florida statistician working for the Palm Beach Health Department inadvertently sent a broadcast email containing a highly confidential list of the names and addresses of 4,500 Palm Beach County residents with AIDS and 2,000 others who were HIV positive. The email was sent to more than 800 county health department employees. In 2001, Eli Lilly sent an email to all registrants of its time-to-take-your-Prozac reminder service. But instead of sending an email individually to each customer, Eli Lilly broadcast the email to all recipients by placing all subscribers’ addresses in the “To:” field of the e-mail thereby unintentionally disclosing to each individual subscriber the e-mail addresses of all subscribers. Not exactly a cure for depression. Lilly received a slew of bad press and a slap on the wrist by the FTC requiring Lilly to strengthen and monitor their data security procedures.

please visit us at : http://www.pearlsw.com.

About the Author

Pearl Software provides Employee Internet Monitoring, filtering and control solutions to companies, schools, libraries and government agencies.

House Session 2010-04-14 (13:44:51-14:45:36)

Vote 2010: A guide to Berks County's primary election
The Pennsylvania primary will be held May 18 to nominate candidates for the Nov. 2 general election. The state uses a closed primary system, meaning only registered Democrats and Republicans may participate and can vote only for candidates in their own party.
Employment Law : How to Create a Certificate of Authenticity

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More Travel questions please visit : TravelFreeFAQ.com

About the Author

TravelFreeFAQ.com

Personal Injury Attorney, Personal Injury Lawyer in San Diego CA 92101

Gabriel Resources Ltd.: First Quarter 2010 Report
Gabriel Resources Ltd. (TSX: GBU) read more
Part 7 General Mills got former attorney Jeffery A. Sutton to avoid talking to all witnesses

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employment references in Illinois?

Does anyone know what a prespective employer can ask a previous employer about a person by law, and if the prespective employer has to disclose who said something negative about you that costs you the new job?

NOW for a correct answer.

a prospective employer can ask anything they wish of a former employer. There is no law in any state or federal statutes which limits the scope of questions allowed to be asked.

As for the previous employer, they can answer any way they feel like it. Again, nothing in law limits their response.

However, information that is actionable would fall under HIPPA and Protected Status regulations.

Again, however, if you are asking can a former employer answer that "I didn't think she was a very good employee. She was often late and left early and didn't do her job well..." then yes, that is allowed.

Petitioning for Executive Clemency

Tax Law Changes That Will Impact your 2007 Tax Return

Expect some changes when you file your 2007 tax return! Here are a few highlights from the Small Business and Work Opportunity Act of 2007.

Do you own real estate?

At the very end of 2007, Congress passed a bill with several tax law changes impacting real estate. Qualified Joint Ventures by Married Taxpayers If a husband and wife who file a joint return are the only members of a qualified joint venture, they can elect not to be treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes. Applies to tax years beginning after December 31, 2006.

§179 Deductions: This great deduction has been extended through 2010. Taxpayers with $500,000 or less in assets placed in service on or after January 1, 2007 can elect to expense immediately up to $125,000.

GO ZONE §179 Deductions: For 2007 Taxpayers with $1,050,000 or less in assets placed in service on or after January 1, 2007 can elect to expense immediately up to $212,000.

FICA Tip Credit: The FICA tip credit will continue to be based on the old minimum wage of $5.15 even though the minimum wage is scheduled to increase to $7.25 over the next two years. Applies to tips received for services performed after December 31, 2006.

Work Opportunity Tax Credit: The Work Opportunity Tax Credit is extended an additional 44 months through August 31, 2011. (Note that with respect to an employer that hires a targeted individual on August 31, 2011, the credit will be available for wages paid through August 30, 2012.) The targeted veterans group is expanded to include veterans with service-connected disabilities, and doubles the maximum credit for hiring those veterans. The "high-risk youth" targeted group has been replaced with a much broader group that includes older individuals (up through age 39), and individuals who reside in certain rural counties. The rehabilitation referrals group has been expanded to include individuals referred through a Social Security Administration Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program. Applies to individuals who begin work for the employer after May 25, 2007.

Waiver of AMT Limits on Work Opportunity and FICA Tip Credits: The work opportunity tax credit and the credit for portion of FICA taxes paid with respect to employee cash tips may offset alternative minimum tax liability. The waiver of AMT limits apply to credits determined in tax years beginning after December 31, 2006, and to carrrybacks of such credits. Effective for tax years beginning after December 31, 2006, and to carrybacks of such credits.

Sale of Stock in a Qualified Subchapter S Subsidiary: An S corporation's sale of a QSub's stock is treated as a sale of an undivided interest in the QSub's assets followed by a deemed creation of the subsidiary in a §351 transaction. These new rules are not intended to affect current law treatment of transfers of QSub stock in otherwise nontaxable transactions. For example, certain pro rata distributions of QSub stock by a parent S corporation to its shareholders can qualify for tax free treatment if the requirements of §355 and §368(a)(1)(D). Applies to tax years beginning after December 31, 2006.

What changes are in store for your 2008 taxes?

Kiddie Tax: The kiddie tax is expanded to apply to any child who is 18 years old or is a full time student over the age of 18, but under age 24. However, the kiddie tax will not apply to such individuals if their earned income exceeds half of their support for the year. Does not apply until 2008.

Passive Investment Income of S Corporations: S corporation capital gain from the sale or exchange of stock or securities is no longer characterized as passive investment income. Gross receipts from more regular income streams (those derived from rents, royalties, dividends, interest and annuities) remain subject to the passive investment income limitations. Becomes effective for tax years beginning after May 25, 2007.

About the Author

Tom Wheelwright is not only the founder and CEO of Provision, but he is the creative force behind Provision Wealth Strategists. In addition to his management responsibilities, Tom likes to coach clients on wealth, business, and tax strategies. Along with his frequent seminars on these strategies, Tom is an adjunct professor in the Masters of Tax program at Arizona State University. For more information, visit http://www.provisionwealth.com.com .

WorkersCompensation.com NewsLine 10/10/2006

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UK Employment law - whats my position?

I'm currently on a temp agency contract which is renewed every month. I work alongside permanent employees.

I used to work for one of the large agencies. I am afraid this is a common problem for temp staff.
It is NOT the case more often than not that the temp is not good enough for the job. It IS however, more likely that the company you are working temp for, DON'T want to pay the fees to the temp agency for taking you on permanently. The Fees are quite high.
If you are really disgruntled about this, ask your temp advisor to talk with them on your behalf. Loads of temps get into full time work like this.She will work on them for you, since you have been doing the job and doing it well by what you say. The Temp Advisor can point out to them, that this is an unfair situation.

Fiscal Commission Public Forum 4 of 7

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Do's and Don'ts in the Workplace (part I)

The following is an excerpt from my new book, "MORPHING INTO THE REAL WORLD - A Handbook for Entering the Work Force" which is a survival guide for young people as they transition into adult life. The book offers considerable advice regarding how to manage our personal and professional lives. As a part of this, I found it necessary to discuss the legal ramifications of employment.

Do's and Don'ts in the Workpace (Part I)

Life is full of rules and regulations. The only reason we write rules is to protect us from those who would break them. In past essays, I've discussed several unwritten rules for acclimating into the corporate culture. Now we will focus on the formal written rules you will be dealing with in your professional life, along with commentary on how to deal with them.

RULE #1 - GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING. Like it or not, we now live in a litigious society where lawsuits are issued at the drop of a hat. When you first join a new company you will likely be inundated with documentation requiring your signature. Be sure to review the terms and conditions carefully before signing anything and make sure you retain a copy of all documentation for your personal files at home. If you have any questions, ask for clarification. Some of it will only apply to your term of employment, others may follow you for quite some time thereafter (sometimes in perpetuity). Some of the documentation will pertain to government regulations, such as for income taxes and social security, some will relate to benefit programs, such as your health care providers, and some relates specifically to your employer. Most will use standard legal language. Regardless, read everything carefully and, when in doubt, seek suitable legal advice.

Employment

As a new employee, you must be cognizant of your employment status which is defined for government reporting purposes. There are two types of employment status:

EXEMPT - This represents professional workers who are paid a salary as opposed to an hourly wage (typically compensated on a monthly basis). The term "exempt" means the worker is exempt from certain wage and hour laws. For example, exempt workers may work many hours and are not paid overtime.

NON-EXEMPT - The opposite of exempt. This is normally administrative workers or laborers who are paid an hourly wage and subject to certain wage and hour laws. For example, they are limited in terms of the number of hours they may work (such as 40), are paid a special rate for overtime (extra hours), and may be entitled to specific breaks during the work day.

Punctuality

Regardless of your employment status, there will be defined working hours you will have to observe. The only difference is that non-exempt workers must watch the number of hours they work more closely than exempt workers which is inconsequential. Non-exempt employees can be docked for pay if they are late to work or leave early.

Most employees will follow a fixed schedule of working hours, such as 9:00am to 5:00pm. However, some companies make use of "Flex Time" for exempt employees. This is a time management program that allows employees to keep more flexible hours than a fixed schedule. They may come in early one day (and leave early), and late another (and leave later). This allows employees to make personal appointments either early in the morning or late in the afternoon. Regardless, they are still expected to work a certain number of hours during the day and week.

The amount of time allowed for lunch varies from company to company; most allow 30-45 minutes for lunch.

This emphasis on starting/stopping times, both in the workplace and in school, has created a generation of "clock watchers," people more interested in counting the number of hours they spend at work as opposed to the work they are to produce. Not long ago, I was visiting a client in Ohio where a young programmer bragged to me he had worked 14 hours that day. I asked him what he had produced during that time. After much hemming and hawing he admitted he hadn't actually produced much of anything. I admonished him that he should be more concerned about the volume of work he was producing as opposed to the amount of time he spent producing it, particularly since he was an exempt worker.

In every work day you will see people slowly getting started for the day and ramping down towards the end. Being a baseball fan, I would often use the analogy that the work day was like a professional baseball game, particularly for exempt workers. First, the players do not show up at game time, they are usually at the ballpark earlier to warm up and take batting practice. And second, they give it their all throughout the game until the last out is made. In other words, if you are a slow starter for the day, try to get to work a little earlier so you are awake by the start of the business day, and; give it your all until the close of the business day. After all, isn't this what you are being paid for?

Personal Time, Sick Days, Vacations and Holidays

During the work day you will be entitled to take some breaks to refresh yourself. Such breaks are invaluable for clearing your head and refocusing on your job. Of course there will be those "time wasters" who will abuse this privilege and take more breaks than normal. This type of person is putting his personal interests ahead of everyone else's. In other words, he is not a team player. Be leary of such people as management will inevitably weed them out.

You should not have any problems taking a break if you have developed a reputation for delivering on assignments and have developed a trust with your boss.

In terms of sick days, you will be entitled to take a certain number, but understand this: they are for illness, not for vacations or hangovers. Nothing raises suspicions with management more than excessive use of sick days. Some companies even mandate that if you are sick, you give some form of evidence to that effect, e.g., a doctor's note.

You will also be entitled to take a certain number of vacation days during the year. Check with company policy to see if they must be taken as contiguous days or randomly, such as on a Friday now and then. Perhaps the hardest part in terms of taking a vacation is scheduling them. It is not uncommon to have to request your vacation many months in advance. Because of the need to keep your department operational, a manager does not want to strip the staff down to a point where it cannot adequately service its customers. Consequently, vacation schedules must be arranged in advance. Further, vacation schedules may be based on seniority. This means you, as the Newbie, are often the last one to schedule a vacation.

In terms of holidays, you will be entitled to standard days, e.g., New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas. However, your company may also observe other days, such as Armed Forces Day, Veterans Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents Day, Chanukah, etc. Consult management for all of the holidays you are entitled to.

Next week in Part II I'll describe such things as Moonlighting, Discussing Salaries, Job Titles, and Employment Contracts.

If you would like to discuss this with me in more depth, please do not hesitate to send me an e-mail.

About the Author

Tim Bryce is the Managing Director of M. Bryce & Associates (MBA) of Palm Harbor, Florida, a management consulting firm specializing in Information Resource Management (IRM). Mr. Bryce has over 30 years of experience in the field. He is available for lecturing, training and consulting on an international basis. His corporate web page is at:
http://www.phmainstreet.com/mba/


He can be contacted at: timb001@phmainstreet.com


Copyright © 2007 MBA. All rights reserved.

06/21/10: Press Briefing by Deputy Press Secretary Bill Burton

UK employment law, continual petty misconduct?

Where do I Stand in taking serious disciplinary action against an employee who has a large history of petty misconduct Occasions of poor time keeping, small lapses of job performance, poor attitude, occasional poor standard of work, poor customer service, dignity at work lapses, petty insults, also a confrontational / vexatious approach when challenged on the above by junior managers. No one single incident is by any means serious, events do not tend to repeat themselves it's something different each time but they have amassed a history of warnings & counsellings and show no sign of their behaviours coming into line. At what point can i reasonably move to say a final warning even if the trigger event is "petty" and unconnected to a previous incident. I s there a legal expression or clause for this type of behaviour

Have they had any verbal or written warnings previously?

If they have then you can move to final warning or sacking if the behaviour continues.
If not then get the process started asap.
It is upto the company to determine the timescale for improvement but it must be "reasonable".

Make sure you detail all the reasons for the disicplinary and ensure you have regular meetings during the "probation" period.

Ron Cummings Interview Action News

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4 Ways to Start Fresh for 2010

With the dawn of a new year approaching it is time to start planning the organizations Human Resources priorities for the new year. This can be a daunting task and quite a large undertaking for many employers. Many Human Resources initiatives involve long time lines and careful planning is always advised. If you have identified your organization’s Human Resources needs or initiatives for 2010 make sure enough time is allotted for the planning, research, development, and implementation of those initiatives to allow for the smoothest implementation possible. A few good guidelines to follow are discussed briefly below.

Employee Handbook: Review your current Employee Handbook and ensure the included policies are still in line with your business practices and mission, and revise when necessary. It is also a good idea to update existing policies to reflect any federal and/or state employment regulations since your last update; for example the expanded Family and Medical Leave (FMLA) language regarding Military Family Leave entitlements. Remove any policies that are no longer applicable, if any. A few key areas to review are paid time off policies, leave of absence policies, non-discrimination policies, anti-harassment policies and attendance policies.

Employee File Review: Ensure current addresses are on file for W-2 purposes. File any outstanding paperwork, so you can begin the year fresh. Additionally, you should make sure the information contained in the file is up to date and accurate, such as job title, pay rate, attendance record, etc. You may consider purging employee files that you are no longer required to keep by law, make sure you know the federal and applicable state requirements for the length of time files are required to be retained. If it is not your practice to purge files you may consider putting those files in long term storage.

Training Needs: If training needs have been identified, plan out a training schedule for 2010. Schedule trainings required by your industry, licensing requirements, or state and/or local governments. For example: California requires Sexual Harassment Prevention training for supervisors on a bi-annual basis. If training needs have not been identified work with staff and managers to determine what trainings will be of benefit to the employees and organization as a whole. Develop a plan and establish a budget to address those identified needs.

Staffing Needs: Many employers have had the unfortunate circumstance of having to lay off employees in the last year or have had to implement cost saving measures in regards to staffing such as reducing work hours. Now is the time to look at the current state of your business and determine if those staffing decisions are still applicable. If you have open positions to fill consider recalling employees that were previously laid off.

About the Author

Michele O Donnell, M.S. Human Resources Management. joined MMC, Inc. in January 2007 and currently leads MMC's elite team of HR Consultants. Ms. O Donnell has been involved in the Human Resources industry for more than 14 years, bringing vast training and management experience to the MMC leadership ranks. Her experience spans the broad scope of labor law, regulatory compliance and HR Best Practices, drawn from her rich experience as Director of HR for several firms throughout her career. She currently works to ensure that MMC's consultants forge long lasting relationships with our clients, fostered in exceptional service and unsurpassed HR expertise. Ms. O Donnell earned her baccalaureate degree in Business Administration from Auburn University before receiving her Masters degree in Human Resource Management from Troy State University. Learn more about MMC’s comprehensive HR services at http://www.mmchr.com

Terri on the 2009 ERI California Employment Law Update

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On what basis can employers discriminate in hiring?

Employers can discriminate against smokers.
Obviously, they should discriminate based on ability to do a job.

Although it's unethical employers can discriminate based on weight and sexual orientation.
Currently there are 7 protected class: race, color, sex, religion, national origin, gender, and age.

Employers can also not discrminate based on an actual or perceived disability (or is the person is close to someone who has a disability) as long as the limitations due to the disability do not significantly affect the requirements for the job.

There is an exception to this but it is rarely used. If the job qualifies for a BFOQ (Bona Fide Occupational Qualification) then there could be an exception. For example, if there is an ad posted for a female model to model women's clothing, the employer can obvious note hire (discriminate) against a man even if he can fit in the clothes.

Hope this helps.

Binghamton, NY Proposes Transgender Protection

Bilingual Services in Call Centers

The global nature of products & services and the rise in purchasing power of developing countries have increased the customer base of an ordinary business. Imagine a scenario. A prospect or customer calls up a business to ask for clarification or information but is unable to communicate due to differences in language. This peeves the customer as he feels unimportant and his problems are resolved. He leaves your business or worse moves to your rival business

How do smart businesses tackle such problems? Simple. They ensure that the call center they hire offer bilingual services at their call center.

So now if you are the business who has hired an ordinary call center for customer support, remember you just lost a prospect or a customer. And I’m sure that in these hard times you feel like I do- Each and every customer is important.

Changes in demography along with change in State policies have increased the need for efficient models of providing language services to people with Limited English Proficiency (LEP). The sharp rise in the Latino community in the US has increased the need for Spanish language Customer Service Support. There is a steep demand for bilingual employees in all industries – healthcare, education, finance, sale and marketing. Employees with knowledge of English and Spanish are sought after. Other languages sought out are –German, Japanese, and Russian.

Since the world has become a global village using the vehicle of internet, it’s very important for the companies to target customers from all over the world. It would mean to be well versed in their language.

There is a need for bilingual customer service support system in call centers. This has led to formation of bilingual teams by Managers. The job description states the criteria of knowledge a minimum of two languages. It is deciding factor in selecting staff members. The business class or companies seeking customer are responsible for language assistance. They cater to the needs of the clients such as providing interpreters and translators. Telephonic services use bilingual staff to cater to the needs of LEP. Shortage of bilingual staff and trained professional interpreters are considered to be a resource constraint. In order to be successful the language needs of the customers are identified and steps are taken to introduce language access at the first points of client contact, for example at the front desk.

The bilingual staff performs multiple roles. Individuals with conversational proficiency in a second language may provide limited telephone assistance at the front desk while those with greater proficiency may interpret during interviews with the clients. In the field of medicine or other clinical needs assistance in the language of the patient is a must, even more so if the patient or person seeking information is LEP. The bicultural translators who act as cultural brokers provide accurate translation in a clinical sound culturally relevant manner.

Making any Organization bilingual I not one day’s job. Like any process of change, the actual implementation needs meticulous planning. The process differs with different organizations having different needs. The growth should be reviewed and the advantage should be assessed.

In the State of California there is a Law, Dymally Alatorre Bilingual Services Act which provides for bilingual staff in State offices and departments. It states its objective as, “Employment of bilingual persons in public contact positions to ensure the position of importance and service to the public in language of the non-English speaking persons.” Even in Canada commercial leases have to be drafted in both English and French, which are the official languages. The Canadian Heritage funds various organizations under official language support programs. These funds are used to create linguistic duality.

Bilingual community is a reality. Government offices were quick to realize it and smart businesses do the same. Keep the options for your customers open. When  customers are asked about their language preference and get to talk in their preferred language they are at ease and are more relaxed. Now the chances of closing the order and making him a loyal customer increases.

About the Author

Randall J. Harmat is the President of Ansafone Communications a full Service Call Center located in downtown Santa Ana, CA. Some call center services include bilingual inbound/outbound telemarketing, third party verification, seminar reservations and appointment setting, database management, order taking, voice mail and customized customer service operations. During his tenure, Ansafone has succeeded in its quest to recruit and retain a premier management team to carve its course into the 21st century.

California BSIS seems to condone American Police Force (APPF/APF) unlicensed security activity

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Fair Opportunity for Disabled Employees

There are certain forms of workplace discrimination that are not allowed in the United States under the Employment Law. The employer must be discriminating on the basis of a protected category in order for the discrimination to be considered illegal.

Such forms of illegal discrimination protected under the area of Federal Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Laws include age, gender, race, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, pregnancy, and disability discrimination. This article will discuss on the latter: disability discrimination.

The Federal Law which forbids employment discrimination against “qualified individuals with disabilities” in the private sector, and in state and local governments falls under the Title I and Title V of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990.

ADA defines disability, with respect to an individual, as:

a. A mental or physical impairment that significantly limits one or more of the major life activities of such individuals; (Major life activities are actions that an average person can perform with little or no difficulty such as walking, seeing, breathing, hearing, speaking, learning, working, and caring for oneself..)

b. A record of such an impairment; or

c. Being considered as having such impairment

A qualified employee or applicant with a disability is described as an individual who possess the legitimate skills, experience, education or other requirements of a position. Further, he or she can perform the essential functions of the job in question with or without reasonable accommodation.

Reasonable accommodation is any modification or adjustment to a job or work requirement that will enable a qualified applicant or employee to participate in the application process or to perform essential job functions.

An employer is required to make reasonable accommodations to the known disability of a qualified applicant or employee if it would not impose an “undue hardship” on the operation of the employer’s business.

Job discrimination against people with disabilities is illegal if practiced by:

• Private employers

• State and local governments

• Employment agencies

• Labor organizations

• Labor management committees

Under the ADA, it is unlawful to discriminate a disabled person in any aspect of employment, including:

• Hiring and firing

• Compensation, assignment, or classification of employees

• Transfer, promotion, layoff, or recall

• Job advertisements

• Recruitment

• Use of company facilities

• Training and apprenticeship programs

• Fringe benefits

• Pay, retirement plans, and disability leave

• Other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment

Unfair prejudice denies disabled people the chance to participate and compete equally with other workers. They are also denied the opportunity to live independently and be self-sufficient. The laws on discrimination prevent these from happening.

Now, if unlawful discrimination is practiced by an employer or any entity, a disabled applicant or employee may file a claim. He or she may file it with the local office of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) or the anti-discrimination agency of the state where the employee works. In the state of California, this agency would be the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH).

Once the EEOC has determined that a person has a right to sue, the plaintiff will normally have 90 days to file a lawsuit in court. An expert disability discrimination attorney will be a great partner in taking a legal action.

If you think you have been discriminated by your employer due to your disability, seek the aid of our vigorous Los Angeles lawyers. Just log on to our website and know how to contact our expert legal team.

About the Author

Before becoming an online writer, Claysphere worked as a legal researcher, data analyst, and lyricist in a local band in his hometown. He has a degree in law, and worked for several law offices as a paralegal, office staff and as a researcher. He has continued to write topics relating to his learning in law.

HIV & AIDS Discrimination in San Francisco - Dolan Law Firm

'MOTHER NATURE HAS BEEN KIND TO US': Calm seas give responders a chance to fight back (11:30 P.M. UPDATE)
GRAND ISLE, La. - People along the Gulf Coast have spent weeks living with uncertainty, wondering where and when a huge slick of oil might come ashore, ruining their beaches - and their livelihoods. The anxiety is so acute that some are seeing and...
Ellen Simon | Genetic Testing | Health Insurance | Healthcare Discrimination

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British Illegal immigrants?

Illegal immigrants residing in britain often tend to complain about racism and discrimination from society. Whereas I totally renounce racism and all sorts of abuse based on skin color, i would like to advice them not to link every situation to race as they come here through the back doors and expect a grand life.
employment for foreign nationals in uk is purely based within the immigration legal frame works. Already being law brakers, they should not be pushing businesses to infringe on the law and illegally give them jobs.

The problem faced by the Borders Agency in Britain, in deprting Illegal Immigrants is there is no record of what Country these immigrants came from. They know that under International law, any Illegal Immigrant must be deported to the Country of his Birth, so these Immigrants destroy all forms of Identification of them selves before they arrive here to prevent themselves being deported back to the Country of their Birth. Therefore until the Border Agency can get this information, they remain in Britain, and getting this information can take months or even years. Meanwhile although they are kept in secure accomodation, they are entitled to avail their use of the NHS, and recieve certain benefits. Once Illegal Immigrants are in the International waters of Britain, their Welfare becomes our responsibility under the Human Rights act, so we cannot turn their boats away. It was during Tony Blair introduced the Human Rights Act, and at the same time reduced the number of staff working for the border Agency which has caused Immigration to become the problem it is, and it seems there is no solution to it. Even when an illgal immigrant has been identified of his Country of Birth, he has the legal right to appeal against any descision to deport him, again, this can takes months before the matter is brought to court.costing this country, Millions in Solicitors fees.
AS to Companies employing Illegal Immigrants, the Propieter of the Companies involved is liable to a fine of £10,000 for every Illegal immigrant he employs, and quite a lot have been caught

New Miami-Dade law targets wage theft by employers
Miami-Dade workers have a new tool for collecting their wages: a law requiring companies to pay them within 14 days of doing the work. Sparked by stories of low-wage workers going unpaid, the county commission enacted the rule Feb. 28, making Miami-Dade County one of the few places in the country with such protection.
Annette Bernhardt and Amy Carroll on Unprotected Workers

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Law school questions and answers

What School Is Best for an Eventual Career in Law?
I've been admitted into usc (the business program), umichigan, and tufts. I know that USC and UMICH have awesome law schools, and that they take a high number of students from their undergraduate program into their law schools, though Tufts seems like a great school too. But I was.

Which will be better..BBA LLB or BA LLB as an undergraduate law degree?
I am filling up my form for the undergraduate law schools in India.i want to know which would be better..BALLB or BBA LLB.I want to pursue a carrerr in corporate law..I also want to know will pursuing an BBA LLB programme deter my chances of getting.

Would law schools be more lenient on GPA if I major in Chemical Engineering and aspire to be a patent lawyer?
I'm a second-year ChemE major student at UC Berkeley. I want to go to law school and practice patent law, but my GPA is a little less than a 3.0. Do I have a chance? I think you.

Are there any good law schools in california?
I am begging high school in the bay area, and i was wondering if there are any good law schools there, or in the state of California and the requirements to get into them There are scads of good law schools in California: we turn out more lawyers than anybody. In.

Can someone please tell me about some NGO which gives free legal aid to women in distress?
http://www.neveragainfoundation.org/.law schools http://www.opdv.state.ny.us/victims/. Also, if there are any law schools in your area, they probably have a domestic violence clinic that will provide free assistance. - Try your local city or state bar associations.

How are medical challenges to 'free will' being discussed in US law schools?
Neurology and genetics are suggesting that many behaviors are biologically determined ('nature'), even more than the 'nurture' of training and experience. The trend is for more and more behaviors to be determined by genetics. What is being taught about this topic in law schools in the.

I want to find a law school in NYC and the price it will cost to go there can anyone help me thank you?
There are numerous law schools in New York City. There's New York University, Columbia, Fordham Law School, Cardozo Law School (a school in Yeshiva University), and New York Law School (different from NYU). St..

What are sum of the top law schools for criminal law ?
The same as the general top ten: Yale, Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, NYU, Chicago, Penn, Michigan, Berkeley, Virginia and Duke. No one really pays attention to specialty rankings. - Outside of the Ivy League, I highly recommend San Diego and Univ. of Arkansas. - Law schools don't.

What do I do if I dont get accepted to any law schools this year?!?! ?
Ok, I graduated from college last year, 'studied' for the LSAT, then took it in December. My score was pure crap, so I took in again in February and I had to cancel it (its a long story). I still sent out my.

What states has the most diffucult Bar Exam to pass?
again, it's for an article that I am writing. California has the lowest passing rate -- but that may be due to the fact that California is the only state that allows graduates of non-accredited law schools to sit for the bar exam. New York has an exam that.

how do you get into law school?
I find a key works pretty well, or if you lose your keys, then a crowbar. - First you must have a bachelor's degree - doesn't matter in what really. Then you have to take the LSAT and apply to particular law schools. Law school is very hard but not undoable..

How much does being a lawyer pay?
Like, how much does a lawyer make? And is it a good amount of money? Lawyer pay is all over the map. Right out of law school some graduates make six figures at their very first jobs. Those people graduate from top tier law schools and they ranked at the top of.

Is the law field in fact oversaturated with attorneys?
Why is it that many people cliam that the Field of Law is oversaturated with attorneys while on the other hand, many other sources claim that the forecast is looking good. The statistics at almost all law schools show that the majority of their recent graduates had no problem finding.

Misdemeanor & Law School?
Hello, I was wondering if it was possible to get into law schools with a Misdemeanor Class B (Texas). I have turned in all the police reports and a statement about the incident to the law school. The incident happened 5 years ago. I plead guilty and recieved probation. I owned up to the mistake.

My daughter needs a Pro bono atty in central fl to fight to get kids back.?
She really needs legal help. Doesn't have the funds to do it. I am disabled and cannot help. Legal aid won't help because the grandparents have been given legal guardianship and have closed her case. HELP Seek out law schools in your area..

Prestigious law school?
Hey. I need some suggestions for law schools. I have a 3.7 gpa or something like that. I want something that will wow my future employers. Hartfords a no-brainer, but what are some others? thx Remember that a law degree (J.D.) is a graduate degree. As you mentioned that you are now in the 10th.

I went to a terrible law school, how do I get law firms to hire me?
Even though I went to one of the worst law schools in the country (California Western), I scored in the 99% on my LSAT and have an IQ of 150 (1 in 300). I know I'm smarter than most attorneys regardless of school,.

top 5 law schools and statistics?
The top three are usually listed as 1.) Yale, 2.) Harvard and 3.) Stanford. The next tier is University of Chicago, New York University, and Columbia. There's another eight which regularly make it in varying order into the top 14. Then, there's the Top 25. The top 50 make up the 'Tier.

What are the best places in UK or USA to study Law?
Well of course rating schools is somewhat arbitrary. I don't know about schools in the UK, but there are a couple of sources of information on ratings of US law schools. Best in many US ratings combines ratings of reputation (which changes slowly), alumni support, the.

What does it take to become a lawyer? How many years at college, etc.?
PLease don't spam. In the U.S., most law schools will tell you that you need a four-year degree from an accredited college or university, then most states require a juris doctor from an accredited law school before taking the bar exam. Law School is usually.

what is the best school of law in the united states of america?
The top three law schools in the countery are generally considered to be Yale, Harvard, and Stanford. Yale is consistently ranked #1 according to the US News Law School rankings, and it's easy to see why. Yale has a very small class of just a.

What law schools are in Orange County CA?
There are several - Fourth tier schools like Whittier Law School (Nixon is an alumni) and Chapman are decent schools, for being low ranked. There are a few others - I've heard of one called Trinity in Santa Ana, and I think it's California Western?? or is it Western State?.

Which law schools have the best programs in constitutional law?
I'm planning on applying to law school this fall, and I'm wanting to take alot of courses on con-law. I know obviously the top tier schools like Harvard, Columbia, Yale, etc are all going to have good constitutional law programs but what other schools have good programs, and where.

How old do you have to be to become a lawyer?
That will vary from state to state. But, by the time you get through with high school, college and law school the age is around 25. I got my license at 23. - Because of the content of many of their mandatory courses, law schools do not.

Is there any good reasonable criminal lawyers in Colorado?
Who would take payments for drug poss. charge Lots of them. Just look in the phone book! Also, look at the criminal defense clinics at the various law schools in Colorado. - CHECK THE LAWYERS BOARD MAYBE THEY CAN HELP YOU - Yeah, His name is Chris Miranda. He's in.

More Law school questions please visit : LawFreeFAQ.com

About the Author

LawFreeFAQ.com

Mechanical Turk and the Danger of Digital Sweatshops - Jonathan Zittrain

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Taylor English Ranked No. 1 Fastest-Growing Law Firm in Atlanta
Atlanta Business Chronicle today ranked Taylor English Duma LLP the fastest-growing law firm in Atlanta. No other law firm in the metro area posted a bigger increase in revenue or added more attorneys than Taylor English over the past five years, the report indicates. read more
Employer Labor Lawyer / Attorney in Georgia

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Five Costly Mistakes To Avoid In Wage And Hour Compliance

Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them in FLSA Compliance

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) of 1938 was a monumental piece of labor legislation that forever changed the face of business in America. For one, it established a national minimum wage (25 cents) for the first time. For another, it mandated the payment of overtime wages for most employees who do not fall under certain exempt categories. Finally, it regulated child labor on a nationwide basis, another first.

In fact, that legislation spawned the appearance of mandated labor law posters in the workplace. Then, as additional labor and employment laws were passed over the decades, including the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 and then the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) in 1970, the posters began multiplying, and soon an entire labor law poster compliance industry was born, spearheaded in large part by Personnel Concepts in California, to this day still the industry's premier provider.

While in the early days of the FLSA only businesses trafficking in interstate commerce, even in the loosest sense, were affected, as the decades have gone by, more and more businesses have fallen into the interstate commerce category and thus must abide by the standards of the FLSA and subsequent labor laws. (Family business operations that rely solely on direct family members are exempt.) Today, if you own a small business in Peoria, or anywhere, and you use the Internet or telephone to order supplies or deal with customers, you're an interstate entity. (The FLSA kicks it at $500,000 in revenue, but states cover the rest.) Tweet that you're offering a service, and the FLSA has you provided you're not a family operation. So who's exempt? For the most part, these days only domestic service workers can escape the clutches of the law—and even then it's a questionable exemption that Congress is currently working to eliminate.

For some reason, many employers unwittingly run afoul of the FLSA just by carrying out what they deem to be commonsensical approaches to managing their employees. Need an employee to stay an extra hour or two so you promise that person equal "comp" time off, forget it—you've probably just committed wage theft by not paying overtime. Let's examine some common mistakes like this one that employers make.

Misclassifying employees as exempt when they are actually non-exempt and subject to overtime pay. Employers often think that just by paying someone a salary, you can make that person exempt from overtime and avoid paying for hours worked beyond 40 a week. Paying a salary, according to the FLSA and the clarifying Fair Pay Overtime Rules of 2004, however, is just one part of the equation in granting an employee an overtime exemption. First, the employee must be paid a minimum salary a week, which currently stands at $455. Then, the employee must pass a "duties" test in prescribed executive, administrative, professional, and outside sales classifications. Someone who just answers a phone or files paperwork is not going to survive the duties test.

To illustrate that the distinction between exempt and non-exempt is sometimes so fine a line, even the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was busted by the Department of Labor (DOL) in 2009 for violating overtime pay rules. Large employers such as Wal-Mart have been taken to court and ordered to pay back overtime wages—or they've opted to settle before a court decision to avoid costly legal expenses. Wage theft in all forms, including the avoidance of overtime pay through misclassification, is in the DOL's crosshairs, so this is a particularly important area of labor law compliance to self-audit your firm on.

Offering comp time instead of paying overtime wages. Many employers assume that they can reward employees for working overtime with subsequent compensatory time off with regular pay. If the employee is truly exempt, this is a fine practice because salaried employees must be paid the same no matter how little or how much they work. However, for everyone else, the FLSA forbids this practice and insists on overtime pay. One exception: If your company is not in a state that mandates overtime pay after eight hours of work in any given day (which is the law in California and elsewhere), it is permissible to adjust an employee's working schedule within the same pay period so that total hours worked don't exceed 40. You can thus avoid paying for overtime, but your firm must be sure to retain positive records on file indicating the hours worked should the DOL come calling. The best practice overall is to avoid comp time except for salaried employees if you want to stay FLSA compliant—and sleep at night.

Classifying as exempt anyone who works in sales or is paid on a commission. The FLSA allows for salespersons to be classified as exempt only if they are engaged in "outside sales" at customers' places of business. The exemption does not apply to anyone who makes sales at any of the employer's places of business or conducts sales by mail, telephone or Internet. Likewise, the FLSA considers employees who are paid on a commission basis generally to be non-exempt and thus subject to overtime pay except when they receive more than half their compensation in the form of commissions at a "retail or service establishment."

Tellingly, an ongoing court controversy has surrounded the practice of labeling as exempt those pharmaceutical representatives who go from doctor's office to doctor's office explaining and introducing medications but not selling them per se. Some courts have ruled these reps to be non-exempt while other courts have found them to be exempt. If the controversy continues, it may take the Supreme Court to settle the issue once and for all.

Calculating overtime pay based on hourly wages only. In calculating overtime pay, an employer must take into account all forms of compensation during the pay period, including hourly pay, commissions and nondiscretionary bonuses. Thus in an example, an employee works 50 hours one week and earns $400 in hourly wages ($8 an hour) and $100 in commissions. Adding things together and dividing by hours worked, that person has earned $10 an hour overall ($400+$100=$500 divided by 50=$10). Since this employee has been paid regular pay for the 50 hours, she or he is owed 10 hours of overtime at one-half the computed hourly figure, or an extra $50 for a total paycheck of $550. This might sound confusing, but the computation of what's called the "regular rate" already includes everything except the half-time portion of the time-and-a-half for overtime.

The DOL is cracking down on all wage and overtime violations and has been awarded an increased budget to enable it to add Wage and Hour Division (WHD) field investigators to carry out the task. Thus this is no time to be lax and approach compensation issues from a "commonsense" perspective. It's time to learn all the requirements of the FLSA and apply them to both the classification and the compensation of your employees. And for their part, employees are being increasingly aggressive in seeking back pay—especially those whom you may have let go during the current recession. The WHD will investigate claims of wage violation and may interview other employees to see how widespread the suspected practice may have been.

To put things in perspective, in 2009 the 10 largest private wage-and-hour settlements totaled nearly $364 million, 44 percent more than the 10 biggest settlements in 2008. States with the most significant growth in wage-and-hour litigation are California, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Washington, according to law firm Seyfarth Shaw's annual report on workplace class action litigation.

Even more troubling for employers is the rise in private class-action lawsuits related to wage-and-hour issues. In 2009, Wal-Mart settled an FLSA suit for $11 million; Lowe's forked over $29 million; and Wachovia paid $39 million. These suits are often fact-intensive, and employers stand little chance of succeeding on a motion to dismiss claims brought under the FLSA. Further, the FLSA's attorney fee provision for plaintiffs who prevail results in increased monetary liability for employers.

What to do?

To protect against adverse legal and regulatory actions, employers should make sure that their workers' classifications are reviewed and updated regularly. Employers also should make sure they have workplace due process procedures in place so workers can bring their grievances to the attention of managers. Employers should promptly investigate and respond to all grievances because that can generally help ward off further action. If employees feel someone will listen to their concerns and act on them, they are much less likely to file a grievance that can lead to all sorts of regulatory and legal hassles.

Lastly, we at Personnel Concepts have researched, compiled and made available informative and easy-to-follow tools to help you comply. Two that are truly essential should be on everyone's shopping list. The first is the FLSA Overtime Rules Compliance Kit, and the second is the FLSA Salary Basis Compliance Kit. Get your copies today and master how to stay in full FLSA compliance.

About the Author

Gary McCarty is a researcher and Web Content Manager for Personnel Concepts, pioneer and pacesetter in the labor law compliance industry.

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Can an employer force staff to clean up after a raw sewage spillage without providing protective equipment?

My partner was ordered to clean up raw sewage that had been left outside for over 12 hours, she and another college refused and left at the end of their shift .. they are care workers. The manager specifically told the clean up crew to leave this sewage so she could point it out to the staff members (the overflow was caused by things being placed in the sluice and toilet that should not have been). I feel that this was unacceptable, as the manager seems to have broken a number of employment and environmental laws, ie No risk assessment done, not providing the correct protective equipment, no training to the staff for this thing, leaving raw sewage in an open unconfined area open to the general public.

i think u answer ur own ? they aren't alowed 2 do dat

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Who Owns All the Data in the Workplace?
Ten years ago employees wondered if their employers could look through their purses because they brought them to work. Today employees ask if employers own all the data in a workplace. Outten & Golden attorneys Wendi Lazar and Lauren Schwartzreich have some answers for the 2nd Circuit.
Workplace Harassment - Employers Beware!

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EasyToInsureME Individual Health Insurance Reform Weekly

Week of November 9, 2009

Given that the Senate is expected to require much more time than the House to vote on a health care bill (see below), it is likely there is not enough legislative time left in 2009 to wrap up a bill for Christmas delivery to the White House. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid fueled concerns about the schedule last week when he refused to commit publicly to passing an overhaul bill this year. This makes a "conference" between the House and Senate MORE likely in January 2010 THAN IN 2009, and that could require some time since the current House and Senate versions are vastly different on several key provisions. If the Conference pathway proves too contentious, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Reid could play legislative "ping-pong," whereby each Chamber makes a modest change and ships if off to the other, back and forth, until they both approve the same language.

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Federal

Late Saturday night the House of Representatives approved its version of health care reform by the slim margin of 220 to 215 (218 was the minimum needed). The core of the approved House bill remained unchanged from the version the Speaker introduced a few weeks ago and includes: an employer mandate to provide and pay for coverage; a fairly strong individual coverage requirement; a public plan option set up by government that would pay "negotiated" rates to providers; and insurance reforms, including guaranteed issue and modified community rating. It does not include the "Cadillac" plan tax or the insurer tax provisions currently in the Senate bill. The House bill would be paid for in part with cuts to Medicare Advantage and a surcharge on the "wealthy."

On the Senate side, Majority Leader Reid is waiting for the revenue score from CBO on several different Senate Bill scenarios, given that several Senators have publicly stated opposition to going forward without a hard and fast number on both cost and impact on bending the spending curve. He also needs this time to win over the 60 votes needed to even proceed with consideration of the bill, let alone the 60 needed to cut off debate once the debate begins; he may not have either right now. The earliest the Senate could start debate would be the week of November 16, but a date in December seems more likely. Approval of the House bill will surely put increased pressure on the Senate to move forward but to do so cautiously, given the slim voting margin in the House, as the issue moves closer to the finish line.

Bills to extend and expand COBRA have been introduced in both the House and Senate and could well be part of the final push on health care reform. Both versions extend the Special COBRA subsidy program from end of 2009 to June 30, 2010 and maintain the government's 65 percent subsidy. The Senate version increases this subsidy to 75 percent, and the House extends basic COBRA eligibility from 18 to 24 months. Given the unemployment numbers, it seems likely that, whether as part of health reform or on its own, a COBRA extension (including the subsidy) will be enacted in 2009.


States

ARIZONA: Governor Jan Brewer and legislative leaders have reached a tentative agreement to reconvene to address the projected 2010 budget shortfall, which ballooned from $1 billion in early September to $2 billion by the end of October. Although the governor favors a temporary tax increase to boost revenue, she is unlikely to float that idea this time around to help limit the length of the session. Governor Brewer is expected to announce her candidacy for re-election. Although the former lieutenant governor is now the incumbent and has never lost an election, she is viewed as vulnerable by some Republicans because of budget concerns and her continued focus on obtaining additional revenue through taxation.


CALIFORNIA: California’s state budget deficit could reach $7 billion for the current fiscal year in part because of recent court decisions blocking state funding cuts. For example, a federal judge recently blocked the state's plans to cut $80 million from its budget for In-Home Supportive Services, and Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner has filed a suit to block the sale of part of the State Compensation Insurance Fund, which was projected to generate $1 billion. Some analysts project that the state’s budget deficit will range from $10 billion to $20 billion in the upcoming fiscal year. In other developments, Lt. Governor John Garamendi won a special election to fill the Congressional seat vacated by U.S. Representative Ellen Tauscher (D). Garamendi was elected lieutenant governor in 2006 after 16 years in the legislature and two terms as insurance commissioner.

COLORADO: Senator Betty Boyd, President Pro Tem and Chair of the Health and Human Services Committee, met with insurer representatives to highlight the issues likely to get attention in the upcoming session. A proposal to prohibit the use of gender in rating individual policies has a high likelihood of passing, she said. Senator Boyd also advised that efforts will be made to ensure that the Cover Colorado program remains solvent, as it has potential to be used as the state’s public plan option. Speculation has it that Colorado could become one of the first states to act on federal health care reform if it is enacted. Finally, she expressed a strong interest in authorizing the DOI to establish standardized policy forms.

DELAWARE: Department of Health and Social Services Secretary Rita M. Landgraf has issued an update to existing statutes adding virtual colonoscopy as an approved colorectal screening modality. Delaware law requires coverage for colorectal screening modalities and empowers the Secretary to add modalities as recommended by the Delaware Cancer Consortium. Accordingly, all contracts for health insurance issued, delivered or renewed after December 1, 2009 must include coverage for virtual colonoscopy for colorectal cancer screening.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Newly passed legislation requires individual and group health plans to provide coverage for orally administered chemotherapy medication in a manner no more restrictive than intravenously administered treatment or injected cancer medications. In other business, the Council of the District of Columbia confirmed Acting Commissioner Gennet Purcell as Commissioner for the District of Columbia Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking (DISB). Commissioner Purcell, who served as DISB’s Deputy Commissioner since 2008, is an attorney and member of both the State of Maryland Bar and the Commonwealth of Virginia Bar. As deputy, her primary responsibilities included oversight of the agency’s core functional areas, including the divisions of Insurance, Securities, Banking, Fraud Enforcement and Investigation, and Risk Finance.

GEORGIA: A meeting was held last week between health insurance representatives and the Chairman of the Senate Insurance Committee to discuss legislation for 2010 that would restrict rental networks. The Medical Association of Georgia also was represented. Aetna has committed to work with all interested parties on the legislation.

ILLINOIS: A fall veto session concluded at the end of October, and three health insurance bills of import passed both chambers. The first bill creates external review requirements for all commercial insurance products, rather than just HMOs, effective July 1, 2010. The bill also establishes committees to create a uniform small-employer group health status questionnaire and an individual health statement for use on January 1, 2011. The legislation also requires insurers to semi-annually prepare and provide the Department of Insurance a statement on aggregate administrative expenses and other information. It is a good compromise versus what was originally proposed. In addition, both chambers passed an orthotics and prosthetics mandate on health carriers and HMOs for policies amended, delivered, issued, or renewed six months after the effective date of the amendatory act. The third bill changed the requirements to obtain a producer license. The Illinois General Assembly is not expected to reconvene until January 2010.

MISSOURI: The Secretary of the State recently approved a ballot initiative proposal for the November 2010 ballot that would essentially eliminate network-based health care delivery in Missouri. The move follows unsuccessful efforts to enact an any-willing-provider bill in past legislative sessions.The petition effort behind the ballot initiative appears to have been spearheaded by a local surgical practice that has been excluded from the medical staffs of local hospitals. Any willing provider is only one portion of the proposal. It would apply to health carriers and health benefit plans, including Medicare and Medicaid, and facilities. It would, for example, prohibit carriers from: Imposing on a beneficiary any co-payment, fee, or condition that is not equally imposed on all other beneficiaries in the same benefit category, co-payment level, or class; prohibiting or limiting a provider from the opportunity to participate in the network if that provider is willing to accept the carrier’s operating terms and conditions, fee schedule, covered expenses, utilization and quality standards. The State Auditor is preparing an assessment of the fiscal impact of the proposed measure as well as a brief summary of the fiscal impact for the petition. Legal challenges to the ballot initiative are permitted. A group of stakeholders, including Aetna, are discussing strategy.

NEW JERSEY: Health insurance issues were front and center in a bitter battle for the governor's office, which ended last week when Republican candidate Chris Christie defeated Democratic Governor Jon Corzine. The governor-elect has publicly supported greater flexibility for carriers to make health coverage more affordable via mandate-free plan designs and interstate sales of health policies. The Democrats remain in firm control of the legislature, which will make the governor-elect's agenda an uphill battle. Also, the Department of Banking and Insurance (DOBI) adopted a regulation standardizing the information and format on health identification cards. Additionally, DOBI initiated a meeting with the state's major health plans seeking guidance as to how the state might proceed in limiting plans,’ and members,’ exposure to exorbitant out-of-network provider charges. This is one in a series of meetings aimed at developing consensus on an appropriate fee schedule or other mechanism for non-par provider charges. Lastly, the NJ Department of Health & Senior Services (DHSS) has launched a six-month Hospital Newborn Pilot Program. Nine hospitals throughout the state are participating in a pilot to ensure no newborn leaves the hospital without health insurance. The participating hospitals are expected to submit data to the DHSS.

NEW YORK: Governor David Paterson is calling for a special session to address the current state budget deficit. The Governor’s two-year, $5.2 billion Deficit Reduction Package would have a current-year impact of $3.2 billion in 2009-10 and a recurring impact of $2 billion in 2010-11. The components include across-the-board spending reductions and a tax penalty forgiveness program. The Governor indicated that his agenda will include a bill that would completely prohibit all subrogation (collateral source) recoveries on any insured or self-insured plans. The existing collateral source rule eliminates the potential windfall of double recoveries to plaintiffs who receive benefits and make recoveries from both their insurance coverage and defendant payments, while still ensuring that uncompensated losses are fully compensated. This subrogation legislation passed the Senate earlier this year, but it has not passed the Assembly. In other business, State Sen. Eric Schneiderman, chairman of the Codes Committee, and Sen. Neil Breslin, chairman of the Insurance Committee, introduced a bill known as "Ian's Law," which is named after a patient with muscular dystrophy. The proposed legislation would prohibit non-renewal of group policies and would require heath plans to get state Department of Insurance approval before discontinuing a class of insurance. The bill also would require plans to continue covering a totally disabled policyholder for 18 months, even if the plan gets state permission to cancel an entire class of policies.

About the Author

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Emigration and Legal Aid in UK

Study shows that emigration in UK is higher than ever before. Also immigration is on the rise in UK. It can be derived from figures which came from different research conducted by various organizations that in 2006 alone 207,000 British citizens left their country. But the immigrants also came by more than double. In the same year around 510,000 foreigners arrived in UK to stay for a year or more.

After the labor party came into power in 1997, the British emigration figure shows 1.8 million people have left while only 979,000 have returned. In 2006 half the British emigrants went to only four countries mainly Australia, Spain, New Zealand and France. Almost 8 percent of every 100 emigrants went to USA. According to the research by ONS last year UK recorded the highest number of emigrants about 400,000 and immigrants of 591,000.

The majority of the immigrants are from commonwealth countries like India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The legal aid service is very strong and a well spread network in UK. One can seek legal advice on various maters like personal injury, employment law (both for employer and employee), conveyance, will and probate, commercial litigation. Solicitors provide legal advice on family matters, criminal case, medical negligence, financial advice as well along with those mentioned above. Solicitors also give legal advice to estate agents but this service is limited to Scotland only.

Information on solicitors is also widely available on internet. One can find out the solicitor or lawyers based on their locality or law firms or even on the problem concerned. The fees for legal advice vary with the area of law involved in the concerned case. There is Community Legal Advice organization which provides free and confidential legal advice if someone lives on low income or benefits.

If one has been injured in an accident with no fault of his he can seek legal advice from an accident solicitor. The Accident Solicitors is one such legal firm which assists in getting the victim his injury claims for compensation. The accident solicitors can take up cases from places throughout UK including Cheshire, Cornwall, Devon, Lancashire, Manchester and Yorkshire.

Accident solicitors help victims get injury claim for accidents causing head injuries, spinal injuries, scarring, broken bones or torn ligaments, paraplegia, loss of eye sight, limbs, damaged or lost teeth etc. the accident solicitors also take on cases involving all sorts of personal injury, medical negligence, fatal accidents, head injury claims, spinal injury claims, sports injury claims, holiday accidents, defective product or service claims, marine or aircraft injury claims, psychiatric injury claims etc.

One can find lawyers in Manchester simply by logging into internet. On internet every detail of information is provided regarding different law firms as well as lawyers in Manchester. Lawyers of different arenas of legal scenario are available with their details on the web.

About the Author

We offers Solicitor, find solicitor, uk solicitors, London solicitor, legal advice, commercial lawyer, commercial solicitor, commercial litigation solicitor, commercial conveyancing, commercial property solicitor, conveyancing, Conveyancing solicitor, employment lawyer, Employment solicitor, family law solicitor, divorce solicitor, emigration, uk solicitors, injury claim, accident solicitor online.

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UK Employment Law - The Risks You Face As An Employer

If you run a business then it is more than likely that you are well aware of many of the pitfalls and possible legal problems you could run into during the course of everyday work. Simply by reading the papers you can discover a whole world of potential legal hazards that as an employer you need to guard against.

Health and safety regulations, for instance, are numerous to the point where it would take hours upon hours of reading through them to simply be able to say that you have kept up to date with all the changes that have taken place over the past year. And then, of course, there is the problem of making sure you understand all of them.

A particularly good example that highlights how employment law is regularly updated and changed would be to show just how many new employment laws are introduced each year from the UK and Europe as it is rather high. The average number from the past few years works out at around 125 new employment laws.

Furthermore, there have been more new employment laws passed in the past four years than there were in the twenty years that passed before it. This goes to show just how rapidly the world of employment law is moving at the moment.

So what is the answer to this for small and large businesses alike? Well, the most sensible solution is to seek professional advice from reputable employment advisors, especially when the current economic climate is taken into consideration, which gives small businesses particularly much less time to spend poring over the latest employment laws.

It is not simply a case of the volume of employment laws being passed either. There is, as one would expect when you consider that these are legal requirements, a degree of complexity attached to employment law that only professionals can easily and quickly distil from legal jargon into simple rules to abide by in the workplace.

In addition to the complexity of employment law, there are also increasing numbers of employees taking their employers to court. Over 100,000 employees took their employers to court last year alone.

There is, of course, the crucial element of money to consider as well. Tribunal cases have been rising by around 15% per year, for example. Additionally, over one third of all employment disputes involve dismissal cases and the compensation award limit is currently more than £60,000, which is no small amount.

Discrimination cases, however, can be much more costly to a business from a monetary point of view. Awards for successful discrimination claims (which can involve sex, race, age, disability, sexual orientation or religious intolerance legislation) are unlimited. Examples clearly show this area of employment law in particular as hugely important for businesses to be aware of. Recently, religious discrimination cases have seen a 340% rise, and the average award for a race discrimination case is £19,114. In one specific sex discrimination case a total of £179,026 was awarded to the claimant.

Clearly, the cost of being unaware or ignorant of employment law is huge. One of the most shocking statistics is that 98% of employers who win their case are unable to recover legal fees. In the current economic climate, it can seen that, ultimately, just one case could cost a small business more than a few thousand pounds; it could cause the collapse of the business. With this in mind, it is surely best to seek professional legal advice in order to guard against the possibility of it happening to you.

This article is free to republish provided the authors resource box below remains intact.

About the Author

John Mehtam has many years experience in Employment Law and specialises in Employment Law Training from Shropshire based Alpha HR.

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How long do I have to keep personal documents such as old bank statements and expired insurance certificates?

Is there UK law that states these documents should be kept for a specific amount of time? I have a whole heap of old paperwork including cheque stubs, bank statements, old employment contracts, P60s etc. - -what should I do with them?

Revenues and Customs can ask you to prove your income for any tax year in the last seven years, so after seven years you can shread them.

You can put shreaded paper into a recyle box or composter.

Do not just put them in the bin or recycle box as Identity fraud is at an all time high.

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Why does the Democratic Party has to lie about supporting small businesses?

The Democratice Party supports policies that harm small businesses such as affirmative action, minimum wage law, etc. The Democratic Party complains that corporates are harming small businesses and yet they support/create those policies. For example, if you own a bakery shop, do you have to hire a minority group or would you rather hire based on their experience and not race. And, do you have to pay them based on the minimum wage law or pay them based on the market. Everybody knows that a good worker demand higher wage or else he/she will work for another company. Everybody knows that the cheaper the wage, the worst service will be provided to their customer.

They don't - I agree business under Clinton thrived. Many small business owners are good business people and great humans. Then there are the others. When I hire people I pay them well because I want them to do a good job - color or gender does not matter.

If people do not have a living wage how do you expect them to buy your product?

Go pyar

Employment Law.mp4

Thai Labor Protection Act & Employment Law

The Labor Protection Act of 1998 (LPA) and the Civil Commercial Code (CCC) are primarily responsible for administering labor protection laws in Thailand. In other words, the rights and duties pertaining to the employer and employee are governed by series of a laws and procedures.


Apart from Labor Protection Act BE 2541 (1998) and Thai Civil and Commercial Code, the laws in connection with Thai labor issues cover Labor Relations Act BE 2518 (AD 1975), Provident Fund Act BE 2530 (AD 1987), Social Security Act BE (AD 1900), and Workmen's Compensation Act BE 2537 (AD 1994.)


The Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, via the Department of Labor Protection and Welfare, administers the laws as well as rights with regard to labor issues. Further, the Minister of Labor and Social Welfare also possess right to appoint labor inspectors as well as to issue regulations and notifications.


The Labor Protection Act and other related laws have set up employees' minimum rights working in the country. This in turn includes rights covering almost every aspect of an employment such as working hours, remuneration, child and female labor, employee welfare fund, overtime wages, sick leave and maternity leave, holidays, employee dismissal and termination, provident fund issues, workers' compensation, employee social security, and severance. Discussed further in this article are rights pertaining to certain aspects of employment in Thailand.


Working Hours

An employee is mostly entailed to work eight hours a day or 48 hours a week. However, it is reduced to seven hours a day or 42 hours a week, in case, the work is hazardous and affects employee's health. In addition, an employee working continuously for five hours a day should be given a resting time of at least one hour. Likewise, an employee must also be given at least one day holiday in a week.


Remuneration

A remuneration committee has been set up, containing chairman who is the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, government representatives, and representatives of both employers and employees, in order to fix the wages and to determine basic pay.


Place of Payment of Remuneration

As per the Labor Protection Act, an employer is required to make payment of remuneration at the working place itself. However, it can be changed provided if employee is ready to accept payment at some other place or via some other payment modes.


Female Employees

According to the labor acts, both male and female employees must be treated equally in a working environment. However, there are certain exceptions in this case. For instance, an employer is restricted to employ female employee in such organizations engaged in mining as well as construction projects, underwater and tunnel works, and production and transportation of inflammable materials and explosives. Similarly, pregnant female employee is prohibited from working in plant or equipment that vibrates and lifting or carrying on her head more than 15 kilograms of weight. Additionally, an employer cannot terminate a female employee when she is pregnant.


Child Labor

According to the labor law, a child labor could be employed only if he has completed 15 years of age. But, in order to child labor below 18 years of age, the employer is required to notify it to the labor inspector regarding the employment of a child labor within 15 days from the date of his joining the job. Likewise, the law restricts an employer to make a child labor below 18 years to work on public holidays and to do overtime. Further, child labor below 18 are not allowed work in certain working environments such as metal stamping, working with hazardous chemicals, and working with poisonous microorganisms.


Sick Leave and Maternity Leave

As per the law, an employer must grant employees at least 30 days paid sick leave. However, an employee must furnish a doctor's certificate in case, he takes sick leave continuously for three days. In the case of maternity leave, a female pregnant employee should be granted at least 90 days maternity leave, of which the employer should pay for 45 days of the maternity leave.


Termination

A notice in writing must be given to an employee prior to his termination. However, according to the Labour Protection Act BE 2541 (1998), an employer can dismiss or terminate an employee without any notice or severance payment in any of these following circumstances such as


- Performing his or her duties and responsibilities dishonestly

- Committing any kind of criminal offense

- Negligence from the part of employee that leading to serious damage or loss to the employer

- Disobeying working rules and regulations devised by the employer

- On imprisonment as per the final judgment of imprisonment


A plethora of law firms are now in scenario in order to help you dealing with the Thai labor law. Usually, these law firms provide a range of services in connection with labor issues such as labor disputes, labor court representation, payroll issues, social security, and labor law compliance issues.

About the Author

For nearly 30 years, Bamrung Suvicha Apisakdi Law Associates (BSA Law) has focused on providing reliable legal advice and services to the Thai and foreign business community in Thailand. We provide international standards of legal services while retaining the customs of the Thai business culture.

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Is there such a thing in UK employment law as unsocial hours payment?

I have been asked to work from 16.00 - 02.00 for one night a month. Is there anything in UK law which states that an unsocial hours payment should be paid for working these hours and if so between what hours should it be paid.

There should be unsociable hours payments after 6pm increasing after 8pm and again after 11pm.
You should check with your Human Resources department, or contact the DWP (Department of Work and pensions) for clarification

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Florida Job Injury Question - Back Injury Settlement

The following is an expert answer given by Florida job injury lawyer, Joseph M. Maus, and taken from AllExperts.com, a free Q & A service on the internet:

Question: I was hurt at work and had surgery on my back - disc surgery. I got paid for time off and now I'm back to work. I am working normally with slight pain. The workers comp insurance called me and sent me mail to settle the case. They are offering me $49,999 to settle my case without lawyers. I did not ask for anything - they called me and offered me a settlement.

What should I do? Can I settle it myself? How do I go about getting the money and would that be the best solution for me without risking my employment? Is it better to get a lawyer and why?

What can I do to improve my case with the workers comp insurance? Do I have to settle the case? Would I get a better deal if I hired a lawyer to represent me?

Answer: The most important factor affecting the answer to your questions was left out.  That is, what state you live in.  Workers compensation laws, and the benefits you may be entitled to, vary from state to state.  I am a Florida attorney specializing in serious injury and accident claims, including workers compensation.  I can only tell you how the laws work in a Florida job injury, so my advice to you is to speak with an accident injury lawyer in your area to get specific advice.

There are many factors that affect a workers compensation settlement.  The primary issue is how much exposure the insurance company has in the future if your claim were to remain open.  For example, what exposure does the insurance company have for future medical care, wage benefits, vocational retraining, is there any exposure to permanent total disability benefits, etc.  Without having a chance to review your medical records, it would be next to impossible to give you an accurate estimate of the settlement value for your case.

Your email indicates the insurance company has offered you $49,999 to settle.  Most likely, the insurance company is referring to "impairment benefits" which are paid out to a claimant based upon the impairment rating given to them by the doctor.  At least in Florida, an insurance company is required to pay these to you once you receive the impairment rating from your doctor, so their offer to pay them to you as a settlement offer seems a little ridiculous.

The best advice I can give you is do speak with an attorney that specializes workers compensation.  He can advise you what the law is in your area, and what your options are.  Workers Comp in most states is entirely a creation of the State's statutes and as such, all rights you have, and obligations the employers insurance company have, are set out in the Statutes.  You may, and I emphasize may b/c I don't know your State's laws, have rights different than what we have in Florida.  The settlement value of your claim would be based in part upon options that still exist for you within the WC laws of your state.

Most attorneys specializing in workers compensation claims handle the claims on a contingent basis,i.e. their attorney fees are a percentage of any money they recover for you. In a Florida job injury, it is usually about 25% of the gross settlement amount.  Most workers comp attorneys also offer a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss whether you have a viable case.  So you really have nothing to lose by speaking to an experienced workers compensation lawyer.  If you don't like what you hear, you're not obligated.

I get asked quite often whether it is best to hire an injury accident lawyer to settle a claim.  My response is always - absolutely yes.  In 17 years of doing accident injury claims, I have yet to have a client come into the office with what I considered to be a fair offer from an insurance company, without the assistance of an attorney.  I wouldn't attempt my own dental or medical work, do a serious repair on my car, or re-wire my house on my own. Leave it to the experts.  The old saying is don't be penny wise, but pound foolish.

If you are an injured worker in Florida, I would tell you that there really is no way to give you an accurate answer to all your questions without spending some time with you speaking about your case, your employment history and job skills, your age, and looking at your medical records and doctor opinions.  You do not have to settle a workers compensation claim in Florida, so you should be careful about negotiations directly with the insurance company.

For more information about a Florida job injury claim, contact Florida work accident compensation lawyer Joseph M. Maus at 1-866-556-5529 or email him today.

About the Author

South Florida Attorney Joseph M. Maus and Associates has been helping victims of injuries and accidents for close to 16 years. The firm prides itself on having the resources and experience of the largest state-wide law firms, yet providing individualized attention to each and every client.

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Labor/ employment laws?

I missed 4 days of work due to having multiple extractions, which dry socketed, which then abcessed, i had Dr notes for every day missed and called in before the shift started as the guidelines say to do, yet still got fired upon my return. Id been there only a year. Is this legal? Theyve also denied my unemployment claim and cut off my health benifits.

Legal? Depends. In what state were you employed? Is your employer required to offer FMLA? If so, did you request it? Did you call out each day you missed?

If you a no longer an employee, you are no longer eligible for employer provided insurance.

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Dealing With Bad Weather In Hr

When heavy snow is piling up on the roads, suddenly the daily commute into work isn't so simple for thousands of employees used to catching the bus or driving to the office. And even if it isn't just snow - it could be torrential rain, ice or wind storms - the problems caused by severe weather are numerous. Not only can employees' daily commute be interrupted by hazardous roads and the closure of public transport services, but power outages can occur, as well as business closure due to brutal conditions.

Foul weather can be a nightmare for the HR department. As a business, it's important to strike a balance between caring for employees and ensuring their physical and mental well being whilst ensuring the company remains up and running. However, the foremost concern for any company should be the safety of its employees. This means understanding when a worker cannot travel into the office due to poor conditions, as well as knowing when it's time to give up and close up the building for a day or two until it's safe to return to work.

Of course, some places of work aren't so lucky as to have a warm office to hide away in. Outdoor work obviously has different requirements when it comes to employee health and safety and it's crucial that the well being of employees in severe conditions is kept at the top of the priority list. If work is continuing in poor weather, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) advises that workers are given frequent breaks to get warm, enabled to drink hot beverages, requested to abstain from smoking as it can restrict blood flow and that the buddy system is put in force so employees work in teams that look out for one another.

Knowing when to tell your employees to stay and work from home isn't easy, and it's a good idea to circulate a message detailing the company policy on if the weather is preventing people from travelling. It should include what to do if schools are closed and parents have no alternative means of childcare and strive to ensure that employees who do make it to work are not going to end up being trapped there in case of worsening conditions.

Although, there is no legal right for staff to be paid by