Employment Law Attorneys in Auburn

For both employers and employees, employment law is a crucial aspect of keeping each workplace safe, productive, and fair. Employers in Alabama are expected to uphold strict standards to ensure that employees are paid fairly and correctly, that workplaces protect employees from hostility or abuse, and that employees are free to raise concerns about unethical or illegal practices.

Whether you are a business owner interested in finding out how to streamline employment paperwork or an employee being treated unfairly by a rogue employer, we are here to help. Schedule your consultation now by calling Haygood, Cleveland, Pierce, Thompson & Short at 334-821-3892.

Assistance for Employees

A significant part of our employment law practice focuses on serving employees in unsafe or unfair workplace environments. Great strides have been made in employee rights over the last several decades, but unfair practices continue. Employers who either don’t know or don’t care about labor standards have been known to force employees to skip breaks, falsify their timecards to avoid overtime pay, remain in a dangerous or hostile situation, or be subject to ongoing harassment.

We know how difficult it can be for employees to stand up for themselves in this type of situation. The fear of losing out on promotions, being the target of further abuse, or being terminated for speaking out often forces employees to stay silent, keep their heads down, and keep working.

Protecting You from Workplace Discrimination and Hostility

If you have been targeted in your workplace, you have rights. At the federal and state level, there are numerous statutes and regulatory standards in place to ensure that employees are treated fairly. Some of the issues we help employees resolve include:

• Unpaid wages. Employers may simply refuse to pay for hours worked, edit timesheets to shave time off of an employee’s timecard, or delay payment. These are illegal tactics that warrant legal action.
• FMLA violations. Employers that meet certain requirements are subject to the FMLA, which requires businesses to allow employees to take up to 12 weeks off in a one-year period to handle medical emergencies. Employers may discourage employees from exercising their rights by lying about FMLA requirements, ignoring requests for FMLA time, or harassing employees until they comply.
• Unpaid overtime. Overtime is an area where many businesses run afoul of the law. Employers might change timecards to shift hours around and avoid overtime or falsely claim that employees are exempt from overtime requirements.
• Pay below the federal minimum wage. Although Alabama has no state minimum wage, it is subject to the federal minimum wage of $7.25. Any adjustments that take you below this amount are likely illegal.
• Workplace harassment should not be tolerated, and ethical employers should take immediate action when an employee is harassed by management, coworkers, or customers. Ongoing failure to protect a worker from harassment may put an employer on the wrong side of the law.
• Employees should be able to report workplace issues and concerns without fear of retaliation by an angry employer. Unfortunately, many employees report being demoted, losing preferred shifts, being passed over for promotions, or even being terminated for speaking up.

Services for Employers

Our team also works with employers who want to ensure that their company is meeting all federal, state, and local employment laws. Taking the time to establish and enforce a safe work environment for employees can prevent costly legal issues down the line.

Compliance with Regulatory Standards

Laying the groundwork for a positive employer-employee relationship is key. This involves setting out clear standards and backing them up with the proper paperwork. Our team is ready to help you create the necessary documentation and forms you need, including:

• Job descriptions
• Wage law posters and documentation
• Written hiring and termination practices
• Policies regarding federal employment laws, including the ADA and FMLA
• Employee handbooks

We can also help business owners and employers protect their intellectual property through employee paperwork that prevents the sharing of trade secrets. In this part of our practice, we assist in the creation of severance agreements, non-solicitation agreements, non-compete agreements, and confidentiality agreements.

When Issues Arise

Even with careful preparation and documentation of employment practices, issues are bound to arise. You may find yourself in a position where one employee is sexually harassing other workers, a manager is accomplishing low overtime percentages by falsifying timecards, or discriminatory hiring and promotion practices are taking place. These types of issues can put your company in serious jeopardy and damage your reputation within your field and your community.

When these situations occur, it’s important to reach out proactively and get the legal assistance you need. Working with an experienced employment attorney is one way to ensure that you handle employees’ concerns quickly, privately, and in a way that protects your company and your employees’ rights. After your immediate legal needs have been met, we will also be available to do a comprehensive review of your existing documentation and protocols. Our goal is to find loopholes and missing policies that could have prevented the issue that brought you to us in the first place.

Contact Haygood, Cleveland, Pierce, Thompson & Short to Learn More

Besides your home, work is likely the place you spend the majority of your time. You deserve a workplace that is safe, productive, and fair. On the same note, as an employer, you deserve the opportunity to create a work environment that encourages employees while following all state and federal standards. In doing so, you promote the best interests of your company while also creating a workplace that brings out the best in your employees.

Are you ready to take the first step? Our team is ready to jump in and get started. If you want to set up a consultation about your workplace issue or your company’s need for representation, we are here to talk. You can reach out to us online, or you can call Haygood, Cleveland, Pierce, Thompson & Short at 334-821-3892. We look forward to helping you.