On the heels of my dress code post, a word on the latest in fashion design seems appropriate. A Spanish designer has developed a spray-on fabric as the newest form of clothing. If it has staying power, the spray-on may be the next clothing problem employers will have to face. It seems fraught with all kinds of mischief — from those wearing it and from those looking at people who are wearing it. This may make traditional skintight apparel obsolete. But don’t change your dress code just yet.

Last week’s news about the clothing of a female sports reporter named Ines Sainz and the reaction by New York Jets players is still in play. My post on the subject provoked a few mixed comments and several private emails, some agreeing with me, some not. Since it’s still talked and written about, often in the context of sex discrimination or sexual harassment, it seemed to justify a tip of the week.

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Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), placing a disabled employee (who is qualified) in a vacant position has always been a reasonable accommodation. But when is a position vacant? That may seem like a question easily answered, but not always. The recent case of Duvall v. Georgia-Pacific Consumer Products, decided by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, shows why.

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Jon Hyman has an excellent post on the effect of the Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act (ADAAA) on many types of illnesses and diseases, cancer in particular. His post includes a summary of one of the first cases decided under the ADAAA. Before the ADA was amended, if an employee’s cancer was in remission, there was probably no disability. This conclusion was based on decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court, which were overturned by the ADAAA.

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Most employees want to do a good job. They also want their superiors to think they’re doing a good job. The normal anxiety about doing good work is exacerbated in today’s workplace world because jobs are hard to come by, and its more important than ever to do good work and impress the powers that be.

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Bloomberg Businessweek reports on a new study that will appear in this month’s Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The researchers who conducted the study used data from the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, which surveyed 450,000 Americans over a two year period about their household income, emotional state during the prior day, and overall feelings about their life and well-being. Here are the results.

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Can nicknames be a problem at work? Of course. Nicknames that are tantamount to ethnic, racial or sexual slurs and given to an employee by co-workers are a problem. In those cases, it doesn’t matter whether the employee is called the nickname to his face or behind his back or whether the employee complains about the nickname. It can’t be tolerated.

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I have done two previous posts to recognize American workers on Labor Day. The first one contained a history of Labor Day provided by the U.S. Department of Labor. The second one focused on a statement about Labor Day issued by Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis. This year’s Labor Day post will be different, since it seems appropriate to look at Labor Day in the context of the ongoing Great Recession.

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So many blogs; so little time. I read blogs that have a wide range of subjects. I, of course, read as many labor and employment blogs as I can, and that varies a lot from week to week. I also enjoy blogs that deal with leadership  and related topics. And then there are the blogs that cover a whole lot of different things. From time to time, I call attention to blog posts that catch my eye or catch me by surprise or catch an idea I’ve had and turn it on its head. I can by no means list all of these posts, but I’ll share a few with you today.

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According to Wired, the NATO command in Afghanistan has fired a staff officer who publicly criticized interminable PowerPoint briefings. He told the truth about the lack of substance contained in a PowerPoint presentation. He told the truth about the role PowerPoint plays in creating a crushing bureaucracy. He told the truth about “endless tinkering with PowerPoint slides to conform with the idiosyncrasies of cognitively challenged generals in order to spoon-feed them information.”

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In EEOC v. UPS, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals considered the issue of reasonable accommodation in a lawsuit filed under the Americans with Disabilities Act. (The suit arose before the Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act became effective.) The court’s decision is instructive on several issues involved in disability discrimination lawsuits. 

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There have been several posts on this blog concerning an employer’s right to monitor an employee’s activity. (Here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.) This can include reviewing how an employee uses her computer at work; placing cameras throughout the workplace to monitor employee activity; searching an employee and an employee’s property at work to enforce drug, weapons, and other policies; listening to employee telephone conversations at work; and placing GPS monitoring devices on vehicles used by employees.

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Much has been written about the problem with bullies in the workplace. A few posts on the subject have appeared on this blog. (Here, here, here, and here.) Some states have even considered legislation to deal with this problem. I don’t have the answer. I don’t think state legislatures do either. I do have a few suggestions and tips.

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At a recent Arkansas Razorbacks football press conference held by head coach Bobby Petrino, a radio reporter with KAKS, a Fayetteville, Arkansas, radio station billing itself as Hog Sports Radio, wore a Florida Gators hat. She asked Coach Petrino a question. He answered and then said, “And that will be the last question I answer with that hat on.” Two days later, the reporter was fired (here and here).

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People increasingly listen to songs on iPods, text or email, talk on their cell phones, and watch high-definition television — while they’re working out at the gym, standing in a grocery store line, and siting at stop lights. The smallest amount of downtime is filled with digital input. These micro-moments of down time have even caused the creation of video games that can be played in just a few minutes.

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As of now, Brett Favre appears to have come back to Minnesota to play his 20th season of NFL football. I’ve written several unflattering posts about Favre (here, here, here, here, and here). NFL teams are apparently unaware of my blog. And let’s face it. Favre had a tremendous year this past season, almost leading the Vikings to the Super Bowl. Unfortunately. he threw an interception in the last minute of regulation play, giving the New Orleans Saints a chance to win the game, which they did.

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In a recent Slate article, Sharon Lerner rips both federal and state governments for the paucity of leave given women after the birth of  a child. The article also discusses leave laws across the country. I will avoid joining the philosophical debate on pregnancy leave (which is what Lerner’s article is mainly about), but the article will serve as the basis for this week’s tip.

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Approximately 40 (out of 400) billionaires in the U.S. have committed to give away half of what they have. Prompted by Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, they have signed the “Giving Pledge.” Though the adulation they’ve received has been substantial and has come from all quarters, the billionaire bluster has been troubling, even nauseating, to me.

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In case you missed it, Wall Street banks have announced that bonuses will be more this year than last year. And why not? After being bailed out by the federal government (aka, taxpayers) because they were on the verge of collapse and deemed too big to fail, the banks are now reporting record profits. With such a quick turnaround in the worst economy since the Great Depression, maybe the banks weren’t as close to collapse as the powers that be thought.

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Three recent stories in the news caused me to think of  the most famous line from the 1976 movie Network: “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this any more.” First, there’s the stressed-out Jet Blue flight attendant, who ended his career like many employees say they’d like to. Second, protests by laid-off bank workers are growing and now include sit-ins. In China. Third, an era of anger among employees is sweeping the U.S. These stories have something in common, but when put together, there’s a degree of incongruence.

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