This year’s hot democratic primary has plunged politics into the workplace more than ever. Today’s News Journal ran an article on the subject, “Talking politics at the office: Employers, managers must walk fine line on what to allow”

Our own Sheldon Sandler was quoted on the issue of whether it is advisable to prohibit political discussion in the workplace altogether. Although these discussions poses some risks, Sheldon suggested that banning such discussion outright is not a good idea.

From Obama’s stirring speech on race, to whether or not he wore a flag pin, this year’s election has raised some hot topics for watercooler debate – not likely to slow anytime soon at Delaware workplaces.

Take Your Daughter to Work Day is held on the third Thursday of April each year. This year, that meant that the average age in your workplace probably took a sharp dive last Thursday, April 24. Like other participating organizations, our office hosted approximately 25 youngsters for a “day in the law.” Our Human Resources Director does a fanastic job with these events, and, in usual form, had a well-organized series of activities planned.

One of the morning events, following a “light breakfast” of donut holes, etc., was for an attorney from each Practice Group to talk briefly about the kind of work they do. I was asked to speak on behalf of the Employment Law Group and was happy to do so. But a little back-up never hurt anyone, so I asked my colleague, Michael Stafford, to join me.

On a side note for the event organizers, don’t pass over the males in the group when it comes to kids’ events! Mike was about the most enthusiastic speaker I’ve seen and a real natural with the children. He told them (in kid-speak) that we represent employers and businesses; that we get involved if someone is going to get fired or if someone doesn’t get paid like they should. He also talked about School Law, which makes up a large part of Mike’s practice.

Then, suddenly, it was my turn. Mike, was, by this time, in the middle of the “U” part of the U-shaped conference table, surrounded by a sea of children glued to his every word. Meanwhile, I hadn’t left the shore and was still standing at the front of the room, mystified by Mike’s ability to captivate.

Mike whips around towards the front of the room and extends his hand like a magician’s assistant trying to draw the crowd’s attention to the stage for the big finale. He says, “Molly, Why don’t you go ahead and tell them some more about what we do.”

Gulp.

I love public speaking. No, really, it’s true. I love teaching and giving seminars and presenting to groups of every size. But for this, I was not prepared. I had no idea how to explain employment discrimination to a room of 9-12 year olds. Admittedly, I stumbled for a minute, at a total loss for words. But what I finally did say, though, was probably more insightful to me than to the audience members. It was from-the-heart and unrehearsed:

What we do in the Employment Law Group is to make sure that the workplace is a good place to be. Our job, at the end of the day, is to make sure that everyone plays nice. We try to show people how to respect each other and be nice to one another, even though we are all different in a lot of ways. We want people to learn how to respect those differences so the workplace can be a great place to go every day. That’s what we do.

After I finished, some of the other lawyers who had come to speak nodded their heads in agreement. I thought, yeah, that really is exactly what I do. We guide our clients to make the workplace free of discrimination. We counsel clients on how to pay employees properly and fairly. And we’re called when an employee is doing more harm than good and the client wants our advice on the best way to proceed. You might say that we work hard to prevent our clients from being sued. Or, you might say, we try to make sure that the workplace is a good place to be. That seems to sum it up pretty well.

Inter Alia, (a/k/a) the Best Legal Research Blog, features Delaware Employment Law Blog as the Blawg of the Day

Inter Alia is the favorite weblog for legal research and reference (if you didn’t already know). Each day, Tom Mighell, blogger extraordinaire, posts about a legal research “blawg” (law + blog). Today, the Blawg of the Day is the Delaware Employment Law Blog!! Many gracious thanks to Tom for the recognition.

As a side note, for those of you who may still be new to the world of blogging, Inter Alia is the ultimate resource to find blogs of interest as you develop your list of feeds.

But, wait! There’s more! Tom also publishes Internet Legal Research Weekly, an e-newsletter readers can subscribe to for free, that covers anything and everything legal research, and then some. It often contains great information about other resources, such as Web 2.0 and other online tools. The current issue of the ILRW is available online or via subscription, and, when you have something specific in mind, check out the Internet Legal Research Weekly archives.

Really, there’s more! Tom and his co-author, Dennis Kennedy, recently published the hottest book in the world of Legal Technology and Law Firm Practice Management, The Lawyer’s Guide to Collaboration Tools and Technologies: Smart Ways to Work Together. Published by the ABA, the book is written in plain-English suitable for both the tech savvy and the not-so-tech savvy and provides detailed information on how to effectively collaborate using the multitude of online tools availble in today’s internet-driven world.

The book is the talk of the blogosphere at: Between Lawyers, at David Maister’s Passion, People, & Principles Blog, and the Illinois Trial Practice Weblog, just to name a few.

And Dennis Kennedy has a comprehensive post on his blog with lots of information about the book.

Young Conaway’s own John Paschetto, a partner in our Business Planning Group, received a bit of well-deserved attention in the blogosphere today. John’s excellent article about best practices in proofreading was published in The Practical Lawyer. The article, titled Beyond Redlines And Spell-Check: Proofreading Tips From The Dark Ages can be accessed via the firm’s website here.

The Legal Writing Profs Blog was the first to post on the quality of the article:

Don’t you just hate it when you have e-mailed, filed, or otherwise dispatched some piece of writing, only to spot a glaring error that you overlooked? Or if your job description includes reviewing the work of others (ahem, legal writing profs, I am talking to you), don’t you sometimes wonder how those writers could have missed seeing obvious errors?

Either way, you will enjoy reading an article by Delaware attorney John J. Paschetto, published in the February 2008 issue of The Practical Lawyer magazine, Beyond Redlines and Spell-Check: Proofreading Tips from the Dark Ages. Paschetto explains the difference between editing and proofreading, and he identifies many of the common forms of errors that writers tend not to see when reviewing their own work. He explains the advantages of proofing in stages, and he offers several low-tech strategies for catching and correcting such errors, including a checklist that illustrates his suggested method at work.

The (new) legal witer jumped in with a compliment, too.

In it, he explains the difference between editing and proofreading, advocates proofreading in stages, and offers valuable tips to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of your proofreading.

Of course, those of us who have been lucky enough to have their work edited by John, would attest that words like “great” and “excellent” fall far short. John has turned many first-year associates into real, live legal writers! And speaking as one of them, I think “miraculous” is probably the better adjective.

Congratulations to our Writing Guru In Residence!

New Castle County’s blue-collar union ratified a three year contract, which provides for no cost-of-living increases in the next two years. The News Journal’s story on the settlement is located here. T

he agreement was reached after over a year of negotiations and reflects the tough economic times faced by New Castle County and other governments in Delaware. See our earlier post.

Bill Bowser and I will be discussing the state of public sector negotiations on April 16 at our Department’s Annual Seminar.

To register, contact Marie Willey at 571-4751. Cost is $95. Lunch is provided.

Yesterday, Delaware’s two largest public employers indicated that they were facing fiscal challenges. Governor Ruth Ann Minner announced a hiring freeze to address a $126 million dollar budget shortfall. New Castle County Executive Chris Coons announced a budget proposal requiring the use of $17.2 million dollars of its cash reserves.

The State and the County and other governments are feeling the effects of a softening economy. Since personnel wages and benefits costs make up a large part of their budgets, it is clear that public employees will be asked to make sacrifices as governments struggle to balance their budgets.

Sheldon Sandler and I will be discussing the state of public labor relations in Delaware at our Department’s upcoming Annual Seminar on April 16th. Hope to see you there.

Last Night, I had the honor of presenting the Wallace N. Johnson Citizenship Award to Governor Ruth Ann Minner at the New Castle Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner. The Governor, through the Delaware Cancer Consortium, has made fighting cancer a priority. As a result, Delaware’s cancer incidence rates are declining at four times the national average. Our death rate is declining at twice the national average.

While we are starting to turn the tide on cancer in Delaware, much remains to be done. Here are a couple of thoughts:

First, screening saves lives…and money. The earlier a cancer is detected, the better chance of survival. In fact, some screens can actually prevent a cancer from occurring. If that’s not enough to encourage screening, how about this? Early detected cancers are cheaper to treat. That’s what you call a win-win-win situation. As a result, employers should take an active role in encouraging their employees to get all appropriate cancer screenings. Have you thought about a floating screening day, so that employees can take off work to get a screen without losing pay?

Second, cancer happens. If your workplace hasn’t been touched by cancer yet, it will be. And, 80 percent of cancer survivors return to the workplace during or after treatment. Why not think about and plan for it now? Of course, you will have to meet your obligations under the FMLA and ADA, but there is so much more you can do. It all starts with talking with the employee with cancer. You should first discuss how much information they want to share with co-workers. Some employee will want to keep the diagnosis quiet while others will want to know everything they are going through with their co-workers. Next you can talk about what help do they need? Every employee will have different needs, but most will need some kind of help. For example, one may need meals cooked for her family. Another might need someone to watch his kids so that he can get treatment or just go to a movie. A human resources professional can help by organizing the workforce to meet an employee’s needs.

Third, knowledge is power. Most cancers are preventable. An employer can educate its workforce on simple ways to lower cancer risks like quitting smoking, exercising, using sun screen and eating healthy. Numerous non-profits, like the American Cancer Society, offer lunch time programs to provide such information.

Congratulations! You have found what is sure to be a great addition to your favorite employment-law resources. This blog is hosted by the Employment Law Department at Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP.

Our blog will keep you up to date on all of the latest happenings, news, and trends in the rapidly changing world of employment law. We know how difficult it can be to keep tabs on employment-related topics. To help you stay on top of it all, our posts will feature issues that we see in our practices and hear about from our clients.

Human resources and the law intersect at crucial times. And somehow, you’re expected to keep up with it all. We will keep you posted as developments occur, and try to provide a little insight along the way.

So, welcome to our new readers. The Delaware Employment Law Blog is sure to be a great resource for every employer, small business owner, in-house counsel, HR professional, recruiter, management consultant, executive, and manager that stops by. We’re looking forward to what is sure to be an adventure in blogging!