The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed a lawsuit alleging Harrah's Entertainment violated federal law by firing a female bartender who refused to wear makeup.

Harrah's policy required women to wear some facial makeup, but prohibited men from wearing any. The policy required men to maintain short hair while women could have long hair. Jespersen refused to comply with the policy, saying she found the makeup requirement offensive and it interfered with her job. The company fired her for refusing to wear makeup.

Jesperson subsequently filed suit against Harrah’s for discrimination, alleging that the dress code discriminated against women by "(1) subjecting them to terms and conditions of employment to which men are not similarly subjected, and (2) requiring that women conform to sex-based stereotypes as a term and condition of employment." However, the court ruled that Jespersen failed to provide sufficient evidence that the policy was any more burdensome for women than it was for men.

According to a recent 8th Circuit Court of Appeals decision, regular attendance is an essential function of a job, even when the employee’s absences are for legitimate medical and personal reasons, and taken with the employer’s permission.

James Schierhoff worked for GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) as a packaging mechanic until April of 2002, when his employment was terminated for excessive absenteeism. Prior to that, Schierhoff had been absent from work for various medical and personal reasons, including FMLA leave during both 2000 and 2001, as well as additional personal time off in each of those two years.

Between June of 2000 and March of 2002, Schierhoff had "excused" absences totaling 172 workdays, which equated to about 40 percent of the work time in that period. In April of 2002, Schierhoff received a termination memo, stating that his absences "have impaired the operation of the department and diminished [his] effectiveness to the company."

Schierhoff sued GSK, alleging both age and disability discrimination. Although he did not dispute the company’s assertion that he had often been absent, Schierhoff claimed that he was terminated for other reasons.

A recent WorldatWork 2005-2006 Salary Budget Survey projects average overall increases of 3.8 percent in 2006. That is up slightly from 2005 increases of 3.7 percent.

Private employer costs for employee compensation averaged $24.34 per hour worked in September, according to the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Wages and salaries averaged $17.23 per hour and accounted for 70.8 percent of these costs, while benefits, which averaged $7.11, accounted for the remaining 29.2 percent.