Human Resource Blog

The legal issue here is that by asking about an applicant’s former drug use, you may be getting into Americans with Disabilities (ADA) territory. The ADA protects former drug users who have been successfully rehabilitated. Current users are not protected, but this information would theoretically be obtained via pre-hire drug testing.

Additionally, hiring and other employment decisions should be based on the applicant’s ability to perform the job. Whether or not an applicant used drugs in the past is not really relevant to his or her ability to perform a job now, so this line of questioning is inappropriate for the application and interview stage. If you wish to ascertain whether or not the applicant is currently using drugs, a pre-hire drug test would be the way to go.

Except for certain jobs that are considered potentially hazardous, such as mining or commercial transportation, there is no legal limit to the number of days or number of hours per day an exempt or nonexempt employee may be required to work.

Nonexempt employees must, of course, be paid overtime for any hours worked in excess of forty in one workweek per the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and some states impose additional overtime requirements. Exempt employees, on the other hand, do not receive overtime pay, regardless of the number of hours or days they work in a workweek, but there is no legal limit to the amount of time they may be required to work.

In the interest of employee safety and morale, it is wise for employers to allow an adequate amount of time off for exempt, as well as nonexempt employees, but there is not a legally-mandated amount of time off required.

Unless you are a federal contractor, you are not permitted to use the E-verify system to verify the employment eligibility of existing employees. Use the E-verify system only for new employees hired after your E-verify implementation date. Updates and reverifications, such as for expired documents, etc., should be completed on the appropriate section of the Form I-9.