Three years ago, the ICRMP Board of Trustees initiated a $5,000 deductible for any employment claims brought against members by current or former employees. Beginning October 1, 2022, the deductible was increased to $20,000. Because of the increasing number of employment claims, the increasing cost of defending them & the increasing risk of large verdicts when cases go to trial Not only may they set a verdict, an employee is entitled to an award of attorney fees even if they win a much smaller amount than they were seeking. These attorney fees could end up being more than 10 times the amount awarded to the employee by a jury.

The ICRMP Board realizes that having to pay a deductible will be difficult for many members, so it provided a way for the deductible to be waived. We call it the “CALL CARL” deductible waiver, which works like this: Before taking action to terminate or suspend an employee without pay, simply pick up the phone & call Carl Ericson, ICRMP’s Risk Management Legal Counsel. If Carl is unavailable, you can also talk to Tammy Middleton, ICRMP’s Human Resources Risk Manager. If the issue is relatively straight-forward, Carl or Tammy will work with you directly. If the issue is more complicated & there are facts that could potentially lead to a claim that the employment action is unlawful, Carl will assign an attorney who is an expert in employment law to assist you.

Please be aware that calling us on the day that you want to take action does not usually allow us time to make a careful evaluation of the situation so please plan ahead to allow sufficient time to evaluate & provide advice. If you follow ICRMP’s [or the attorney’s] advice in making the decision, the deductible will be waived if the employee then pursues a claim against you for the action.

2023 Supervisor Training Series is coming this Spring! There will be 3 parts. They will be Spring, Summer & Fall. Find dates & locations on our Event Calendar.