In this Lomond Legal Mini Training Bite we unpack the truth about exempt versus nonexempt employees. Paying someone a salary or calling them a manager does not automatically remove their right to overtime. Julie walks through the three simple tests wage level, salary basis and duties in plain English so you can spot who truly qualifies as exempt and who should be getting overtime. A five minute check up to help employers avoid years of back pay, penalties and overtime lawsuits.

In this Lomond Legal Mini Training Bite we look at worker classification in plain English. You might call someone a contractor and pay their invoice, but the law looks at how the relationship works in real life. Lomond Legal walks through simple questions on control, pay, integration into the business and permanence so you can spot the red flags before the Department of Labor or your state agency does. A quick listen to help you keep payroll, tax and wage claims under control.

When performance slips, panic and frustration often take over but capability management isn’t about blame, it’s about process.
 In this 5-minute Training Bite, Holly Blue breaks down how to manage underperformance calmly, fairly, and within the law.

You’ll learn:

• The difference between capability and conduct — and why tribunals care.
• The legal test from Taylor v OCS Group (2006) that defines what “reasonable” really means.
• How to apply a progressive warning process — first, final, dismissal — in line with the ACAS Code.
• How to identify root causes like ill health, workload, or lack of training before taking formal action.
• Why fairness, documentation, and consistency are your best legal defence.

Performance management isn’t paperwork — it’s leadership.
 Done properly, it builds confidence and protects your business from risk.

🎙️ The Employer Defense Podcast – UK Edition, powered by Holly Blue Employment Law, part of the Lomond Legal Family.

Most employers have probation clauses in their contracts, but few actually use them properly. In this 5-minute Training Bite, Holly Blue  explains how to turn probation into your most powerful HR tool, not a forgotten formality.

You’ll learn:

• How to manage probation proactively, not reactively.
• Why waiting until the end to raise issues is the biggest mistake managers make.
• When and how to extend probation fairly after sickness or absence.
• How to handle underperformance early — with clarity, written targets, and realistic timescales.
• The legal backdrop from Tubbenden Primary School v Sylvester (2010) and Kuzel v Roche Products Ltd (2008), proving that even short-service employees deserve fair process.

Probation gives you flexibility — not immunity.
 A short conversation now can prevent a very long tribunal later.

🎙️ The Employer Defense Podcast – UK Edition, powered by Holly Blue Employment Law, part of the Lomond Legal Family.

When a complaint or misconduct issue lands on your desk, the first instinct is often to panic to gather every statement, chase every rumour, and build a file big enough to survive a tribunal. But that’s not what fairness looks like.

In this 5-minute Training Bite,  Holly Blue explains how to handle investigations the right way calm, structured, and compliant. You’ll learn:

• What the Burchell test really means and how it sets the legal standard for proof.
• The difference between “reasonable belief” and “beyond reasonable doubt.”
• How to plan, question, and document without bias.
• Why fairness, not perfection, is what tribunals actually expect.

If you can explain your process calmly to a judge, you’ve already done it right.
 Fair process protects your business  and your credibility.

In this 4-minute Lomond Legal Training Bite, we unpack one of the most common mistakes restaurant owners make —tip pooling done wrong. Learn who can legally share in tips, how Arizona’s tip credit works, and what written notice every employer must give.

Whether you’re running a café, a bar, or a full-service restaurant, this mini-lesson helps you protect your tip credit, avoid wage claims, and stay audit-proof.

Listen now and stay compliant without losing your cool.

Mini Training Bite – The Employer Defense Podcast

Retaliation is the claim no one thinks they’ll face — until they do. And here’s the twist: most employers don’t lose because of the complaint, they lose because of the reaction.

In this episode, Julie Barnett breaks down how innocent frustration turns into a legal firestorm and what small shifts can save your entire defense. From cold-tone emails to “hands-off” managers, you’ll hear why retaliation is the easiest claim to file and the hardest one to win.

You’ll learn:
 • Why over half of all EEOC charges now include retaliation
 • How silence and avoidance look like guilt in court
 • What to document immediately after any complaint
 • How to train managers to stay calm, kind, and compliant

💬 Quote-worthy:

🎧 Listen to this Mini Training Bite from The Employer Defense Podcast, powered by Lomond Legal — where compliance meets common sense.

🔗 Visit lomondlegal.com
to download our Retaliation Response Checklist and keep those eggshells out of your workplace.

Mini Training Bite – The Employer Defense Podcast

Most employers rely on job descriptions written years ago — and that can destroy an ADA or PWFA defense. In this episode, Julie Barnett explains why “essential functions” aren’t what you think, how outdated language turns into legal risk, and what the EEOC now expects employers to prove before denying accommodation.

You’ll learn:
 • How the ADA and PWFA overlap on reasonable accommodation
 • Why “lifting 50 pounds” might not be an essential duty anymore
 • The documentation you need to justify an essential function
 • How to update your job analysis and stay compliant

Takeaway: Essential isn’t a word — it’s a defense. If you can’t prove it, you’ve already lost it.

🎧 Listen to this Mini Training Bite from The Employer Defense Podcast, powered by Lomond Legal — where compliance meets common sense.

🔗 Visit lomondlegal.com
to audit your ADA and PWFA policies or request a Compliance Confidence Review.

Episode 1: Why Your Workplace Policies Don’t Protect You (Yet)

Welcome to The Employer Defense Podcast, powered by Lomond Legal,  where compliance meets common sense.

In this episode, Julie Barnett dives into one of the most misunderstood parts of employment law: the workplace policy.
Most U.S. employers rely on outdated, overly short templates that don’t teach, don’t influence culture, and don’t protect them when challenged.

Julie explains why U.S. workplace policies often fail, what makes the U.K. narrative model stronger, and how American businesses can build defensible, human, and digital compliance systems that actually work.

You’ll learn:

• Why the EEOC’s enforcement trend makes documentation more critical than ever
• How to turn every policy paragraph into a potential legal defense
• The role of digital conduct in modern workplace investigations
• Why acknowledgment tracking is your best legal protection
• How to modernize your handbook without losing your culture

💡 Takeaway:
A policy that isn’t signed and understood is just paper.
A policy that’s acknowledged, digital, and lived — that’s protection.

🔗 Visit lomondlegal.com
to download the Employer Onboarding Pack or request a Compliance Audit.

🎧 Subscribe to The Employer Defense Podcast for practical, fixed-fee legal and HR insights every week.

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