When faced with potential employee organizing activity, some employers react by trying to address worker grievances through alternatives to union representation. Sometimes these approaches involve establishing an internal...more
1/19/2024
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Appeals ,
Communication Workers of America ,
Complaint Procedures ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Grievance Process ,
NLRB ,
Remand ,
Special Committees ,
T-Mobile ,
Union Organizers ,
Union Representatives ,
Unions
When facing requests from a qualified disabled worker, the Americans with Disabilities Act allows employers to choose an effective accommodation, even if it is not the one preferred by the employee. Earlier this week, the...more
An increasing number of employers are expressing interest in using biometric technology in the workplace. For example, a company concerned that employees are clocking one another in and out of work could implement retinal...more
One of the most frequent questions we receive involves employees who claim that they have been subjected to a "hostile work environment." Under federal civil rights laws, the term hostile work environment has a specific...more
In September 2022, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued a directive expanding the scope of its Severe Violator Enforcement Program (SVEP). SVEP singles out employers that OSHA concludes have...more
When does an employee’s request for accommodations not fall under the Americans with Disabilities Act? According to a decision this week from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (which includes North Carolina, South Carolina,...more
As we have previously covered in EmployNews, companies are facing an increasing number of accommodation requests and claims from employees who allege they were discriminated against based on mental issues. Many of these...more
January 1 marked the effective date for a number of new state laws that attempt to restrict certain employers’ use of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. State legislatures are restricted under the First...more
1/5/2024
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Colleges ,
Diversity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Effective Date ,
Employment Policies ,
First Amendment ,
New Legislation ,
Private Sector ,
Quotas ,
Reverse Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Universities
Employers subject to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) inspections commonly believe that the investigators need to find something to cite to justify the time and resources spent on the investigation....more
A recent New York Times article described growing use by employers of training repayment agreements, or TRAs. A TRA requires an employee to repay training expenses incurred by the employer if they quit before a certain period...more
As a result of the recent string of legislative and regulatory efforts to curb or eliminate the use of non-competition agreements in employment, employers may have lost sight of relatively non-controversial measures they can...more
Much to the dismay of many small businesses, the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed its review of a case that could have limited high-volume lawsuits against entities alleged to have violated public accommodation...more
In last term’s decision in Groff v. DeJoy, the U.S. Supreme Court significantly increased employers’ obligation to consider religious exemption requests under Title VII. Rather than the previous de minimus burden standard,...more
12/8/2023
/ Appeals ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Dismissals ,
Employment Litigation ,
Groff v DeJoy ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Title VII ,
Undue Hardship ,
Vaccinations
Last week, a federal judge in Michigan ordered the U.S. Marshals Service to arrest and imprison a home healthcare agency owner who repeatedly defied a U.S. Department of Labor demand that she provide pay records as part of a...more
12/8/2023
/ Contempt ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Government Investigations ,
Home Health Agencies ,
Payroll Records ,
Prison ,
Subpoenas
Last month, we reported a First Circuit Court of Appeals decision that rejected an Americans with Disabilities Act claim brought by a teacher who was denied an extended leave of absence for recovery from surgery. The court...more
When litigating employment non-competition covenants, issuance by the court of a preliminary injunction may be more important than the ultimate outcome of the litigation. Depending on the circumstances, the injunction can...more
Two of the biggest employment law fallacies we encounter relate to employees’ beliefs about the impact of their off-duty behavior on their careers. First, we see situations where the workers claim that employers have no right...more
12/1/2023
/ Appeals ,
Bias ,
Corporate Executives ,
Discipline ,
Dismissals ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Off-Duty Employees ,
Podcasts ,
Racial Bias
In last week’s EmployNews, we discussed a growing trend of employees basing requests for remote work on mental or physical disabilities, and therefore requesting accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act. In...more
In recent years, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has increased enforcement activities in the home healthcare industry. On Tuesday, DOL announced recovery of over $500,000 from an Alabama agency found to have...more
We regularly receive questions from employers about their obligation to permit employees to bring their dogs or other service animals to work as a form of accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Employers are...more
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), business owners and managers may not share in their servers’ tips. In recent weeks, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division announced recoveries against two restaurants...more
Over the past two years, we have received an increasing number of inquiries from clients regarding their return to the office policies. While some workers object to the end of remote work due to lifestyle preferences, others...more
In recent months, a number of federal labor and employment agencies have announced new initiatives intended to coordinate and cross-refer enforcement actions. This trend continued last week when the National Labor Relations...more
A number of vendors are promoting artificial intelligence-based software for use in applicant screening and hiring. These tools promise to automate parts of the hiring process and to streamline the review of applicant...more
11/6/2023
/ Algorithms ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Automation Systems ,
Bias ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Polygraph Tests ,
Protected Class
Last week, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued final rules broadening the definition of joint employers under federal labor law. A joint employer is a company that is not the employee’s direct W-2 employer, but...more