Employees seeking accommodations for medical conditions under the Americans with Disabilities Act often request modified work schedules. In some cases, the employee presents medical information indicating an ability only to...more
Here is an alleged fact pattern that if true, will almost guarantee that an employer will write a large check to a former employee:
..Her supervisor had made well-known her objection to African-American employees in the...more
Over the past several years, we have reported an increasing number of federal appeals court decisions that have characterized even single instances of certain racial slurs as sufficient to constitute hostile environment...more
Earlier this year, we reported on a new South Carolina law that provides pregnant employees with legal protections that in some circumstances exceed those under federal law. In addition to these substantive protections, the...more
Sometimes when an employee returns from medical leave and presents a doctor’s clearance, the employer has serious questions about the employee’s actual ability to safely and effectively perform the job. A recent unpublished...more
What should a Human Resources Department do in the following circumstance? An employee requests family and medical leave to care for a child with a serious health condition and is provided DOL forms, including the medical...more
States that have legalized medical or recreational marijuana use continue to struggle with reconciling those laws with employers’ ability to regulate employees’ marijuana use. Recently, the California legislature failed to...more
In May in its Epic Systems decision, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the ability of employers to compel individual mandatory arbitration of employment disputes as an alternative to class or collective action litigation....more
7/12/2018
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Boeing ,
Class Action ,
Collective Actions ,
Epic Systems Corp v Lewis ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Remand ,
SCOTUS
Employees and their medical providers continue to come up with creative requests for accommodation of medical conditions under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Last month in an unpublished decision, the Sixth Circuit...more
Late last month, the South Carolina General Assembly overrode Governor Henry McMasters’ veto of legislation intended to make it easier for residents to remove minor criminal convictions from their records. The new law was...more
A new unpublished opinion from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals reminds employers that their obligation to provide disabled persons with reasonable accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act does not limit...more
Public employee unions differ from those representing private sector employees due to constitutional protections afforded to their members and potential members. For example, the U.S. Supreme Court held in 1977 that the First...more
Covered employers had until July 1 to electronically file their 2017 OSHA Form 300A accident and illness reports. Covered employers include those with 250 or more employees with Standard Industrial Codes that require...more
The Americans with Disabilities Act is not an affirmative action law, meaning that employers are not required to hire or continue the employment of disabled persons who cannot perform essential job functions after reasonable...more
In the 17th century fable The Monkey and the Cat by Jean de La Fontaine, a monkey convinces a cat to push roasting chestnuts from a fire, singing his paws in order to provide the monkey with a meal. Ever since, “cat’s paw”...more
Last month’s U.S. Supreme Court decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis confirmed employers’ ability to avoid class and collective action claims through the use of mandatory arbitration agreements with employees. This month,...more
Over the past decade, employers have expressed frustration over the National Labor Relations Board’s increasing scrutiny over what were considered to be standard employee handbook policies. In various board cases, it has...more
Earlier this month, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced separate settlements with CVS Caremark Corporation and Best Buy based on the companies’ use of personality assessments during the application process....more
When faced with the potential for workplace safety violations and penalties from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, most responsible employers take steps to address any outstanding safety issues. Last month in...more
In recent U.S. Senate testimony, the National Labor Relations Board chair indicated his intent to begin a regulatory process to resolve the board’s position on the definition of joint employment under the NLRA. During the...more
As anticipated, the losing employer in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals’ Zarda v. Altitude Express decision has filed a petition for certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court. If accepted by the court, this case could...more
In 2016, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced new respiratory silica exposure levels that lowered the action level for exposure to 25 micrograms per cubic meter of air. The maximum permissible exposure...more
When we sit down with an employer to get their reaction to an EEOC charge or lawsuit accusing a manager of discriminating against an employee, the employer often responds that yes, the manager treated the plaintiff horribly,...more
Last month, Governor Henry McMaster signed into law the South Carolina Pregnancy Accommodations Act. The law, which is the first such measure passed in the South, is intended to protect and assist working women through...more
Recent allegations about conduct by celebrities and high-profile executives such as Harvey Weinstein remind employers that quid pro quo sexual harassment still persists in many industries. Unlike general hostile environment...more