Earlier this year, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (which includes North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia) issued a decision that provides employers with an important defense to some Family and Medical Leave Act...more
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits sex discrimination in educational institutions that receive federal funding. For years, federal courts have interpreted Title IX to include an implied right of action for...more
11/15/2024
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Coaches ,
Colleges ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Private Right of Action ,
Retaliation ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Teachers ,
Title IX ,
Title VII ,
Universities
With the election quickly approaching, we are already receiving questions from employers involving concerns over arguments and disruptions in the workplace resulting from political disagreements. We hoped that the contentious...more
In unusual circumstances arising during unionization campaigns, the National Labor Relations Board can seek a so-called Section 10(j) injunction to immediately order the employer or union to cease illegal acts associated with...more
The National Labor Relations Act’s employee protections extend beyond unionized workplaces or those undergoing organizing activities. Section 8(a)(1) of the NLRA prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who...more
3/29/2024
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employment Litigation ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Home Health Care ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Popular ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Retaliation ,
Termination
When advising employers about the legal risks associated with a business reorganization, we generally advise that discrimination claims are less likely when a company closes an entire facility or department as compared to...more
2/23/2024
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Dismissals ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Remand ,
Reorganizations ,
Retaliation ,
Reversal ,
Risk Management ,
Summary Judgment ,
Termination
During the COVID-19 pandemic and afterwards, employers have faced a growing number of requests for remote work arrangements based on a medical disability. The Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers to grant...more
2/16/2024
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Essential Functions ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Remote Working ,
Retaliation ,
Telecommuting
Last week in a unanimous opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court concluded that an employee who sued his former employer for retaliatory termination did not need to prove a retaliatory intent behind the decision. Murray v. UBS...more
2/16/2024
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Intent ,
Murray v UBS Securities LLC ,
Retaliation ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities Violations ,
UBS ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
Last week, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected claims from a university professor that she had been subjected to a series of retaliatory acts in the two- and one-half year period following her filing an Equal...more
Litigation over employment issues relating to the COVID-19 pandemic is finally reaching the trial and appellate courts. This week, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed dismissal of a lawsuit from a warehouse manager...more
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) protects employees of public corporations who report alleged financial misconduct from retaliation by their employers. Last week, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that an employee’s...more
The North Carolina Retaliatory Employment Discrimination Act (REDA) prohibits employers from terminating or taking other adverse action against employees who complain about violation of rights protected under certain state...more
The Americans with Disabilities Act does not require employers to ignore or excuse serious violations of their rules of conduct. For example, an employee who brings a weapon to work in violation of the employer’s policy...more
9/1/2023
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
PTSD ,
Retaliation ,
Termination ,
Wrongful Termination
In 2008, Congress amended the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to expand the definition of protected medical conditions under the statute. The amendments were in part a response to a series of cases where federal courts...more
The Family and Medical Leave Act prohibits employers from interfering with or retaliating against an employee who requests FMLA leave. Last week, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (which includes North Carolina, South...more
Employers may believe they are aware of potential areas of concern for discrimination or harassment among different groups of employees. Their concerns often focus on race discrimination claims or national origin claims from...more
4/21/2023
/ Bias ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Policies ,
Harassment ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
National Origin Discrimination ,
Racial Bias ,
Retaliation ,
Title VI ,
Title VII
Long-time EmployNews readers know that we have repeatedly written about the changing legal standard for racial harassment claims adopted by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (which includes North Carolina, South Carolina,...more
When defending employers accused of discrimination, harassment, or other claims, defense counsel occasionally comes across evidence indicating that the employee may have engaged in criminal activity. If the employer or its...more
Here’s another common scenario we see with clients: An employer has an especially difficult employee who has made multiple complaints about their treatment while at the same time performing terribly and missing...more
Companies are increasingly using sophisticated forensic tools to review employee computer use. These searches can reveal violations of company policies relating to computer use, confidential information disclosure, or...more
Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act protects the rights of employees to engage in “concerted activity,” regardless of whether they are members of a union. Concerted activity means two or more employees working...more
6/25/2021
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Retaliation ,
Section 7 ,
Unions ,
Wrongful Termination
Some employers are considering mandating COVID-19 vaccinations as a condition of employment. While such policies are generally legal (with some religious and disability accommodations included), they could result in claims...more
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects employees from discrimination based on a range of protected classifications. However, Title VII only applies to employment relationships and cannot be used by contractors,...more
1/22/2021
/ Appeals ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Dismissals ,
Employee Definition ,
Equity Partners ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Law Firm Partners ,
Law Practice Management ,
Professional Services Companies ,
Race Discrimination ,
Retaliation ,
Title VII
Retaliation claims now constitute the most frequently cited basis for charges filed before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Lawsuits based on retaliation can be especially dangerous for employers because they do...more
In its 2011 North American Stainless decision, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed that an engaged man could sue for retaliation under Title VII after he was fired around the time his fiancée filed a discrimination claim against...more