What's the Tea in L&E? Injury or Disability: What's the Difference?
DE Under 3: Disability Unemployment, Cornell ILR & USDOL Women's Bureau Webinar Series & More
#BigIdeas2020: Open Discussion of Mental Health in the Workplace - Employment Law This Week® - Trending News
“You Want More Time Off?” – Dealing with Employees’ Medical Leave Requests Under the FMLA and ADA
Employment Law Issues for Health Care Employers
OFCCPs New Veteran/Disability Regulations Are Now in Effect. Are You Ready?
Upcoming Affirmative Action Plan Requirements for Federal Contractors and Subcontractors
Navigating the New OFCCP Regulations on Affirmative Action Obligations: Make Sure Your Organization is Ready
Polsinelli Podcast - What Employers Need to Know About Obesity in the Workplace
Accessibility concerns for disabled condo owners
Accessibility Concerns for Disabled Condo Owners
In 2008, Congress amended the Americans with Disabilities Act to expand the definition of medical conditions that qualify for protections under that statute. The amendments resulted from a number of federal court decisions...more
On July 1, 2024, in Huber v. Westar Foods, Inc., in a 2–1 decision, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals departed from the “honest belief” defense recognized by the First, Second, Fourth, Fifth, and Seventh Circuits (and U.S....more
Our May update includes a case on whistleblowing where the claimant’s belief in the disclosures was questioned along with whether decision makers who knew little or nothing about the disclosures could be blamed for those who...more
On January 31, the Sixth Circuit published a cautionary tale regarding the “reasonable belief” doctrine involving an employer that fired a disabled employee for a positive drug test for “marijuana.”...more
Our June update includes cases on whether an employer notified of an employee’s pregnancy just before termination is liable for a pregnancy dismissal, whether an employer’s future discovery of a disability makes it...more
The New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division has issued a published decision holding that, under the facts of the particular case, COVID-19 alone is not a disability under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination...more
Morals based on a real court decision. My law partner Jon Yarbrough alerted me to a recent court decision that is full of little gems for employers. I thought I'd break the decision down into "true fables," each with a...more
At one time or another, one of your employees may have had a serious health condition resulting in multiple absences, followed by a release to return to work with restrictions that you believed prevented the employee from...more
This country’s relationship with cannabis is a complicated one, and as is often the case in complicated matters, words matter. Marijuana and hemp are different strains of the Cannabis sativa L plant. So, “cannabis” is a...more
In our modern world of a booming CBD industry and an increasing number of states that have legalized marijuana, can you terminate an employee for a positive drug test for marijuana? What if the test shows marijuana...more
A recent decision of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals protects discretionary decisions by plan administrators and illustrates the application of the definition of an “involuntary separation from service” under section 409A...more
In a decision illustrating the importance of a deferential standard of review in an ERISA plan document, the Second Circuit affirmed the dismissal of severance claims by a disabled employee, concluding that the complaint pled...more
A federal court in Pennsylvania dismissed the legal claims asserted by a former employee who tested positive for marijuana on a random drug test and who attributed the test result to CBD use. Lehenky v. Toshiba America...more
Auto Recycler Fired Employee During Treatment for Cancer After Denying Her Requests for Accommodation, Federal Agency Charged - DALLAS – Tyler, Texas-based K&L Auto Crushers will pay $90,000 and furnish other relief to...more
In much-anticipated guidance, the Internal Revenue Service has offered its insight on the implementation of the COBRA temporary premium subsidy provisions of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) in Notice 2021-31...more
The Second Circuit recently held that an employer did not violate the Americans with Disabilities Act when it refused to transfer, and then terminated, an employee because of his inability to perform his job due to migraines...more
This certainly sounds futuristic. (Pun intended.) Still, in a case just decided by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, EEOC v. STME, LLC, the EEOC espoused precisely this position. The EEOC sued STME for disability...more
On August 20, 2019, the Ninth Circuit dodged answering the question of whether morbid obesity is a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act. In Valtierra v. Medtronic Inc., No. 17-15282, the Ninth Circuit affirmed...more
Eww. In Canada, sex addiction is apparently not a disability. (Whether it is under the Americans with Disabilities Act remains to be seen, but I don't think so.) A labor arbitrator has upheld the termination of an employee...more
When Is Notice of Termination Effective? In Newcastle Upon Tyne NHS Foundation Trust v Haywood [2018] UKSC 22, the U.K. Supreme Court upheld last year’s Court of Appeal decision, reported by us here, that where an...more
A recent Third Circuit case, Sessoms v. Trs. Of the Univ. of Pa., 2018 U.S. App. LEXIS 16611 (3rd Cir. June 20, 2018), serves as a reminder that while the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) requires employers to provide...more
Data Protection Act 2018 Enacted - New Legislation Enacted - Effective May 25, 2018, the UK Data Protection Act transposes the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) into UK law, thereby replacing the Data...more
Employers frequently struggle with enforcement of call-in and job abandonment policies when there has been a lack of communication by a disabled employee. In Alejandro v. ST Micro Electronics (N.D. Cal.) 178 F.Supp.3d 850,...more
The 7th Circuit, in a short opinion issued April 6, zapped a plaintiff’s claim that he was terminated in violation of the ADA based on his condition of being overexposed to electromagnetic voltage at his job. Mr. Hirmiz, a...more
On January 26, 2017, Puerto Rico’s Governor, Ricardo Roselló, signed into law the Labor Transformation and Flexibility Act (the “Act”). The Act represents the first significant and comprehensive labor law reform to occur in...more