Employment

The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office Fair Labor Division has joined a multistate effort questioning retail stores’ use of “on call” shifts.

What an afternoon!  When Winston Wild’s manager called me, indicating that he was detained at Pearson International Airport, we did not know what to do, which is why I called you. Thank you for calling Winston Wild so quickly and explaining that he was only delayed and placed in Secondary Inspection.

Just last month, two federal district courts reached different conclusions, further contributing to the confusion as to whether notes taken during a Human Resources department investigation of a discrimination or harassment complaint are protected from disclosure in subsequent litigation.

The Western District of Washington recently emphasized that the obligation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) to engage in good faith interactive dialogue when seeking an accommodation that will permit an employee with a disability to perform his or her job applies to employees as well as employers.

Earlier this month Governor Cuomo signed into law New York’s Paid Family Leave Act, which, when fully implemented, will provide virtually all employees in the state up to 12 weeks of paid family leave.

My colleague Tyrone Thomas, was quoted in the Bloomberg BNA article entitled Managing Bias Risks While Increasing Workplace Diversity in which he analyzes the threat of reverse racism claims arising from employer diversity efforts.

Both the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) contain rules that aggregate trades and businesses under common control. For the most part, these rules are intended to prevent abuses that might result from breaking a venture up into separate entities.

After six years in the hopper, the Department of Labor finally issued final fiduciary regulations late last week that will greatly impact a wide variety of stakeholders. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) governs fiduciary conduct and establishes rules that bar certain transactions, referred to as “prohibited transactions.”

Many employers still grapple with the application of certain anti-discrimination laws -- such as Title VII and the ADA -- to non-U.S. citizen employees working in the United States and U.S. citizen employees working overseas.  To determine whether these laws apply, employers should ask themselves the following questions:

California and New York have each passed laws that will gradually raise their state’s minimum wage rate to $15 per hour.  This is a stunning development coming just four years after a small group of New York fast food workers initiated the call for the increase.

As promised, I am following up on my email from last week regarding some additional resources for employees working abroad.  The offer/assignment letter is a great place to specifically outline additional resources and tools the employer will provide to the employee stationed abroad, which may include the following:

Five members of the U.S. women’s national soccer team, including stars Carli Lloyd, Hope Solo and Alex Morgan, filed a complaint at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the U.S. Soccer Federation alleging that they are paid almost four times less than the men’s national soccer team, despite generating nearly $20 million more in revenue in 2015.

If there is a predictive model for dating, why can’t the same model apply to the employment relationship? I was fascinated to learn recently that eHarmony, the online dating site, had launched a career site called Elevated.

The benefits world was set abuzz late last year with Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Flambeau, Inc., in which the Federal District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin upheld the validity of Wisconsin-based plastics manufacturer Flambeau, Inc.’s wellness program in the face of a challenge by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

My colleague David Barmak, was quoted in a SHRM article entitled, Justices Question Whether EEOC Should Pay $4.7M in Attorney Fees, in which he examines the potential advantages for employers if the EEOC is required to reimburse a trucking company for legal fees incurred in connection with a sexual harassment lawsuit.

“Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.  The great Oz has spoken.”

The US Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that Tyson Foods employees can use representative evidence to establish liability and damages for class certification purposes. The opinion gives the plaintiffs’ class action bar a second victory in the Court’s current term, albeit a far narrower one than many commentators had feared. 

As a general principle, an employee alleging employment discrimination has an affirmative obligation to mitigate his or her lost wages by making a good faith effort to secure alternative employment.  The employer however, bears the burden of proving that the employee failed to make such an effort.

This is the second installment of a series regarding legal issues affecting college athletics that will run during this year’s NCAA basketball tournament. It is no secret that the salaries of coaches of high profile college programs are rising steadily.

The United States Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that Tyson Foods employees could use representative evidence to establish liability and damages for class certification purposes. The opinion gives the plaintiffs' class action bar a second victory in the Court's current term, albeit a far narrower one than many commentators had feared.