Last Friday, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration released statistics on citations issued to employers for COVID-19 safety violations. OSHA has not issued a COVID-19 safety standard, and the citations...more
If found responsible for a serious violation of workplace safety standards, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration can assess up to $13,494 per item cited. However, when the citation involves a repeat or...more
In recent weeks, we have seen a marked increase in employers receiving notice of complaints to state and federal occupational safety and health agencies from workers regarding COVID-19 infection control procedures. Many of...more
According to U.S. Department of Justice statistics, Black men in the U.S. are more likely to be arrested and have criminal convictions on their records than their white counterparts. Last week, a split Second Circuit Court of...more
9/28/2020
/ Appeals ,
Conditional Job Offers ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Criminal Records ,
Dismissals ,
Disparate Treatment ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Race Discrimination
In the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic, it may be easy for employers to forget about the earlier crisis involving opioid addiction in the U.S. Companies continue to struggle with employees who face opioid addiction...more
If an employer fails to comply with federal overtime or minimum wage requirements imposed under the Fair Labor Standards Act, it can be held liable not only for unpaid wages, but also for liquidated damages equal to that...more
The U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark Bostock decision earlier this week confirmed that Title VII’s prohibitions against discrimination in employment based on sex apply to claims alleging bias due to sexual orientation or gender...more
6/22/2020
/ Altitude Express Inc v Zarda ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Civil Rights Act ,
EEOC v RG & GR Harris Funeral Homes ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gender Identity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
LGBTQ ,
SCOTUS ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
In most situations, employers are not liable for civil claims relating to criminal conduct by their employees because such actions are deemed to be outside the course and scope of their employment. Plaintiffs can get around...more
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 allows awards of both compensatory and punitive damages capped at a total amount depending on the size of the employer. In a new decision from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals...more
As employers begin formulating return-to-work plans, one step under consideration is workplace testing of employees for COVID-19. While such tests are not widely available yet, these plans have raised questions regarding...more
As federal and state governments begin planning return-to-work scenarios, on April 17, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued revisions to its COVID-19 pandemic questions and answers guidance. Among other things,...more
In recent years, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (which includes North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia) has substantially lowered the legal bar for plaintiffs to demonstrate a hostile work environment based on...more
Last Thursday, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued an expanded technical assistance Q&A on employment discrimination concerns associated with employers’ COVID-19 response efforts. The advisory does not make...more
Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race in the making of contracts, including employment contracts. Section 1981 is often used by employees suing for race discrimination as...more
4/14/2020
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
But For Causation ,
Causation ,
Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Evidence ,
Pleading Standards ,
Race Discrimination ,
Retaliation ,
SCOTUS ,
Title VII ,
UT Southwestern Medical v Nassar
Employers that are already perplexed by the long time it takes the EEOC to complete investigations will now have even longer to wait for the conclusion of discrimination charges. Earlier this week, the EEOC announced that due...more
In 2009 in response to the H1N1 outbreak, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued a publication titled Pandemic Preparedness in the Workplace and the Americans with Disabilities Act. On March 21, the EEOC updated...more
Many employers in the travel, hospitality, and other industries affected by COVID-19 are facing the need to immediately reduce their workforces, at least temporarily. We have received multiple questions from clients regarding...more
In order to claim discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act, employees must demonstrate that they could perform the essential functions of the job but were denied a reasonable accommodation. Some employers...more
3/11/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Dismissals ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Essential Functions ,
Interactive Process ,
Popular ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Reversal
As previously reported in EmployNews, a number of states and municipalities have tried to address gender-based pay gaps by adopting legislation that prohibits employers from asking about pay history or setting starting...more
3/9/2020
/ Appeals ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
En Banc Review ,
Equal Pay ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Job Applicants ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Gap ,
Remand ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Wage and Hour
Some of the most frequent questions we receive from employers involve managing the performance of employees with medical issues. While employers understand their nondiscrimination obligations under the Americans with...more
3/6/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Best Management Practices ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Discipline ,
Dismissals ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Poor Job Performance ,
Summary Judgment
As an alternative to termination, employers faced with employee drug or alcohol policy violations sometimes want to give that person a second chance. Typically, this process involves a commitment by the employee to seek...more
In a well-publicized incident in 2017, Google terminated an employee who circulated a memorandum opposing the company’s diversity program. The employee claimed that innate differences between the sexes made females less...more
Many written employment agreements contain automatic renewal provisions that apply at the end of the contract’s term if either party does not provide notice of intent not to renew. When an employment agreement is silent on...more
Most employers know that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration can assess civil penalties for violation of safety standards. However, they may not be aware that the OSH Act also contains criminal penalties. ...more
According to Part 541 of regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Labor under the Fair Labor Standards Act, exempt employees must be paid a guaranteed salary. Under §541.602, employers may only deduct from this salary for...more