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Employment Law

Counter retaliation claims by accurately documenting every employee complaint

05/11/2010

Employees who complain about alleged discrimination are protected from retaliation. But that doesn’t mean it’s protected activity every time someone calls HR to discuss what they think might be discrimination. In order to be protected against retaliation, the employee has to make clear that he opposed an “unlawful employment practice.”

Proposed Ohio law would be tougher than WARN

05/11/2010
A bill before the Ohio Legislature would require employers to provide more notice of mass layoffs than required by current state law or the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act. The new proposal, H.R. 434, would require employers laying off 25 or more employees to give 90 days’ notice.

Warn bosses: Think before you speak

05/11/2010

Lots can happen between the time words leave a manager’s lips and when they reach an employee’s ears. Simple comments may be misinterpreted as insults or, worse, evidence of discrimination. That’s especially true with language that might reflect age bias. Older employees may be far more sensitive to age-related language than their younger co-workers, managers and supervisors.

Offer training to those who aren’t promoted

05/11/2010
Your best employees are probably eager for promotions. But when only one slot is open, promotions often leave several well-qualified candidates disappointed. To keep disappointment from leading to lawsuits, consider offering career coaching for those employees who didn’t make the cut.

How to comply with DOT’s new workplace drug-testing regulations

05/11/2010
The U.S. Department of Transportation has proposed new drug-screening procedures for employees who operate vehicles as part of their work. Some of the covered jobs: airline pilot, train engineer, mechanic and anyone with a commercial driver’s license. Private employers that test other workers should consider adopting the standard.

Former exec says Goldman Sachs put her on the ‘mommy track’

05/11/2010

Goldman Sachs is getting sued a lot these days … and not just by the SEC. Charlotte Hanna claims the embattled investment bank marginalized her after she had two children, effectively barring her from returning to full-time work as a vice president. In a lawsuit charging violations of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and the FMLA, Hanna says taking the bank’s offer of an “off ramp” for executives who wanted to have children derailed her career.

At L.I. strip club, was it discrimination or accommodation?

05/11/2010
The EEOC has taken up the case of a bartender at Long Island’s Casino Royale gentlemen’s club who claims she was demoted after her boss learned she was pregnant.

Beer vendor, 85, cries foul, but court says Aramark was fair

05/11/2010

Mildred Block had a fine run at Shea Stadium, staffing a lucrative beer stand in a prime location near the right-field cheap seats during Mets games. She averaged $40 per night in tips. The 85-year-old Block had worked the stand for nearly 20 years. But then late in the 2008 season, concession operator Aramark sent Block down to the equivalent of the minor leagues: a booth where she pockets far fewer tips.

Bias unlikely if new worker is same race as former employee

05/11/2010
Employees who allege they were terminated because they belong to a protected class will have a tough time winning the lawsuit if their replacement belongs to the same class—at least when the new hire comes on board before the terminated employee files her EEOC complaint or lawsuit.

Court to serial litigant: Buzz off or pay!

05/11/2010
A federal court judge has laid down the law to a serial litigant: The next time he wastes an employer’s time with baseless litigation, he’s going to pay.