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Employment Law

Wage-and-Hour suits are hot

04/01/2008
Wage-and-hour lawsuits are growing exponentially, according to the fourth Annual Workplace Class Action Litigation Report from national law firm Seyfarth Shaw LLP. New York was among the states experiencing the sharpest growth in wage-and-hour claims …

N.Y.-Based grocery chain to pay $40,000 discrimination settlement

04/01/2008
Eugene Gates Jr. had worked in a Charlotte, N.C., grocery store for nearly 40 years when it was purchased by Compare Foods, based in Freeport, N.Y. Shortly after the buyout, Compare cut his hours in half and gave his shifts to a young Hispanic worker …

More new state laws to complicate life for employers

04/01/2008
In 2007, New York lawmakers passed a record number of laws affecting employers, including new laws on independent contractors, inquiries into conviction records, leave for military spouses, leave of absence for blood donations and cancer screenings, and unemployment benefits …

Explain work schedule during interview, not after hiring

04/01/2008
Does your organization operate on shifts or have unusual work hours? If so, it’s fair to both job applicants and the organization to be ultra-clear about what hours new hires should expect to work. The best approach is to ask about work availability up front—right on the application …

Changes coming to the FMLA—For better and for worse

04/01/2008
After remaining untouched for its first 15 years, the FMLA has received a makeover in the past couple of months—first by Congress, and then by regulators at the U.S. Labor Department. Here are the highlights …

Age discrimination is hard to prove—But retaliation isn’t

04/01/2008
One of the hardest discrimination claims for employees to prove is age discrimination under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). Retaliation is a much easier case to make. All the employee has to prove is that he complained about discrimination and was punished for doing so …

When serial harasser strikes, you can’t just move victims

04/01/2008
Do you have a serial harasser on your hands? Has the finger been pointed at the same individual more than once? If so, don’t try to weasel your way out of a confrontation by simply separating the harasser from the harassed. You may get away with it once, but you’re courting trouble (and a potentially big lawsuit) if you try it again …

Monitor to make sure harassment really has stopped

04/01/2008
It sometimes happens: Production floor or other entry-level employees lacking a—shall we say—sophisticated outlook on life go a little too far. Perhaps they play a practical joke that is offensive to a co-worker. Someone complains, and HR investigates. The culprits apologize, and everything settles down. Is the organization in the clear? …

Firing shortly after follow-up FMLA care may be retaliation

04/01/2008
As more time passes after an employee takes FMLA leave, courts grow less and less likely to link an adverse employment action to taking leave. That means employees have a harder and harder time proving that being fired, for example, was retaliation for exercising their FMLA leave rights. But be careful …

Personal dislike not enough to win discrimination lawsuit

04/01/2008
We’re all different, and personality conflicts are a fact of life. But even if some supervisors and subordinates may not be on the best of terms, minor slights and unfair treatment aren’t enough for a discrimination lawsuit …