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Employment Law

DOL announces new definition of ‘spouse’ for FMLA purposes

07/09/2014

United States v. Windsor struck down a Defense of Marriage Act provision that interpreted “marriage” and “spouse” to be limited to opposite-sex marriage for the purposes of federal law. Now the Department of Labor has issued rules extending FMLA protections to same-sex married couples.

Legislation will end employers’ annual wage-notice scramble

07/09/2014
On June 19, 2014, New York Assembly and Senate passed legislation eliminating a Wage Theft Prevention Act requirement that employers must provide wage notices to all employees by Feb. 1 each year.

NYC construction workers gain $4.9 million in back pay

07/09/2014
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has announced a settlement with federal contractor MDG Design & Construction, the prime contractor on the Grand Street Guild public housing construction project on New York’s Lower East Side.

Long Island cop wins $1.35M in reverse discrimination case

07/09/2014
A federal jury has awarded $1.35 million to a police lieutenant in the Long Island town of Freeport after finding that the town’s black mayor turned him down for a promotion to chief of police because he is white. A Hispanic fire department official got the job.

Biased at Tiffany?

07/09/2014
A black man who runs two Tiffany & Co. stores in Texas is suing the luxury retailer in New York, alleging that the company engages in “systemic, nationwide pattern and practice of racial discrimination.”

Employee represents himself? Take the suit seriously

07/09/2014
These days, few attorneys accept cases they know they can’t win. That means more employees are acting as their own lawyers. Don’t make a classic employer mistake: Ignoring a pro se lawsuit in which the employee represents himself. Instead, practice patience and diligence in pushing for the court to dismiss the case.

Most political speech doesn’t create hostile environment

07/09/2014
Politics sometimes come up when co-workers talk. As long as what’s said isn’t overtly offensive, those discussions don’t create a hostile work environment—even if some employees are sensitive about the subject matter.

Have attorneys monitor other lawsuits that may have been filed by class-action members

07/09/2014

You may think that settling a class-action lawsuit puts an end to the matter, stopping further claims by an employee who was a member of the class. If you know an employee has filed another EEOC complaint or lawsuit, be sure to tell your attorney when the class-action suit is being settled. Otherwise, you may soon be back in court.

Courts won’t hear it: Don’t try piling on after-the-fact reasons for termination

07/09/2014

Sometimes, after an employee has been discharged, a supervisor will discover that the employee broke additional rules. But even if what you discover would be enough to have justified discharge on its own, chances are a court won’t let you use the information in your defense. After-acquired evidence isn’t admissible to show you would have fired the employee for reasons other than the one you used.

Back RIF decisions with sound fiscal reasons–and prepare to explain them in court

07/09/2014
If an employer can present a coherent and rational explanation for why economics—not retaliation—drove a RIF decision, chances are a court won’t second-guess it.