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Employment Law

EEOC cheesed over pay, hours at Philly fast-food franchise

09/30/2013
Market Burgers, which owns a Checkers fast-food franchise in West Philadelphia, faces charges it pays women less than men and doesn’t let women work as many hours as men.

Using contractors won’t stop race bias claims

09/30/2013
Don’t assume that just because a worker is an independent contractor, he can’t sue you when his contract isn’t renewed. While he may not be able to sue under Title VII for various forms of discrimination, he can still sue for alleged racial discrimination.

Check eligibility before OK’ing FMLA leave

09/30/2013
Always double-check that an employee who has requested FMLA leave is actually eligible. It’s crucial if you operate out of several states or have multiple offices, since some locations may not be large enough to require FMLA coverage.

How can we make sure Halloween party costumes don’t cross the line?

09/27/2013
Q. We would like to throw a Halloween party for our employees during working hours. Many want to wear costumes. Should we have a costume dress code? We are worried some employees may go too far.

What legal issues affect workplace dress codes?

09/27/2013
Q. We have been contemplating developing a dress code. What kinds of legal issues do we need to consider?

What’s the law on surreptitious audiotaping?

09/27/2013
Q. One of the employees in our office has been taping conversations unknown to the people he is taping. Does the employee have a right to do this?

Changes to California law address harassment motive

09/27/2013
Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law SB 292, a bill that clarifies that an individual filing a sexual harassment complaint under state law need not prove that the sexually harassing conduct was motivated by sexual desire.

No place to hide for scofflaw California employers

09/27/2013
If the California Department of Indus­­­trial Relations comes after you, don’t expect to get away with anything illegal. The department reports that since January 2013, a joint enforcement task force of state regulatory agencies looking for pay and safety violations has wound up citing 83% of work sites inspected.

San Diego’s mayor resigns, settles sexual harassment claim

09/27/2013
San Diego Mayor Bob Filner has resigned after settling sexual harassment claims against him.

Court sends class action back to drawing board

09/27/2013
In 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court considered a class action against Wal­­mart that included over a million employees who claimed sex discrimination. The court said the ­­employees didn’t have enough in common to band together in one lawsuit (Wal­­mart v. Dukes). Now federal courts are doing the same with much smaller class-action lawsuits—good news for employers.