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Employment Law

Worker in alleged “slave ship” wants to litigate race bias suit

01/04/2023
A Black assembly line staffer at Tesla, Marcus, seeks to add more than 100 other workers to an existing lawsuit, calling the electric-car maker’s production floor in Fremont, Calif., a “hotbed for racist behavior.”

Follow these key FMLA intermittent leave call-off rules

01/04/2023
Managing employees authorized to take FMLA on an intermittent basis can be a massive headache. You never know when the employee will call off work. But disciplining the employee for missing work can backfire. Here’s how to create call-off rules that comply with the law.

Avoid this tipping trap

01/04/2023
Tipping is tricky for those who give (how much?) and for those who receive—do they pool the tips and divide them, or pocket tips individually? However, one touchstone rule under the Fair Labor Standards Act is clear: Tips are for employees.

EEOC settles its first COVID remote-work claim

01/04/2023
In the EEOC’s first COVID-related claim where remote work was deemed an accommodation under the ADA, an employee who became sick at work with a fever and uncontrollable cough claims she was fired for refusing to return to the office.

Autistic employee fired after 37 years: McDonald’s will pay $100,000 to settle

12/22/2022
Two months after a new franchisee took over a McDonald’s restaurant, management fired Anthony, an employee with autism, who had worked at McDonald’s for 37 years, earning excellent performance reviews and accolades.

NLRB set to get funding boost; expect more enforcement

12/22/2022
If Congress’ $1.7 trillion omnibus spending package passes before it recesses for the year, one pro-union, pro-worker agency stands to see over $25 million in new funding. The National Labor Relations Board, which enforces the National Labor Relations Act, has in recent years been cash-strapped and its enforcement power therefore curtailed. Since 2010, the NLRB has lost 30 percent of its workforce.

Manage workplace politics in or out of election season

12/21/2022
Politics are always with us nowadays. When tensions are high, it is essential to keep a respectful workplace, whether or not it’s voting season.

Respect for Marriage Act passes; employers, take note

12/21/2022
The Respect for Marriage Act passed into law with bipartisan support in December and protects marriage for LGBTQ+ and interracial couples. The act ensures that a marriage that is legal in one state is recognized by all. Take this opportunity to review your benefits offerings to ensure they align with federal, state and local laws.

Supreme Court to decide: Which conversations with lawyers are privileged?

12/21/2022
For the first time in 40 years, the Supreme Court will hear a case concerning attorney-client privilege. The issue is whether conversations involving matters that are both legal and non-legal are privileged and thus shielded from discovery during litigation.

Pregnant Workers Fairness Act passes House, shot down in Senate

12/21/2022
A bipartisan group of senators tried, in early December, to pass the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. The act resembles the Americans with Disabilities Act in requiring employers of 15 or more employees to make reasonable accommodations to allow pregnant workers to continue working safely.