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Louisiana

Why employers must move fast during accommodation process

06/12/2025

The ADA doesn’t set a time limit for the interactive accommodations process, but assumes everybody will act in good faith. So when the process takes too long, the employee can sue, alleging failure to accommodate. She doesn’t have to lose her job, pay or benefits to do so.

Clear violation of your rules? Courts won’t second-guess disciplinary decision

03/28/2025

You have workplace rules for a reason, and you can require employees to follow them. If someone breaks your rules or violates your policies, feel free to discipline them. As long as you enforce your rules evenhandedly and impose discipline consistently, courts are unlikely to second-guess your decision to punish employees.

Court says DOL can use salary level to determine exempt classification

03/03/2025

The Biden administration’s bid last year to raise the white-collar overtime salary threshold from $35,568 per year to $58,656 is dead, the victim of a series of court rulings that said the Department of Labor overstepped its authority by mandating such a big jump. However, one aspect of the OT threshold process stands.

Federal appeals court affirms: Overtime salary test is valid

09/20/2024

Ruling in Mayfield v. DOL, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a challenge by a Texas restaurateur who argued that nothing in the Fair Labor Standards Act gave the DOL the authority to base overtime pay on anything except the kind of work employees perform.

DOL’s 80/20 tip-credit rule overturned

08/30/2024

A federal appeals court on Aug. 23 struck down a Department of Labor rule governing how tipped workers must be paid for performing work for which they cannot receive tips.

He said, they said: No records puts employer in a messy place

06/20/2024

Lawsuits for unpaid overtime aren’t always so cut-and-dried. They can come in layers, with each layer costing you more. The 5th Circuit ruled that an employer could be liable for unpaid overtime if it misclassified workers as independent contractors, even though the workers had scant evidence of their unpaid overtime.

CROWN Act alert: Ensure grooming rules don’t perpetuate hairstyle bias

05/03/2024

One of the fastest-growing legal anti-discrimination trends is an effort to outlaw discrimination on the basis of employees’ hairstyles. So far, efforts to pass a national law have proven unsuccessful. However, that hasn’t stopped the EEOC from pursuing litigation against employers accused of natural hair discrimination, as a recent case shows.

How to save millions even if you lose in court: Good-faith investigation can prevent huge punitive damages

03/13/2024

Always investigate every HR complaint, even if you think it’s frivolous. Doing so can help you dodge a huge punitive awards verdict if a jury sides with a fired worker. What matters most is that the investigation is done in good faith.

Lessen liability by quickly addressing sexual harassment

02/23/2024

Just having a policy that prohibits sexual harassment can prevent harassment from occurring. Most employers also make it easy for employees to report harassment they experience or witness.

Get written acknowledgment for every missed shift

02/02/2024

Employers that have clear rules and apply them fairly seldom lose termination lawsuits—if they can prove their employees understood the rules. One of the best ways to demonstrate that is by consistently having workers acknowledge that they broke a rule. Do this at the time you discipline the worker, pointing out what rule they broke. A brief written disciplinary notice with a space for the employee’s signature should to the trick.