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Pennsylvania

Win lawsuits by documenting consistent, equitable interview process

12/16/2024

When interviewing more than one candidate to fill a job, the easiest way to prevent failure-to-hire lawsuits is to ask the same questions of every candidate. That’s especially important when there are several rounds of interviews or when a committee conducts the interviews.

DOL wage-theft trial ends in $38.8 million judgment against Pennsylvania nursing homes

08/05/2024

In one of the nation’s largest-ever wage-recovery judgments, a federal court in Pennsylvania has awarded $35.8 million in overtime back wages and liquidated damages to 6,000 current and former workers employed by the operators of 15 nursing homes and assisted-living facilities in western Pennsylvania that willfully denied them overtime pay.

Judge declines to block FTC noncompete ban, setting up potentially protracted legal fight

07/29/2024

ATS Tree Services asked Judge Kelley Hodge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to issue a preliminary injunction blocking the rule.

Require bosses to contact HR before telling employee to participate in EAP

07/08/2024

Employee assistance program referrals can help workers deal with small mental- or behavioral-health problems—for example, showing up for work hungover—before they balloon into mental- and behavioral-health crises, such as developing alcoholism. Bosses are often the ones who talk to troubled subordinates about availing themselves of EAP services. However, they must take great care when they have those conversations.

Beware the high cost of tolerating a racially hostile environment: $20.5 million

05/08/2024

A former employee has won a huge jury award over allegations that a supervisor and co-worker created a racially hostile work environment that the company failed to fix.

Discouraging even one worker from complaining violates the NLRA

03/13/2024

The NLRA applies to just about every private-sector employer, setting strict rules for what employers can and cannot do when setting workplace rules. For example, it makes it illegal to tell employees not to discuss workplace conditions among themselves. However, until February, discussing work conditions had to involve at least two employees. Not anymore.

Cost of a one-sided investigation: $15 million

01/08/2024

Ignoring a complaint or summarily dismissing it almost guarantees you’ll lose a lawsuit if the complaining employee decides to sue. But how you conduct that investigation is crucial. Lean too heavily towards supporting the alleged victim, and the alleged perpetrator may be the one who sues you.

Blanket refusal to accommodate leads to ADA liability

11/15/2023

Employers cannot simply declare that a specific accommodation in all circumstances creates an undue hardship. Consider each disability case individually.

Think twice before demanding proof an employee’s religion requires accommodation

10/16/2023

Thanks to a series of employee-friendly court decisions, workers now have a far easier time winning lawsuits alleging their employers failed to accommodate their religious beliefs and practices. Employers are greatly limited in how far they can go to require employees to prove their religious beliefs and practices require accommodations.

When it’s OK to pile on work following FMLA leave

09/08/2023

When employees take FMLA leave, they have the right to return to the same or an equivalent position. “Equivalent” means the job has the same pay, benefits and working conditions as before. But jobs often evolve, even when the jobholder is off on FMLA leave. And sometimes, that means an employee will return to a job that’s somewhat different.