New York Strengthens Wage Laws
August 25, 2008
In light of recent aggressive enforcement efforts of New York's Labor Laws by both the New York State Attorney General's Office and the New York State Department of Labor ("NYSDOL"), prudent employers should consider the effect of these new enactments on their pay and leave practices and take action to ensure compliance.
Competing Definitions of 'Mass Layoffs' Under the WARN Act
August 25, 2008
The Retraining and Notification Act ("WARN" or The Act) creates some uncertainty for employers because it contains two potentially conflicting definitions of the term "mass layoff" ' one that looks to a 30-day period and another that aggregates layoffs over a 90-day period. This article analyzes a recent ruling that addresses the problem.
Retaliation Claims
August 25, 2008
Part One of this article, which appeared in the June issue of Employment Law Strategist, discussed proof of retaliation claims. The conclusion herein addresses what conduct is protected.
Panel Affirms Award Against Wal-Mart in Disability Bias Case
August 25, 2008
Staking out an exception to the general rule that the requirement to accommodate is normally triggered by a disabled employee's request, the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said an employer must take action "if the employer knew or reasonably should have known that the employee was disabled." <i>Brady v. Wal-Mart Stores Inc.</i>, 06-5486-cv.
Beware the Parent Trap
July 31, 2008
While parents are not a protected class, claims based on an employee's status as a parent or nonparent may be pursued successfully under existing causes of action, frequently sex discrimination. Such claims ' often characterized as family responsibilities discrimination (FRD) ' rose over 400% between 1996 and 2005, according to a 2006 study by Hastings College of the Law's Center for WorkLife Law.
Workplace Lactation
July 31, 2008
This article includes discussion of the various approaches that jurisdictions have taken when providing legal protections for breastfeeding employees and establishing legal requirements for employers.
A Primer on EEOC Guidelines on Caregivers
July 31, 2008
Employers need an attack plan and must begin to think creatively to address every situation that arises in the workplace to protect themselves from increasingly popular FRD claims. Here's how.
Enron and Anna Nicole Smith
July 30, 2008
This article explains, in the bankruptcy litigation context, the probate exception, an arcane and traditionally misunderstood common law exception to federal jurisdiction.
<B>BREAKING NEWS:</B> Wal-Mart Loses $6.5 Million Wage-and-Hour Class Action
July 02, 2008
On July 1, after a three-month bench trial, a state court judge in Minnesota ruled that in failing to provide rest breaks, Wal-Mart broke state labor laws more than 2 million times. Judge Robert King Jr. awarded $6.5 million in compensatory damages to the class, which consists of about 56,000 Wal-Mart employees in Minnesota.
