Latest Labor & Employment News

Latest Articles That Have Been Posted

  • Equal Pay Act Enacted Fifty Years Ago

    Date: June 10, 2013 | Category: Discrimination

    Today marks the 50th anniversary of the Equal Pay Act ("EPA") signed into law by President John F. Kennedy.  The Equal Pay Act of 1963 is a federal law amending the Fair Labor Standards Act.  The provides that no employer shall discriminate between employees on the basis of sex by paying wages to employees at a rate less than the rate at which employees of the opposite se are paid, to which the performance of the work requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility and performed under similar working conditions. Although the EPA was enacted out of "concern for the weaker bargaining position of women," the Act protects both men and women.  To establish a violation of the EPA,..

    READ MORE
  • Employee's Lack of Diligence in Obtaining Medical Certification Defeats FMLA Claim

    Date: February 12, 2013 | Category: Family and Medical Leave Act

    In Brookins v. Staples Contract & Commercial, Inc., the court ruled today that an employee did not make diligent efforts to obtain medical certification and therefore did not have an FMLA claim against her employer, Staples. The employee had a series of unexcused absences for which she was on the verge of termination. The employee informed Staples about her medical condition and insisted that her absences were related to her treatment.

    Under FMLA, employers have the right to request and obtain complete and sufficient medical certification to support an absence due to an emthe ployee's alleged serious..

    READ MORE
  • Responding to a Charge of Discrimination

    Date: November 4, 2012 | Category: Discrimination

    If an employee believes that he or she has been discriminated against at work, they can file a Charge of Discrimination with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).  An employee is required to file this Charge with the EEOC prior to initiating a federal discrimination lawsuit.  If you, as an employer, have received a Charge of Discrimination from the EEOC, you must act quick.  The Charge of Discrimination typically sets out the employee's allegations of discrimination or retaliation – what happened, who participated, etc.  The employer then has a strict deadline to respond to the EEOC with their side of the story. The employer..

    READ MORE
  • Hurricane Sandy's Effects on Labor and Employment Law

    Date: October 31, 2012 | Category: Minimum Wage and Overtime

    Hurricane Sandy has come and gone, but its after effects are clearly evident.  In addition to financial, emotional and physical impacts from the storm, labor and employment issues also arise.  Employers must stay vigilant when it comes to paying employees during this time, and continue to comply with federal law. 

    The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires employers to pay non-exempt employees only for hours that the employees actually worked.  An employer is not required to pay nonexempt employees if the employer is unable to provide work due to a hurricane or other natural..

    READ MORE
  • EEOC Files Lawsuit Against Three Farms for Sexual Harassment

    Date: October 18, 2012 | Category: Sexual Harassment

    The EEOC filed three lawsuits last week alleging sexual harassment of farmworkers.  One of the lawsuits filed was against Roy Farms, alleging that a male supervisor made sexual and threatening comments to male workers, touched them in a sexual manner and insisted they watch him urinate.  One worker quit after he had complained, and nothing was done.  The largest onion grower in the U.S., River Point Farms, was also under fire.  The EEOC alleged that a supervisor not only made sexual comments and requests for sexual favors to a farmworker, but also encouraged her husband to engage in domestic abuse, and even encouraged the..

    READ MORE