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Labor Relations / Unions

Attorney general cracks down on forced unionization

09/01/2007

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott recently sued employers and a labor organization in El Paso and Corpus Christi for allegedly forcing employees to become union members or pay union dues in violation of the state’s right-to-work law …

High court says Labor Dept. right to limit overtime for some

08/01/2007

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled unanimously in a closely watched overtime case that employees classified as home health care workers aren’t entitled to some Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) protections …

Union to pay $800,000 for contempt of discrimination court orders

08/01/2007

Local 580 of the Ornamental Iron Workers, a construction trade union in New York City, will pay $800,000 to settle a contempt action by the EEOC for referring white members to jobs more frequently than blacks and Hispanics …

Daley asks teachers’ union for a longer Chicago school day

08/01/2007

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley has asked the Chicago Teachers Union for longer school days …

Draft ‘Last-Chance’ agreements with care

08/01/2007

Q. We have a poor-performing employee who is up for discharge. The union has requested that we give him one “last chance,” and has said that it will agree to a last-chance agreement if we don’t terminate his employment now. What is the impact of a last-chance agreement? — J.R.

No witness needed for disciplinary meeting

08/01/2007

Q. I run a large restaurant and employ only nonunion workers. Recently, I called one of the waiters into my office to issue him a warning for arriving late for his shifts. He told me he had a right to have one of the cooks there witness our exchange. Is he right? …

SoCal grocery workers vote to authorize strike

07/20/2007

A California jury has awarded more than $300,000 to a former Sonoma State University softball coach who claimed that she was wrongfully fired …

Understanding religious accommodation in Illinois workplaces

07/01/2007

Illinois mirrors America’s growing diversity in many ways. Today, mosques occupy old churches; co-workers wear burqas and yarmulkes; and some employees request “prayer breaks”  …

U.S. Supreme Court asks solicitor general to review California law

07/01/2007

The U. S. Supreme Court in May invited the U.S. solicitor general to file an amicus brief addressing whether the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) pre-empts a California law …

Can we install in-Plant security cameras without telling employees?

07/01/2007

Q. We have a theft problem in our plant. Our plant manager would like to install security cameras at key locations and exits, and would like to do this without telling our employees so that we can catch the guilty party. Is there any reason why we should not proceed with installing the cameras? …