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Employment Law

Lafayette pays $1 million to settle harassment charges

05/26/2010

Easton-based Lafayette College will pay five women $1 million to settle sexual harassment charges against a supervisor in the public safety division. According to an EEOC complaint, the supervisor repeatedly made lewd gestures and remarks, e-mailed pornography, groped female employees and even forcibly kissed them.

‘Jon & Kate Plus 8’ didn’t violate child labor laws

05/26/2010
“Jon & Kate Plus 8” fans can relax. Officials from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry revealed they investigated the reality show for alleged child labor violations, but found none. The revelation came during a hearing on the state’s child labor laws. But the show did not escape state scrutiny without problems.

Former IT chief accuses BabyAge.com of religious bias

05/26/2010

Shlomo Hecht, former chief technology officer for BabyAge.com in Wilkes-Barre, is suing the web-based business for religious discrimination. Hecht, who is Jewish, claims BabyAge.com’s CEO Jack Kiefer frequently made disparaging remarks about Jews and told Hecht that he did not want a “Jew Boy Club” in the office.

Ban former employee from premises; it’s not retaliation

05/26/2010
How do you handle a former employee who wants to come onto the premises and speak with other employees about her pending lawsuit? You can ban her.

Waste elimination problems may be ADA disability

05/26/2010
Employees may be disabled under the ADA if surgery or another medical condition forces them to use the bathroom frequently. The condition affects a major life activity—elimination of wastes.

Don’t rely on software alone to determine employee’s FMLA eligibility

05/26/2010

Many employers use software to track FMLA eligibility. Most of the time that works fine. But if you decide to terminate an employee because the software told you she wasn’t eligible for FMLA leave, double-check the calculation first. If you confirm she hasn’t worked a total of 52 weeks, you can terminate her.

7 elements of a social media policy that limits your liability

05/26/2010

Online social networking sites provide a variety of benefits to organizations. They can help you collect industry-based knowledge, reach new customers, build your brand and publicize your company’s name and reputation. But those benefits come with their fair share of legal risks. You need a comprehensive social media policy to guide employees on your expectations about their online behavior.

Raceway Petroleum to pay $4 million in back wages

05/26/2010
The DOL’s Wage and Hour Division has obtained a $3.9 million judgment against Raceway Petroleum. The money will compensate 700 current and former employees whose wages were affected by Raceway’s violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Raceway’s owner will pay a $100,000 fine in addition to the wages.

EEOC, N.J. man say Accenture’s background checks are biased

05/26/2010
Management consulting giant Accenture faces a class-action lawsuit over its use of background checks on job applicants. The suit, filed in New York, alleges Accenture’s policy of background checks has a disparate impact on minorities.

Employees have 2 years to sue under NJCRA

05/26/2010
Current and former employees have up to two years to sue under the New Jersey Civil Rights Act (NJCRA).