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Employment Law

EEOC & NJ AG partner for Youth@Work campaign

03/30/2009

The EEOC and the Civil Rights Division of the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General are partnering to launch a campaign to educate New Jersey youth and employers about workplace discrimination.

EEOC: Job bias claims set new record in 2008

03/30/2009

The EEOC says job bias claims of all kinds hit record levels during federal fiscal year 2008. A total of 95,402 complaints were filed during the year ending Sept. 30, 2008. The figure constitutes a 15% increase over 2007.

Court upholds WaMu’s arbitration agreement

03/30/2009

According to her complaint, former Washington Mutual Bank assistant branch manager Michelle Williams was fired after she made an “anonymous” call to a company hotline with concerns about a co-worker’s immigration status …

Shopper’s Vineyard settles race discrimination suit

03/30/2009

The Shopper’s Vineyard wine superstore in Clifton has agreed to settle a race discrimination case after the EEOC filed suit on behalf of a black front-line manager who was terminated during an alleged downsizing.

N.J. Supreme Court: Strikers may be entitled to unemployment

03/30/2009

The New Jersey Supreme Court recently held that an employer that continues to provide all or substantially all of its services during a strike will be hard-pressed to oppose its striking employees’ applications for unemployment benefits. That’s true even if the strike results in significant losses in revenue and profits.

Settling case? Double-check the dollar amount

03/30/2009

Alert for employers settling workers’ comp lawsuits—or any other kind: When negotiations are completed, make sure the dollar amount written into the agreement is the one everyone agreed to!

Banning smoking might not avoid liability

03/30/2009

If, like many employers, you have adopted a smoke-free workplace policy, you may think your organization won’t be liable if an employee lights up on the premises and starts a fire. Unfortunately, it’s not quite that simple. Your organization still could be liable if an employee’s careless smoking caused damage to another’s property.

Spell out FMLA intermittent leave timing in handbook—or risk a million-dollar mistake

03/30/2009

The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a verdict of more than $1 million in an FMLA intermittent leave case involving a foreign adoption. The sad fact is that the employer could have avoided the entire problem by studying up on intermittent leave and adoption.

OK to transfer without fear of retaliation suit—if new job is substantially similar

03/30/2009

Ever since 2006, when the U.S. Supreme Court’s Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railroad Co. v. White decision made it easier to prove retaliation, employees are trying to push the envelope on what constitutes retaliation. Slowly, employers are getting answers.

Seek attorney’s help to draft noncompete agreement

03/30/2009

What’s worse than not having a noncompete agreement? One that doesn’t meet North Carolina’s strict requirements—and gets tossed out of court. Avoid this problem by having a North Carolina attorney draft agreements.