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Employment Law

Texas state agencies immune from ADEA

03/28/2018
A federal court has refused to overturn earlier decisions holding that, in Texas, state agencies are exempt from the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act.

Detail successful candidate’s superior qualifications

03/28/2018
When hiring or promoting from within, make sure you document why the chosen candidate is better qualified than others.

Similar offenses, different discipline? Be sure to justify with critical details

03/28/2018
When it comes to disciplining employees, details make a big difference. Be sure you include enough information in your investigation reports so you can later explain, for example, why one employee deserved harsher punishment than another who made a similar mistake.

Be prepared to explain why new hires earn more than existing staff

03/28/2018
If you find you have to pay more to fill open positions than incumbent employees are currently making, be ready with a good explanation for why new hires command bigger paychecks than staff members who were hired years earlier.

Court decides it doesn’t have to rule on discrimination based on sexual orientation

03/28/2018
A federal court hearing an anti-gay discrimination case in Texas has avoided ruling on whether sexual orientation discrimination is sex discrimination under Title VII. It did so by concluding that the employee didn’t show she had actually experienced sex discrimination.

Post open jobs so everyone knows to apply

03/28/2018
There’s a simple way to prevent lawsuits over missed promotions. Post all internal opportunities and encourage all employees to apply. If you don’t, workers may sue, alleging that the real reason they were denied a promotion was because of some kind of illegal discrimination.

No discrimination without adverse action

03/28/2018
A school counselor who sued because she thought discrimination had cost her a promotion has lost her appeal. Being turned down wasn’t an adverse employment action. And when there’s no adverse action, there can be no discrimination.

Spending bill makes it illegal to confiscate employees’ tips

03/27/2018
Employers won’t be allowed to pocket employees’ tips under the Department of Labor’s controversial proposed tip pooling rule now that President Trump has signed stop-gap spending legislation.

Are truck drivers automatically due overtime?

03/22/2018
Q. Are motor carriers exempt from complying with California’s usual overtime pay requirements?

How should we handle transgender dress code?

03/22/2018
Q. A new employee refuses to comply with our dress code, which has slightly different requirements for men and women, because the individual is transgender. Though the new employee marked “female” on our employment application, the individual has since told us about identifying as a man. Can we require this employee to follow our dress code for women?