• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Employment Law

Court recognizes a new kind of claim: Retaliatory hostile environment

01/03/2018

Essentially, a retaliatory hostile environment claim looks at situations in which life was made generally difficult for an employee in small ways that in themselves would not affect a term or condition of employment.

Talula’s Garden settles OT suit for nearly $400k

01/02/2018

Talula’s Garden, the renowned farm-to-table restaurant in Philadelphia’s Washington Square, will have to pay 63 workers $197,917 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages.

Snyder-Lance pays $1.6 mil to settle misclassification suit

01/02/2018

A federal judge in the Middle District of Pennsylvania has signed off on a $1.6 million agreement between snack maker Snyder-Lance and its route drivers.

Ignoring FMLA paperwork may bar unemployment

01/02/2018

Workers who are fired for breaking a workplace rule generally aren’t eligible for unemployment compensation. That’s because rule-breaking may constitute willful misconduct, which bars benefits.

Document reasons for worker’s new, unusual assignment

01/02/2018

Some workers may feel that being given a difficult assignment is discriminatory, especially if others outside the worker’s protected class don’t have to do similar work. Having a business-related reason for the assignment will persuade a judge that discrimination wasn’t a factor.

Court: Drug testing is not an inherent invasion of employee privacy

01/02/2018

Employers can drug test employees as part of a safety program. The mere existence of a properly designed testing program does not invade a worker’s right to privacy.

It’s OK to fire in the middle of FMLA leave, but be prepared to show valid, unrelated reason

01/02/2018

Employees who are out on FMLA leave don’t enjoy any special protection against being fired for unrelated reasons. If you can show you would have terminated the worker even if she had not taken FMLA leave, chances are the termination won’t be seen as FMLA interference or retaliation for taking FMLA leave. However, such a move will probably trigger a lawsuit anyway.

Warn bosses: Keep snide comments to yourself

01/02/2018

Remember, any supervisor comments about a worker’s complaint can end up supporting a retaliation claim.

Beware firing safety whistleblowers

01/02/2018

The Trump administration’s Department of Labor is aggressively going after employers that fire workers who report alleged workplace safety violations. It’s one reason to seek expert legal advice before disciplining any potential whistleblower—even for behavior or poor work performance that seems unrelated to any safety report.

Your good disciplinary records will almost always beat employee’s retaliation claim

01/02/2018

If you are certain you can justify your action, don’t be afraid to discipline a worker who has filed a discrimination charge or otherwise opposed alleged discriminatory actions. Generally, courts give employers leeway to discipline as long as they believe they acted in good faith.