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Employment Law

Public policy claim gives new life to bias suit

11/01/2017
Under California state law, an em­­ployee can allege a public policy wrongful discharge claim against her employer for some form of discrimination even if she can’t pursue a direct discrimination claim.

‘Manspreading’: Obnoxious, but not necessarily harassment

11/01/2017
While some behavior may make others uncomfortable, that doesn’t automatically mean the offended worker has a sexual or other harassment case.

Receiving a poor performance review: Not necessarily harassment

11/01/2017
Here’s some good news for HR professionals and supervisors trying to manage the workforce: You don’t have to worry that ordinary functions like putting together performance reviews and making hiring and firing decisions will somehow be misconstrued as harassment.

ADA and FEHA: Always document interactive discussion process to find accommodations

11/01/2017
The presumption is that by discussing possible accommodations, the employer and worker will arrive at some sort of consensus. Employers that don’t take this seriously risk being sued for failing to engage in the interactive accommodations process.

Beware oral contracts on top of written ones

11/01/2017
Think a simple written employment contract precludes other oral contracts? Think again. It is quite possible in California for an employee to win an oral contract claim despite an apparent written contractual agreement that seems to preclude just that, as a recent case shows.

Health care employers: On immunization, balance patient safety, employee rights

10/31/2017
Many health care workers regularly deal with patients whose immune systems are compromised and who could suffer catastrophic consequences if exposed to an otherwise mild illness. What’s such an employer to do if a worker refuses to get an appropriate shot?

40% of LGBT employees report workplace bullying

10/31/2017
Forty percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender workers report feeling bullied at work, 11 percentage points higher than the national average for workers in general.

FedEx exec tapped to lead OSHA

10/31/2017
President Trump has nominated Scott Mugno to become Assistant Secretary of Labor in charge of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

DOL appeals ruling that killed higher overtime salary threshold

10/31/2017
The Department of Labor has filed an appeal of a federal judge’s decision that blocked the Obama administration’s bid to raise the overtime salary threshold for white-collar workers.

ICE could quintuple worksite enforcement

10/31/2017
Immigration and Customs Enforcement will “significantly increase” the number of inspections in worksite operations, according to acting ICE Director Tom Homan.