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Employment Law

Get out your calculator to ensure bonuses comply with FLSA

07/17/2017
Under the FLSA, purely “discretionary” bonuses do not need to be included when calculating the regular rate. “Nondiscretionary” bonuses, however, must be included.

Farm settles case claiming bias against Americans

07/17/2017
Christner Farms in Dawson, in the southwest corner of Pennsylvania, has paid almost $22,000 to settle charges it filled positions with H-2A visa holders but refused to hire a qualified American citizen.

‘Mark of the Beast’ case settled for $600,000

07/17/2017
Consol Energy, headquartered in Pittsburgh, will pay a former employee $586,861 after the 4th Circuit affirmed a lower court’s ruling that he was forced to retire early when it refused to accommodate his religious beliefs.

Patience required to ensure lawful ADA reasonable accommodations process

07/17/2017
Employers that patiently go about the sometimes complicated business of identifying reasonable accommodations for disabled employees seldom end up losing in court. The key is to take the ADA seriously and work with the employee at every stage.

Tell managers: Never comment on FMLA leave

07/17/2017
Employees who qualify for FMLA leave can’t be punished for taking it. Any action that could be seen as dissuading workers from exercising their right to take FMLA leave amounts to interfering with a federal right.

Prepare to justify discipline occurring after employee complains about discrimination

07/13/2017
Simply put, a bad review all by itself isn’t usually grounds for a lawsuit in most cases. However, punishing someone with a bad review because they complained about discrimination may land you in legal trouble.

Texas Supreme Court greenlights Bev Kearney’s lawsuit

07/13/2017
The Texas Supreme Court has ruled that a long-simmering sex and racial discrimination lawsuit filed by former University of Texas women’s track and field coach Bev Kearney can proceed.

Supreme Court to hear religious freedom case

07/13/2017
A Colorado baker who was sued for refusing to bake a cake for a same-sex wedding will get to argue his case before the U.S. Supreme Court. The court agreed to hear Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission in the term that begins this fall.

Top 10 FMLA and ADA issues employers must know how to handle

07/12/2017
When HR professionals are surveyed, they routinely rate the FMLA and the ADA as the two most difficult laws to deal with. Here’s a look at 10 of the most challenging FMLA and ADA issues HR struggles to handle.

EEOC sues Texas union for race discrimination

07/12/2017
The EEOC has sued a Texas school employees’ union, claiming it violated federal law when it fired two black organizers because of their race.