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Employment Law

Attendance, biometric scanning and employee privacy

01/07/2016
Many employers now track attendance using biometric scanners that require an employee to clock in and out by scanning a fingerprint or a palmprint. New York employers should note a statute that limits the collection of biometric data.

Speaking out in course of government job isn’t protected

01/07/2016
Government employees have limited First Amendment rights when speaking out. But the right doesn’t apply if the public employee is merely doing his or her job.

Isolated comments aren’t enough to prove discrimination

01/07/2016
When an employee gets fired, his thoughts may turn to filing a lawsuit—maybe based on some suddenly remembered comment that he took as offensive or another supposedly discriminatory act. Fortunately, courts are rarely persuaded.

Racial slur or everyday saying? If it’s offensive, make sure it stops

01/07/2016
Certainly, train your managers that they cannot use common racist phrases and names. But go beyond the obvious and provide examples of other terms and behaviors that may not seem obvious. The following case provides an example.

Rejecting sexual advances protected in NYC

01/07/2016
Under federal law and New York state law, merely rejecting a supervisor’s sexual advances without reporting the conduct to HR probably isn’t protected activity. However, that’s not the case under the New York City Human Rights Law.

Harassment ended? Tell employee to move on

01/07/2016
Some employees will never be satisfied with their employer’s solution to perceived harassment. But if you have fixed the problem, it’s perfectly fine to tell the employee he needs to move on and forget about the past.

EEOC claims Glenwood F.D. hosed older firefighters

01/07/2016
The EEOC has sued a volunteer fire company for age discrimination because of the way it manages its length of service award program.

Light duty essentially admits FMLA eligibility

01/06/2016
When an employee returns from FMLA leave and his employer assigns him to light-duty work, that is basically an acknowledgment that the employee has a serious health condition incapacitating enough to interfere with performing an essential job function. The employer can’t later challenge that part of FMLA eligibility.

Minimum-wage employers plan to stay that way

01/06/2016
Despite well-publicized moves by retailers such as Walmart, Starbucks and Whole Foods to raise the pay of their lowest-level workers, 72% of organizations with minimum-wage employees have no plans to pay them more.

‘Racist’ not a protected class under Title VII

01/04/2016
Here’s a common sense conclusion: Firing someone you suspect may be a racist is a legitimate decision.