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Employment Law

Serial complainer cries harassment? Investigate every allegation

04/23/2013
An employee can lose a sexual har­­assment lawsuit and still win on retaliation if she can show she was fired for complaining about harassment. Don’t let that happen to you.

Is 40 really too old to rock?

04/23/2013
A 40-year-old vocal teacher is suing the School of Rock chain of music schools, claiming she was harassed because of her age and wrongfully terminated in retaliation for engaging in protected activities.

‘Me-too’ evidence doesn’t prove specific bias

04/23/2013
Here’s some good news for em­­ployers: Employees can’t use “me-too” evidence pointing to widespread discrimination against many classes of employees if their initial claim only alleges discrimination against a specific subgroup.

Beware one-sided arbitration agreements

04/23/2013
A California Court of Appeal re­­cently held that an arbitration agreement was unenforceable because it was unconscionably one-sided.

Being sole minority employee doesn’t mean special protection

04/22/2013
How often have you worried about disciplining the only employee who belongs to a particular protected class? You probably feared that the employee would sue, alleging bias. Relax. Being the only black … or Asian … or female employee doesn’t confer any particular advantage in a discrimination lawsuit.

Salty language but no complaints: Is it harassment?

04/22/2013
Q. Can vulgar language and jokes, etc., be considered harassment in the workplace if nobody actually files a complaint?

Prepare for more–and more expensive–pay litigation

04/19/2013
Wage-and-hour litigation is the fastest-growing employment law threat employers face, according to a study by the Crowell & Moring law firm. It costs an average of $5.8 million to settle a wage-and-hour case, largely because so many are class-action lawsuits.

Never blame work deficiencies on pregnancy

04/18/2013
Here’s an important tip to pass on to all supervisors: Never speculate on why an employee may be performing poorly. Focus on the work and leave the psychoanalysis to experts. That’s especially true when you think an employee’s work may be affected by pregnancy or pregnancy-related complications.

Can refusing to renew contract trigger bias case?

04/18/2013

Q. As a small college, we employ quite a few adjunct in­structors, especially for night classes. They work on a term-to-term contract for specific courses. One instructor got a very poor review and we’d like to ease him out. He’s making noises about age discrimination. If we don’t renew his contract but instead use a younger, fresh-out-of-grad-school instructor, could he have a case?

DOL’s 2014 budget request tips off coming enforcement blitz

04/17/2013
The DOL’s FY2014 budget request reveals plans to greatly step up enforcement of the FLSA, the FMLA and workplace safety laws—and a looming crackdown on independent contractor misclassification.