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Employment Law

Google $3.8M settlement shows equal-pay risk

02/11/2021
Ignoring your obligation to provide equal pay for equal work can be expensive. Google just agreed to pay millions to fix illegal pay disparities. Advice: Ferret out pay imbalances before a federal agency (or class-action lawyer) decides to make an example of your organization.

Amazon fights back hard against union organizing

02/11/2021
A high-profile effort to unionize Amazon employees in Alabama has triggered a high-alert response from the online retail colossus.

Obtain informed consent before covid testing

02/11/2021
Employers must ensure employees understand the impact workplace covid-19 will have before they agree to be tested, according to new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control.

EEOC lawsuits take aim at pregnancy bias in hiring

02/03/2021
There has never been a better time to remind hiring managers that they may not discriminate against pregnant job applicants. The EEOC has made enforcement of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act a priority. Two recent cases show how seriously the EEOC takes this issue.

Explain: pregnancy accommodations temporary

02/03/2021
If the worker takes FMLA leave, she’s entitled to return to her old job when leave is over. Without clear records that the employer means the accommodation to be temporary, she may later argue she was denied reinstatement to the last position she held.

11th-hour changes could reduce EEOC suits

02/03/2021
Days before President Biden was inaugurated, the outgoing EEOC chair, Republican Janet Dhillon, made substantial changes that will take time for Democrats on the commission to undo.

DOL ends PAID program, which granted employers FLSA amnesty

02/02/2021
Launched in 2018, PAID let employers self-report federal minimum-wage and overtime violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act to avoid litigation, penalties or damages.

DOL adjusts penalties for 2021

02/02/2021
The Department of Labor has announced the 2021 inflation adjustments to penalties for employers that violate of the Fair Labor Standards Act, the FMLA and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

Workers might soon find it harder to file class actions

01/28/2021
It just became a lot harder to certify a class for a Fair Labor Standards Act lawsuit—at least in states covered by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Contracts can’t rush ADA, ADEA deadlines

01/28/2021
Check your handbook for language that sets premature deadlines for employees to file discrimination complaints under the ADA and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. Anything less than the time frames set out in the laws is unenforceable, a federal appeals court has ruled. In most cases, that is 300 days.