• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Retaliation

Poor review isn’t infliction of emotional distress

03/09/2016
Sometimes, unhappy employees quit and sue, making claims that may never stick but that still have to be defended. A favorite tactic is to sue supervisors, claiming they intentionally inflicted emotional distress.

Not all government employees’ free speech is protected

02/29/2016
Public employees have limited First Amendment rights to speak out on matters of public importance. But when that speech is actually part of the employee’s job, it’s not considered “speaking out” in the Constitutional sense. It doesn’t come with job protection.

Discrimination claims rise in 2015, disability cases see biggest jump

02/20/2016
The EEOC handled 89,385 charges of workplace discrimination in fiscal year 2015.

6-year deadline to file whistleblower suit

02/12/2016
The Minnesota Supreme Court has ruled that a whistleblower who reports alleged violations of the law has a full six years to file a lawsuit. The more common two-year limitation does not apply.

New EEOC guidance would redefine retaliation

02/11/2016

The EEOC has issued a proposed revision to its guidance on workplace retaliation—the first since 1998—that could radically change how enforcement authorities and courts define retaliation and its causes.

Pennsylvania Whistleblower Act requires verdict from judge, not jury

01/29/2016

Here’s a bit of good news that may prevent a big jury verdict: An employment-related whistleblower claim must be heard and decided by a judge, not a jury.

Don’t punish employee for deposition testimony

01/15/2016
If you decide to punish an employee for testifying against you in a legal deposition, be prepared for even more litigation.

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.

Do the right thing, still get sued

01/04/2016
Here’s a reminder that even doing the right thing can mean a lawsuit.

Resignation announced, then a change of heart: Can refusing to allow return be retaliation?

01/04/2016
Here’s a rather novel question being answered for the first time in the 5th Circuit, which has jurisdiction over Texas employers. Can the refusal to accept a request to rescind a resignation ever be an adverse em­­ployment action and retaliation for engaging in protected activity?