In its 2011 Dukes decision, the U.S. Supreme Court limited the circumstances under which groups of employees can maintain class action claims relating to their employment. In that case, the Court concluded that Wal-Mart...more
3/28/2016
/ Admissible Evidence ,
Calculation of Damages ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Collective Actions ,
Commonality ,
Doffing ,
Donning ,
Dukes v Wal-Mart ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
SCOTUS ,
Statistical Sampling ,
Tyson Foods ,
Tyson Foods v Bouaphakeo ,
Wage and Hour
In recent months, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has stated its position that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity or...more
Earlier this month, financial companies won a victory in the long-standing battle over whether employees involved in mortgage originations and approvals are exempt from the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards...more
Most employers would assume that a traveling salesperson who could no longer drive due to a medical condition cannot perform the essential functions of her job. The Americans with Disabilities Act only requires accommodations...more
The Americans with Disabilities Act generally prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities or records of past disabilities. For example, an employer could not refuse to hire an applicant who has been through...more
Over the past several years, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has sued several employers, claiming that their failure to explicitly advise employees that releases provided in conjunction with severance benefits...more
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers are liable for payment of overtime to covered employees. This requirement applies to time that is not specifically authorized by the employer if it is “suffered,” meaning that the...more
As litigation and administrative investigations of misclassification of employees for overtime purposes have grown, employers have increasingly turned to alternative methods of pay intended to reduce their overtime...more
The federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires employers to provide 60 days advance notice to employees of certain qualifying plant closings and mass layoffs. The WARN thresholds are based on...more
The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (which includes North Carolina and South Carolina) is among the minority of federal appellate circuits that restricts the ability of employers and employees to release claims for unpaid...more
Plaintiffs seeking compensation for sexual harassment must demonstrate that they were subjected to a hostile and offensive working environment. Plaintiffs in same-sex harassment claims have the additional burden of proving...more
Federal Department of Labor regulations have long prohibited employers from requiring that servers, hostesses and bartenders pool a portion of their tips to share with other restaurant employees such as bussers and cooks. For...more
Employers understand that once they become aware of allegations of workplace harassment, they are legally obligated to investigate the claims and if appropriate, to take disciplinary action against the harasser. In some...more
Earlier this month, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission released final statistics on charges of discrimination filed during the most recent fiscal year. The total charges rose slightly over 2014, but remained well...more
On January 20, the Supreme Court released its decision in Montanile v. Board of Trustees of the National Elevator Industry Health Benefit Plan, concluding that although health plan fiduciaries can generally seek subrogation...more
Over the past several years, a series of Executive Orders and federal rules have significantly changed the relationship between federal contractors and their employees. These new rules have included protections for certain...more
Employers investigating allegations of workplace harassment sometimes receive explanations from the accused parties that they never meant to cause distress to the complaining employee. They justify their behavior as joking or...more
Title VII prohibits discrimination based on gender. Employers generally cannot adopt different qualification standards for men and women for the same job. However in some circumstances, federal courts have recognized that...more
OSHA inspections are usually site-specific, meaning that the agency’s authority to issue penalties and to seek abatement of workplace hazards applies to the workplace actually inspected. Last month, a federal Administrative...more
Retail automotive dealerships enjoy a special exemption from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Section 13(b)(10)(A) of the FLSA provides an overtime exemption for “any salesman, partsman, or mechanic...more
Class and collective action claims involve a named plaintiff who files the action on behalf of himself or herself, along with a class of similarly situated individuals. In the employment context, a typical collective action...more
In recent years, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and federal courts across the U.S. have increasingly agreed that discrimination against transgendered employees is a form of sex discrimination under Title VII....more
Last month, after considerable delay, the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration started a new web page that allows employers to make online reports of employee injuries and illnesses. The online resource was...more
The Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act (GINA) prohibits employers from asking employees questions about their family medical histories in most circumstances. However, doctors’ medical questionnaires have for decades...more
Like many employers, Whole Foods adopted a policy prohibiting employees from conducting unauthorized recording of conversations, phone calls or meetings, regardless of the recording technology used. Employers generally...more