A mobile home manufacturer in Alabama could’ve prevented a 62-year-old roofing laborer’s fatal fall if the employer had followed OSHA’s fall protection standards, a federal investigation found. Because the employer failed to do so, it now faces a hefty penalty…
When are expectant fathers entitled to FMLA leave? And what exactly are they entitled to? What about FMLA leave for new fathers? A new ruling from the Eleventh Circuit provides valuable insight that can be applied when assessing FMLA for…
Is high blood pressure a legitimate reason to take FMLA leave? The question came up in a case from Arkansas. Here was the scenario. An employee missed work without warning for a week. His reasoning? He was just diagnosed with…
In recent weeks, the District of Columbia’s Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has been focused on protecting its citizens from wage theft. Here’s what’s happening in the nation’s capital, according to the lawsuit – and what HR can learn…
It’s not too often that a workplace injury as relatively minor as a broken foot leads to a multi-million dollar jury verdict. But due to an unusual set of circumstances, that is exactly what happened in a recent California case…
A recent study found that falls are among the costliest workplace injuries. In fact, they're in the top three workplace injuries with the highest compensation payouts. So when it comes to protecting workers from deadly fall hazards, most employers stand…
The Supreme Court just dealt a blow to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) by making it harder for the federal labor agency to win early court injunctions for employees in cases involving labor disputes. By raising the bar that…
If an injury happens at work, does the injured employee always get workers’ comp benefits? In New York, the law sets a presumption that the injury arose out of employment and that workers’ comp benefits are available. But here’s the…
An administrative law judge (ALJ) upheld an OSHA finding that an employer in Houston illegally fired a worker who exercised his rights under the federal Whistleblower Protection Program – and ordered the company to pay $14,945 in back pay, interest…
Pop quiz about job interviews: If an applicant will need an accommodation to do the job, do they have to tell you so during their interview? The answer is no, as a new suit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity…
How much porn at work is OK to watch? We hope your policy is zero. And as this lawsuit shows, the reasons for taking that policy seriously don’t just include cutting down on distractions and keeping the focus on work.…
Idaho’s highest court negated a lower court ruling that said a doctor’s noncompete agreement could not be enforced. The case was sent back to the lower court for further proceedings. Dr. Donald Blaskiewicz, who is a highly trained neurosurgeon, was…
Is it possible for a noncompete agreement to survive death? It would be a tall order for a party who dies to thereafter violate a noncompetition agreement the party entered into while alive. But that doesn’t mean that the death…
Hostile environment? Some employers might think a single comment can never create an illegally hostile work environment. Those employers would be dead wrong. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (which covers Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas) just joined other…
Plaintiffs asserting a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) must walk a fine line. On the one hand, they must show in their ADA lawsuit that they have a “disability” within the meaning of the statute. That means they generally must prove…
HRMorning, part of the Rover Insights Network, provides the latest HR and employment law news for HR professionals in the trenches of small-to-medium-sized businesses. Rather than simply regurgitating the day's headlines, HRMorning delivers actionable insights, helping HR execs understand what HR trends mean to their business.
