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 the NLRB must clear to get preliminary injunctive relief, the new ruling essentially reduces the […]
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 thing: That presumption doesn’t always apply; it’s not absolute. Instead, the presumption that an injury […]
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 and compensatory damages. This case provides yet another example of how managers’ mistakes can be […]
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 Commission (EEOC) about job interviews shows. In the suit, the agency says an employer illegally […]
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. They also include protecting your agency from a lawsuit. A former police sergeant in Florida […]
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 living and working in San Diego when the Spine Institute of Idaho recruited him to […]
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 of a bound party always extinguishes the obligations of all parties to the agreement. In […]
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 federal appeals courts in holding that a single comment, if sufficiently severe, can give rise […]
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 the existence of a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits at least one major […]
When a new hire provides federally-required Form I-9 documentation that indicates they’re authorized to work in the U.S., how do you know that it’s legitimate? This question becomes even more critical for E-Verify-enrolled employers hiring remote employees when in-person verification isn’t possible. E-Verify businesses that remotely/electronically inspect documentation due to hiring employees outside the local […]
A worker death led to a finding by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) that an employer should pay $177,453 in penalties. OSHA said the employer, a pallet manufacturer in Wisconsin, committed multiple safety violations. It added that there have now been five inspections at the same Konz Wood Products plant since 2016, and […]
A new ruling from a federal appeals court is a victory for an employer and a sharp blow to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The Fifth Circuit appeals court partially vacated a prior NLRB order, including portions of the order that broadly defined the scope of relief in labor law disputes. In a 2022 […]
Here’s a cautionary tale showing how expensive retaliating against employees can be. An employer in Rhode Island threatened and then fired an employee who filed an OSHA complaint. This prompted the DOL to open two investigations and file a lawsuit, which was “one of the few joint cases the [agency] has ever filed involving retaliation […]
Out-of-state hiring compliance lets you tap into new talent but comes with complex rules HR must follow. Mistakes on taxes or registrations can quickly become costly. If your team isn’t prepared, the risks grow fast. Here’s what you need to know to stay ahead and avoid costly errors. In a recent HR Morning webinar poll, […]
Unlawful age discrimination can take many different forms – including policies that don’t flat-out say they discriminate based on age but have the clear effect of doing so. Here’s a case in point: A school district in Illinois was found to have violated the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) by implementing a collective […]
