It's never good when harassment occurs in the workplace, but when an employee is subjected to multiple types of harassment, the employer is going to be held liable if it doesn't take swift action. Here's a breakdown of a recent…
Employment Law
An office manager said that when she told her employer she was pregnant, it told her that she could take up to three months of FMLA leave but pressured her to return to work sooner. She and her supervisor agreed…
The IRS just offered employers a helping hand. How? By removing barriers to hire retirees and possibly even encourage employees who reach retirement age to continue working. As a business, you know how hard it is to keep a full…
Finding substantial evidence supported a Tennessee school district’s decision to dismiss a teacher for driving under the influence and threatening a co-worker, the Court of Appeals of Tennessee upheld his dismissal. For almost 20 years, the teacher instructed students with…
When an employee quit her job after only five days, citing terrible working conditions, she sued for constructive discharge. But a court sided with the company, ruling the employee didn't give the employer enough time to correct the situation. Here's…
Sometimes, an applicant or employee is not qualified for a job because of a basic inability to adequately perform its essential functions. At other times, disqualification occurs because the plaintiff lacks required credentials for the position. That was the case…
The transition from an onsite workforce to a fully remote workforce was quick. And at the time, few really expected the pandemic to last as long as it has. Now, we have to deal with the fact most federal, state…
A jury ruled in favor of an employee who said his employer unlawfully neglected to reasonably accommodate his claustrophobia when it put him an an office with no window. Robert Turco was a senior project manager for Zambelli Fireworks, which…
When employers have issues with FMLA certifications it can make leave administration a true nightmare. But one of the best solutions to the problem often gets overlooked by employers. That solution: Going right to the doctor for help. That’s what…
Sometimes federal enforcement actions end with big payouts. But it isn’t very often that they get this big -- or include this unusual twist. A temporary placement agency will pay a total of $3.525 million to resolve allegations that it…
She asked a court for too much, and too soon. A judge refused to micromanage an employer's disciplinary process. A firefighter sued for sex discrimination while the incident she’s suing over was still being investigated. She asked the court to order…
A New Mexico federal judge refused to block a vaccine mandate for certain workers from going into effect. The court said data show the vaccines are safe and effective. It also said the vaccines provide immunity that “is significantly more…
A court refused to dismiss an equal protection claim filed by a gay firefighter who says he was subjected to discriminatory treatment in the workplace.Sex-based trash-talk and pranks are still the norm in some police and fire departments. But if…
A Mississippi staffing agency will pay $40,000 and take other steps to resolve a federal government lawsuit that alleged pregnancy bias. The suit accused the employer of illegally discriminating against a job applicant based on her pregnancy. The Equal Employment…
A judge said the “alleged spread of a contagious disease” among jail staff and inmates is a matter of public concern. So the judge has refused to dismiss a fired corrections employee’s First Amendment claim. The employee had issues with…
Does it violate the ADA if an employer denies an employee’s request to bring a support animal to the office? A recent court case addressed that very question. Anxiety attacks Nicholas Conlan worked as a marketer for Costco in Montana.…
