By Myra K. Creighton After a lengthy wait, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued final regulations and interpretive guidance for … Read more
FLSA and Lactation Breaks: Another Potential Legal Minefield for Employers
By John E. Thompson The period has now closed for submitting information and comments relating to the U.S. Labor Department’s “preliminary … Read more
Will Discrimination Against the Unemployed Ever be Deemed Illegal?
By John A. Gallagher A recent article from the Huffington Post discusses an investigation by EEOC into whether employers are “discriminating” … Read more
Getting Down to Management Basics: 5 More Postulates of Employment Law
By Mark J. Neuberger Continuing the theme set forth in my earlier post on some guiding principles I have developed to deal with recurring … Read more
Why Background Checks Are a Necessary Evil
By Patricia F. Weisberg The majority of employers today conduct some form of background check prior to hiring a new employee. This practice, while many … Read more
FLSA Myths: How They Can Bust Your Budget and Blow Your Reputation
Way back when telephones had rotary dials, a law was passed called the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). For years no one paid much attention to it, but … Read more
Documenting Compliance: Be Careful Your Work Isn’t Turned Against You
By John E. Thompson Vigilant employers are taking steps to evaluate or re-assess the status of their compliance with the federal Fair Labor Standards Act … Read more
“Everybody Does It” is a Bad Bet When it Comes to Workplace Legal Issues
By John E. Thompson The boom in wage-hour complaints and lawsuits continues unabated. Long-held conventional wisdom that might be questionable or even … Read more
The Supreme Court’s Retaliation Ruling: What It Means For Employers
By Michelle I. Anderson On January 24, 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court in a unanimous ruling determined that an employee who does not directly engage in … Read more
Newly Aggressive EEOC Sues Over Background Credit Checks
With the U.S. beginning its fourth year of a sour economy that is taking its toll on consumer credit scores, the EEOC signaled this week that it is taking … Read more
I Hope the EEOC Listened: Employment Credit Reports Have Value
This week, the EEOC held hearings to “explore” whether employers should be allowed to review a job applicant’s credit report before making a hiring … Read more
A Cautionary Tale for Managers: Your Workplace is Not a Talk Show
Former cable news anchor Rick Sanchez, and radio talk show hosts Dr. Laura Schlesinger and Don Imus have a lot in common. All three lost (Sanchez and Imus) … Read more
Five “Must Know” Trends in Employee Screening
You all know the drill: you’ve got a great candidate, you make the offer and now you’ve got to make sure they pass the background check. Most … Read more
Internship Crackdown: What You Must Do to Comply with the Law
By Patricia F. Weisberg If your company offers unpaid internships to students, take heed: The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has begun to crack down on … Read more
Why You Can’t Take a Hands-Off Attitude With Contingent Workers
Have you heard the one about the contractor who used their position to defraud a company’s clients? This may sound like the opening of a joke, but if … Read more
ENDA is Coming – and Employers Need to Start Thinking About it Now
For years, human rights activists and the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) community have sought a more comprehensive law that would expand … Read more
New Initiatives Mean More Employee Complaints, More Employer Burdens
In the mercurial world of employment law, each new calendar year brings new or revamped legislation. It’s the same story in 2010. Among the myriad of … Read more
California’s Supreme Court Takes up Age Discrimination at Google
For better or for worse, California is one of those places that always seems to be on the cutting edge of workplace issues. And, that’s why a lot of people … Read more