Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
The U.S. Supreme Court has handed down a ruling that permits the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to sue you for job discrimination, even if the employee has signed a mandatory arbitration agreement. We’ll explain this new ruling and its impact.
Although the California Fair Employment and Housing Act is modeled on federal anti-discrimination laws, the state law is often more protective of employee rights. A California Court of Appeal has now ruled that when it comes to employer liability for sexual harassment by a supervisor, the state statute is stronger—and you can’t take advantage of […]
Frank Lemon, the service manager for Fresno-based heavy equipment distributor J.M. Equipment Co., was fired without warning for making a sexually explicit remark to a female employee. Lemon sued, arguing that the company had until then tolerated a pervasive atmosphere of vulgar language and sexually charged conduct and that he was really terminated because J.M. […]
Farmers Insurance Exchange has been ordered to pay $90 million to 2,400 adjusters who claimed they were misclassified as exempt administrative employees and cheated out of years of overtime pay. The record-breaking award by an Alameda County jury could ultimately top $130 million with interest and attorneys’ fees. The adjusters, who make an average of […]
Docking an exempt employee’s salary is fraught with risk. If your policy is to dock for disciplinary infractions or you improperly dock on a consistent basis, you lose the opportunity to correct illegal deductions—and run the risk of forfeiting exempt status for all workers covered by the policy. A new Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals […]
In a series of recent rulings, the U.S. Supreme Court has clarified limits on the damages claimants can recover in employment discrimination cases and other lawsuits. The court paved the way for bigger verdicts by ruling that “front pay”—which compensates a victim of workplace harassment or bias until they find another comparable job—isn’t subject to […]
The U.S. Supreme Court has handed down a new ruling that provides some guidance on when a single remark can amount to sexual harassment. The court also looked at when the timing of a punitive action against a complaining employee does and doesn’t support a retaliation claim. As we’ll explain, the decision suggests that your […]
The U.S. Supreme Court has unanimously upheld an arbitrator’s decision reinstating a truck driver who twice failed required drug tests after testing positive for marijuana. Eastern Associated Coal Co. argued that it had the right to terminate the worker as a matter of safety and public policy under federal Department of Transportation safety regulations. But […]
Our earlier article spells out what to look for to determine if an agreement complies with the new Supreme Court standards. But addressing problems with agreements employees have already signed presents additional issues.
Unionized workers have long had the right to bring a union representative with them to a disciplinary hearing. Now, in a ruling that could complicate investigations into sexual harassment and other workplace misconduct in nonunion companies, the National Labor Relations Board has ruled that nonunion workers have the same right to have a fellow employee […]