The Employer Handbook Blog

Religious discrimination claims are skyrocketing. A supervisor at a local shoe store didn't get the memo. Guess how that turned for him...

Continue reading "Fired employee gets re-hired after raising discrimination claims" »

To answer your question, it depends. And in Pennsylvania, there are a lot of factors that a court will consider, based on a recent case decided by the Pennsylvania Superior Court. But, unlike many prior Pennsylvania decisions that deal with the enforceability of a non-competition agreement after an employee is fired, this recent decision focuses on a non-solicitation agreement.

Read on to find out whether the non-solicitation agreement that an employees signs with your company is still enforceable if you decide to end the employment relationship.

Continue reading "How enforceable is a non-solicit agreement after you fire an employee?" »

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act , enacted earlier this year, amended the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to require a "reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for her nursing child for 1 year after the child's birth each time such employee has need to express the milk." Employers are also required to provide "a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk." (Check out this fact sheet for more information)

It seems that one Iowa employer didn't get the memo. Instead, it now has a potential lawsuit. Read all the messy details, after the jump...

Continue reading "1 lactating employee + 0 place to pump = 1 messy complaint" »

You will now.

Here's the before

Continue reading "Do you have a HR policy on media relations?" »

Congress created the Occupational Safety & Hazard Administration (OSHA) to ensure safe and healthful working conditions for working men and women by setting and enforcing standards and by providing training, outreach, education and assistance. That sounds nice. But my clients and I both know this: you don't want OSHA sniffing around your job sites.

Now OSHA is expanding its taking aim at a new target: distracted-driving. Read how, after the jump...

Continue reading "Driving + Texting = OSHA all up in your business" »

Last week we had flu shot day at Dilworth Paxson. I missed it. I was out prepping a client for an upcoming deposition. So, over the weekend, I shelled out the $24.95 and got a flu shot at the local drug store. Why? Because I don't want to get sick and I don't want to get other people sick. That's precisely why my law firm offers free flu shots to its employees. (Plus, Mr. and Mrs. Meyer raised a conscientious son).

What is your business doing to prepare for flu season and a possible 2010/2011 pandemic? I've got eight suggestions for you after the jump.

Continue reading "8 ways for employers to prepare for flu season" »

I was reading an article in the Gwinnett Daily Post -- yeah, that's right, the GDP -- and it starts out like this...

BUFORD -- When Buford City Schools bus driver Michele Threlkeld finished her final route on the last day of school, she reported to her supervisor's office, as was routine.

I love reading articles that start this way, because you know that fireworks and lawsuits are going to ensue. So, cue the fireworks and lawsuits...after the jump.

Continue reading "Employee fired for Facebook comments sues her employer" »

Our old friend Robert Rank-And-File is at it again. He has sued his employer, Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Delaware, Inc., in federal court. Robert claims that Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Delaware, Inc. violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 when it failed to promote him because of his gender, national origin and race. Before he initiated his lawsuit, Robert filed a charge of discrimination with the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. But Robert has a problem. He filed his charge two years after he claims that Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Delaware, Inc. failed to promote him. Under Title VII, his claim is now time-barred. But can he use the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to salvage his claim?

Find out after the jump...

Continue reading "Third Circuit: The Lily Ledbetter Act Does not cover failure-to-promote claims" »

Recently, I read an article by Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle about a speech from U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in which he told law students from U.C. Hastings that the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees equal protection to all U.S. citizens, do not preclude discrimination based on sex. Justice Scalia believes that the drafters of the Constitution did not have sex discrimination on the brain when they passed the 14th Amendment.

Continue reading "How do PA, NJ, and DE address discrimination based on sexual orientation?" »