The Employer Handbook Blog
…multiple explanations, and one of them directly ties an adverse action to protected activity, summary judgment becomes difficult. That is especially true where the adverse action follows immediately after the…
Search Results for: concerted activity
When a PIP becomes the retaliation claim
…client accounts, including billing and inventory problems and the employee’s failure to timely forward a client email raising concerns. When “boys’ club” becomes protected activity The employer argued that references…
When “Someone Should Have Told Her” Isn’t Enough for a Retaliation Claim
…“Someone should have told her” is not evidence The employee claimed she was fired in retaliation for complaining about sexual harassment. The issue wasn’t whether her complaint was protected activity….
Travel, Tools, and Waiting Time: What the FLSA Really Requires Employers to Pay
…the productive work the employee was hired to perform – not whether the employer required, offered, or incidentally benefited from the activity. Transportation deductions and travel time The court rejected…
Temporary Light Duty Isn’t a Permanent Job (Even If It Works for a While)
…bending, or physical activity typical of a corrections officer. To accommodate those restrictions, the employer placed him in a transitional employment assignment in a training department. The arrangement lasted about…
When extra work crosses the line into retaliation
…onerous “on-call” duty weeks following protected activity. Extra workload can qualify as materially adverse even if nothing dramatic happens during the assignment. 📄 Read the court’s decision here When…
Why Asking for an Accommodation Isn’t the Same as Being Disabled
…physical impairment that substantially limited a major life activity No evidence tying the brief restriction to a chronic or long-term condition No notice to the employer of any qualifying disability…
When an Investigation Creates the Retaliation Claim
…retaliation simply because an employee previously engaged in protected activity. 2. But reliance matters When decisionmakers accept investigative conclusions without independent scrutiny, any bias embedded in the process can be…
When Everything Feels Like Retaliation, But the Law Says Otherwise
…should understand. TL;DR: The Third Circuit affirmed summary judgment on retaliation claims, holding that discipline imposed after internal complaints failed where decision-makers lacked knowledge of protected activity, the employer…
When an Applicant’s Medication Meets a “No Exceptions” Rule: What the EEOC Says Employers Can’t Do
…that methadone taken under medical supervision is not “illegal drug use” under the ADA. The statute excludes lawful, supervised use from the definition of illegal drug activity, and courts applying…