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The Employer Handbook Blog

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Survey shows that the new proposed #overtime rules may be like whoa!

You know those proposed overtime rules from the Department of Labor. The ones where the salary-level for the white collar exemption will jump from $23,660 per year to over $50,ooo in 2016. Well, check this out. A survey on CareerBuilder.com of more than 1,000 “9-5 workers” shows that 50 percent of these…

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The limits of addressing mental illness at work

Many of us, including me, have a loved one or friend who has suffered through mental illness. With proper treatment, counseling and support, the symptoms may be controllable. However, sometimes medication and treatment aren’t enough. Mental illness, which generally qualifies as a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act, can…

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NJ Supreme Court: Whistleblower law protects watchdog employees too

Can a person whose job is to ensure that the company follows a particular standard of care; i.e., a watchdog employee, bring an action against the company under New Jersey’s Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA), the state’s whistleblower law? In case you missed it, earlier this month, the New Jersey Supreme Court answered…

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Know when to fold em, but, especially when you get fired for posing at work in KKK garb and makeshift crosses

I did very good well on my math SATs. But, here’s some simple math: Fired for posing at work in KKK garb and makeshift crosses + Meyer’s blog fodder = Don’t appeal your race discrimination loss Welp, the Caucasian plaintiffs in this case doubled down on stupid and lost at…

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Third Circuit Employment Law 101: Independent Contractor or Employee

Back when I first started this blog, when I believed that my blogging success would translate into Aston Martins and beach homes, rather than “Can you please email me a copy of your FMLA PowerPoint?”, I had a series of “Third Circuit Employment Law 101” posts. Well, I don’t think I’ve…

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Coming soon: A new, comprehensive LGBT anti-discrimination bill in Congress

On Monday, I got into last week’s EEOC ruling that sexual-orientation discrimination is sex discrimination and, therefore, violates Title VII. Yesterday, I took up the First Amendment Defense Act, which has been described by the ACLU as “Indiana on Steroids.” On Thursday, make way for the Equality Act, according to Chris Johnson at the Washington…

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New bill in Congress would permit discrimination against unwed moms and promiscuous men

  Oh, and it would allow businesses to fire LGBT employees too. Sorry EEOC. It’s the First Amendment Defense Act, which has been described by the ACLU as “Indiana on Steroids.” Senator Mike Lee (UT-R) and Congressman Raúl Labrador (ID-R), who introduced identical versions last month in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives,…

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Why the EEOC’s rebuke of sexual-orientation bias may barely affect your workplace.

Last Friday, I briefly mentioned the EEOC’s recent decision, in which it concluded that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the federal anti-discrimination law that bans employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, and sex, also forbids discrimination based on sexual orientation (e.g., lesbian, gay, bisexual). The EEOC concluded that sex…

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Painting an employee’s testicles white may be retaliation, you guys.

  (I cannot wait to see what Google searches bring people to this post). Folks, I had a lot I could’ve blogged about today. There’s the new bill in Congress that would allow businesses to discriminate against LGBT couples, unwed moms, and promiscuous bachelors. We’ll save that for next week. I…