Yesterday, I read a post over at Business Management Daily about an employee who sued for involuntary servitude. Yes, folks. The plaintiff claimed that her former employer had treated her like a slave. Specifically, the plaintiff, a trainee of some sort, alleged that she was never provided with a job…
The Employer Handbook Blog
New Philadelphia law requires accommodations for pregnant employees
Late last month, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter signed this bill, which requires reasonable workplace accommodations for employees who have needs related to pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition. As noted in this prior post about Philadelphia’s new law, reasonable accommodations would include, but are not limited to, restroom breaks, periodic…
New bill in Congress will revamp FMLA to cover smaller employers
How about cutting the 50-employee requirement for covered employers in half? So, if you have 25 or more employees working within 75 miles of one another, they would be eligible to take leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act. And that’s just part of the Family and Medical Leave…
NLRB renews its effort to expedite union elections
Back in 2011, the National Labor Relations Board tried to pass certain rules that would have changed the union-election process in eight ways: Allow for electronic filing of election petitions and other documents. Ensure that employees, employers and unions receive and exchange timely information they need to understand and participate…
Employee claims discrimination, then her friend gets fired. Is that retaliation?
Back in January 2011, when I had only one child and an Aston Martin savings fund, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Thompson v. North American Stainless, LP. In that case, the Court held that an employer violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act if it takes action against…
Husband’s “kill list” is your green light to fire an employee on FMLA
Take it from your ol’ buddy Eric. Let’s say that your employee is on FMLA… And let’s say that, while your employee is on FMLA, you learn that her husband is involved in a motorcycle gang… And let’s say that your learn that the motorcycle-gang husband claims to knows how…
GUEST POST: Six Tips for Employers Filing for an H-1B Visa
Notwithstanding the lopsided outcome in last night’s game — I’m not saying that the game was over early, but, at halftime, the NFL began preparing their shipments of “Denver Broncos: Super Bowl 48 Champs” apparel to third-world countries — I’m bailing on writing a post. So, today we have a guest blog post…
The hella-worst job interview blunders evah!
I heard this story once about a law-school graduate who was looking for his first job out of school. He applied to several local Philadelphia-area law firms, and ultimately received an interview from one of them. The job interview was with two seasoned partners. According to this recent Career Builder…
Employee’s sexual harassment claims advance to trial because boobs
Recently, I’ve focused blog posts on some quirky cases that make you think a bit. Yesterday, was the FMLA in Vegas case. Last week, was the EMT who argued that getting fired for groping a co-worker was discriminatory in light of his employer’s decision not fire an employee who…
What happens in Vegas, becomes an FMLA claim. Really.
Back in 2012, I blogged here about an employee who took her mother to Las Vegas on a vacation. The two ladies spent time playing slots, shopping on the Strip, people-watching, and dining at restaurants. The mother had terminal cancer, but had no specific plans to seek medical treatment in…