The Employment Brief | Employment Law | Kollman & Saucier, P.A.

The (New) Story of the Mad Hatter

Darrell VanDeusen

07/10/2023

Employment Discrimination, Public Sector Employment Law

“If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn’t. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn’t be.” The Mad Hatter, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll, 1865) When I explain the disparate treatment theory in employment discrimination cases, I make the point that the analysis must look at the way people of different protected...

Vincent Jackson

07/07/2023

Pregnancy Discrimination, Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) went into effect on June 27, 2023, and the EEOC will now be investigating and enforcing all charges for conduct alleged to have occurred on or after that date. The PWFA requires covered employers (generally, private and public sector employers with at least 15 employees) to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant workers (existing laws already prohibit firing or discrimination on the basis of...

Kollman & Saucier

06/30/2023

Labor Law

From the opening, it was apparent that the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals was not pleased with ADT. ADT, well known for their blue signs to discourage intruders, was found to have violated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). As stated by the Court, the case “presents a disappointing and transparent attempt by an employer to avoid its obligations under the National Labor Relations Act.”...

Kollman & Saucier

06/29/2023

Reasonable Accommodations/Undue Burden, Religious Discrimination, Supreme Court Decisions

On June 29, 2023 the United States Supreme Court issued its unanimous decision in Groff v. DeJoy, 600 U.S. ___ (2023). This highly anticipated decision changes the individual assessment employers must use when evaluating a request for accommodation for religious reasons and whether the accommodation is reasonable or creates an undue hardship. While this is one of several highly anticipated rulings from the high court this summer, it is not...

Kollman & Saucier

06/28/2023

NLRB

In general, when an employer subject to a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) closes a facility or shuts down a business, the employer should inform the union of its plans – failure to do so could cost the company. The concept is referred to as “affects bargaining,” and is the subject of a recent National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) decision, Tec-Cast, Inc. (NLRB June 21, 2023). Tec-Cast is a New Jersey corporation that produces wax...

Kollman & Saucier

06/26/2023

Retaliation, Wage & Hour

A Sacramento California restaurant is on the hook for $140,000 in back wages and penalties owed to 35 employees after entering into a consent judgment in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California. The consent judgment resolves a case brought by the Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, against Taqueria Garibaldi and its several owners and operators. As a primer, the Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division (“DOL”)...

Kollman & Saucier

06/23/2023

Restrictive Covenants, State Law

This week, the New York legislature passed NY State Senate Bill 3100A to modify New York’s Labor Law to effectively bar non-compete agreements. The Bill’s effective date is 30 days after Governor Hochul’s signature, and will only apply prospectively to agreements signed, or effective, after the date the bill becomes law. The bill bars non-compete agreements in total, except in two circumstances: Non-disclosure agreements that protect trade...

Kollman & Saucier

06/16/2023

Independent Contractors, Labor Law

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has revisited the standard under the National Labor Relations Act for determining whether a worker is an independent contractor. The Atlanta Opera, Case 10-RC-276292 (NLRB June 13, 2023). First, a little background. In its 2019 SuperShuttle DFW decision, the Board made it easier for companies to establish that their workers are independent contractors (rather than employees) by clarifying and emphasizing...

Kollman & Saucier

06/14/2023

Employment Discrimination, Hostile Work Environment, Sexual Harassment

Can an employer be liable for workplace harassment resulting from music with sexually graphic lyrics when both women and men find the music offensive? Last week, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals answered that question with a resounding “yes.” Sharp v. S&S Activewear, L.L.C., No. 21-17138 (9th Cir. June 7, 2023). The court had little trouble reversing the trial court’s decision that because employees of both sexes found the music...

Kollman & Saucier

06/08/2023

FMLA, PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act, Workplace Postings

The DOL has revised its Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) posters. Employers will need to update these postings to remain in compliance with their obligations under these laws. FMLA Poster. Employers who are covered by the FMLA (i.e., private employers with 50 or more employees within a 75-mile radius, as well as public agencies regardless of employee count) are required to display the DOL poster that...

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The (New) Story of the Mad Hatter

EEOC Now Accepting Charges Under the New Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

Seventh Circuit Blasts ADT For NLRA Violations

Groff v. DeJoy: Employers Have A Clarified Standard For Their Duty To Provide Reasonable Accommodations

New Jersey Company Must Provide Back Pay To Laid-off Employees After Failure To Engage In Effects Bargaining

Keep Your Religion Off My Tacos: Taqueria Found To Have Retaliated When Workers Were Offered A Priest To Confess Their Workplace Sins

New York Passes Bill To Become Fifth State to Ban Non-Compete Agreements

NLRB Clarifies (Again) NLRA Independent Contractor Test

Harassment Claim Based On Offensive Music Given New Life

DOL Releases Revised Mandatory FMLA and FLSA Posters

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