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Maryland Extends Personal Liability to Individuals Under State Wage Payment Law

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
11/30/2012
State Law, Wage & Hour
In Campusano v. Lusitano Construction, LLC, et al., No. 1529 (Md. Ct. Spec. App. Nov. 21, 2012) (Matricciani, J.), the Maryland Court of Special Appeals concluded that individuals may be “employers” and therefore be liable under Maryland’s Wage Payment and Collection Law (MWCPL). Francisco de Oliveria worked for his son’s business, Lusitano Construction, LLC.  As a supervisor of a construction project, Francisco “set [employees’]...
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Employer Does Not “Like” Court Decision: Facebook Postings About New Job Not A Breach of Non-Solicitation Clause

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
11/29/2012
Employment Contracts, Social Media
Bristled that its clients interacted with a former employee on Facebook, a Massachusetts hair salon sought a preliminary injunction to cut short the stylist’s attempts to work at a competing salon and to force her to surrender the salon’s confidential information.  All puns aside, the Superior Court of Massachusetts recently ruled that certain Facebook postings were not a violation of the non-competition clauses in place.  Invidia, LLC v....
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Supreme Court to Revisit Faragher/Ellerth Defense to Harassment Claims

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
11/21/2012
Employment Discrimination, Litigation, Sexual Harassment
Soon after Thanksgiving, next Monday in fact, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument on a case of immense importance to employers, employees, and the employment law community.  In Vance v. Ball State University, the Court will address the question of who is a “supervisor” in the context of harassment cases under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Like the debate at Thanksgiving dinner over whose stuffing is better, there is a circuit...
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Paid Sick Leave for Maryland’s Private Sector Employees Could Be Proposed in 2013

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
11/14/2012
Disability & Leave, Employee Benefits, Legislative Developments, State Law
Now that flu season is upon us, employers can expect the usual uptick in employees calling out sick.  And in Maryland, while most larger employers offer paid  sick leave, many small businesses do not.  According to the Institute of Women’s Policy Research, forty percent of Maryland’s private sector workers, or nearly 820,000 employees, do not receive time off with pay for being sick. However, Maryland might soon require all employers to offer...
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Of Petraeus, Paramours, and Email

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
11/14/2012
Sexual Harassment, Social Media
As someone who has represented employers in employment law matters for more than 25 years, I have seen more than a few high level executives brought down by extramarital dalliances.  Married CEO’s who end up in bed with an administrative assistant; sales executives who send racy emails to a subordinate while sipping their fourth Jim Beam at a lonely hotel bar; human resources  professionals “sexting” coworkers .. you name it.  There is not...
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Employee Tagged Partying in Facebook Photos Loses FMLA Case

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
11/12/2012
Disability & Leave, Social Media
An employee who was terminated after captured drinking and partying in Facebook photographs failed on her claims of Family and Medical Leave Act interference and retaliation.  The Sixth Circuit affirmed that the employer was justified in its honest belief that the festival-attending employee was absent fraudulently from work.  Jaszczyszyn v. Advantage Health Physician Network, No. 11-1697 (6th  Cir. Nov. 7, 2012). Sara Jaszczyszyn began working...
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Four More Years: What Does Obama's Reelection Mean for Employers?

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
11/07/2012
Agency Activity, Disability & Leave, Employment Discrimination, Labor Law, Legislative Developments, Wage & Hour, Workplace Safety
With the results of the Presidential election now in, its time to answer a question I’ve heard from a number of clients today: what does President Obama’s reelection mean for employers?  The short answer: you can expect to see a lot of blog posts from us about aggressive enforcement initiatives by the NLRB, DOL, EEOC, and other enforcement agencies.  In this post, I’ll give you a high level overview of what I think we are going to see. NLRB:...
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Time Off For Voting

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
11/05/2012
State Law
Tomorrow is Election Day.  Employers should be clear on state law requirements that provide employees with time off to vote, as well as any existing policies in place on voting leave.  Although some states have no requirements, others require employers to provide employees with time off to vote and impose civil and/or criminal penalties for non-compliance.  In Maryland, every employer must permit employees who claim to be registered voters to be...
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Virginia Supreme Court Holds That Supervisors May Be Personally Liable for Wrongful Discharge

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
11/02/2012
Litigation, Sexual Harassment, State Law
On November 1, 2012, the Supreme Court of Virginia held that a supervisor may be subject to tort liability for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy where the individual participated in the wrongful firing and was the violator of public policy. VanBuren v. Grubb, 120348 (Va. Nov. 1, 2012) (Millette, J.).  The Court addressed the issue upon certification from the Fourth Circuit. Angela VanBuren was a nurse at Virginia Highlands Orthopedic...
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NLRB Finds "At Will" Disclaimers in Employee Handbook to be Legal

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
11/02/2012
Agency Activity, Labor Law
On October 31, 2012, the NLRB did something it has not done too often in recent years: it delivered some good news to employers.  In two Memoranda from the Board’s Division of Advice, the Board found “at will” disclaimers  in employee handbooks to be lawful.   In so doing, the Board contrasted the disclaimers with one that was struck down  by an Administrative Law Judge in February. The issue presented by the disclaimers is whether or not...
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