Fourth Circuit ADA Plaintiff Loses on Summary Judgment Due To Admissions Made In His Own Complaint

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
01/21/2022
One of the more challenging areas of employment law that businesses must grapple with is leave accommodations.  Employers and employees often disagree about how much leave is too much leave and, when circumstances result in an employee’s termination, it’s not uncommon for litigation to ensue. Such were the facts of an employment dispute decided by the Fourth Circuit this week. Jessup v. Barnes Group, Inc., No. 20-1801 (1/19/22). Plaintiff...
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Reminder About Maryland Minimum Wage Increases

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
01/19/2022
This is a reminder for all Maryland employers that effective January 1, 2022, Maryland’s minimum wage rates increased to $12.50 for employers with 15 or more employees, and to $12.20 for employers with 14 or fewer employees. Rates will continue to increase gradually each year for both large and small businesses until a $15 an hour rate is reached in 2025 (for large businesses) and in 2026 (for small businesses). Montgomery County Minimum wage...
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Supreme Court Blocks OSHA ETS Requiring Vaccination or Testing

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
01/13/2022
The Supreme Court today issued a stay blocking the Biden Administration’s COVID-19 vaccination or test rule for employers with 100 or more employees.  NFIB v. OSHA, Nos. 21A244 and 21A247 (Jan. 13, 2022).  The majority found that those challenging the  Emergency Temporary Standard ("ETS")  “are likely to succeed on the merits of their claim that the Secretary [of Labor] lacked authority to impose the mandate.” In its, 6-3 per curiam...
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NLRB To Revisit Test for Reviewing Workplace Rules

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
01/12/2022
In The Boeing Co., 365 NLRB No. 154 (2017), the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) set a new standard for evaluating the lawfulness of workplace rules under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).  The Board has invited briefs on “whether the Board should adopt a new legal standard to apply in cases where an employer’s maintenance of a facially-neutral work rule is alleged to violate Section 8(a)(1) of the Act.” ...
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Federal Contractors Must "Ban the Box"

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
01/05/2022
The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act of 2019 became effective December 20, 2021, and requires federal agencies to include language in federal contracts prohibiting contractors from requesting, whether verbally or in writing, the criminal history of a job applicant for work on a federal contract until after a conditional offer of employment has been made.  As many employers already know from the myriad state and local laws already in place, the...
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NLRB Reconsiders Independent Contractor Test – Again

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
12/28/2021
In The Atlanta Opera, N.L.R.B., Case 10-RC-276292, the National Labor Relations Board is primed to reconsider its 2019 decision in SuperShuttle DFW, N.L.R.B., Case 16-RC-010963.  The decision in SuperShuttle, a case involving ride-share franchisees, made it easier for companies to establish that their workers are independent contractors (and not employees) by clarifying and emphasizing that classification as an independent contractor is strongly...
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Waiting Too Long to Sue Sinks Case

Darrell VanDeusen
Darrell VanDeusen
12/22/2021
I am not a procrastinator by nature, although some of my closest friends (and a few family members) are.  For me, waiting until the last minute to get something done is just irritating and anxiety provoking.  But enough oversharing.   My point is that, waiting until the last minute to accomplish a task can have a negative outcome. That is what happened to Brian Lax, a former FEMA employee who sued for disability discrimination.  Lax v. Mayorkas...
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Invalid RIF Agreement Results in Big Plaintiff Verdict

Darrell VanDeusen
Darrell VanDeusen
12/20/2021
Back when I was a baby lawyer in the mid-1980s, I remember a client who assured us that, contrary to our advice, what the client wanted to do was legally just fine.  “But it’s not what the law permits” we said.  “It’s what [very large company name redacted] does,” was the reply.  “And [very large company name redacted] just got hit with a multi-million dollar verdict against it for doing it,” we rejoined, “so do you want that...
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OSHA Vax-or-Test Rule Reinstated

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
12/18/2021
Late yesterday, United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit dissolved a nationwide injunction against OSHA's emergency rule requiring  employers with at least 100 workers to mandate that their employees get vaccinated against Covid-19 or get tested regularly. This morning, the United States Department of Labor announced that employers have until January 10, 2022 to come into compliance with the rule, although it agreed to defer enforcing...
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Placement on Leave Pending Investigation is Not Adverse Action

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
12/17/2021
When employers conduct investigations into suspected employee misconduct, they often place the employee on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.  The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia recently held that placing an employee on such a leave does not amount to an adverse employment action under the anti-retaliation provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.  Kashif v. PNC Bank, Civil Action No,...
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