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

Employer Defeats Title VII Claims With Consistent, Documented Explanation

Kollman, Saucier, & Jackson

07/20/2021

A recent decision from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, Dawson v. Washington Gas Light Company, provides a reminder of what is (or should be) an obvious point: when disciplining or terminating employees, employers should not change or shift their explanations over time. Dawson v. Washington Gas Light Company, No. 19-2127 (4th Cir. July 13, 2021). Dawson -- a case involving alleged retaliation, race, and color discrimination and...

Kollman, Saucier, & Jackson

07/13/2021

Reasonable Accommodations/Undue Burden, Virginia Employment Law

As of July 1, 2021, covered Virginia employers are required by the Virginia Office of Civil Rights to post the newly issued poster in a conspicuous location and provide a copy of the poster to any employee who discloses they have a disability, within ten (10) days of the employee's disclosure. This information about reasonable accommodations must also be included in their employee handbooks. A covered employer for purposes of this requirement...

Kollman, Saucier, & Jackson

07/07/2021

State Law, Wage & Hour

On July 1, 2021, the following minimum wage increases took effect for Montgomery County, Maryland: EMPLOYER SIZE MINIMUM WAGE RATE Large Employer (51 or More Employees) $15 Mid-Sized Employer (11 to 50 Employees) $14 Small Employer (10 or Less Employees) $13.50 Employers doing business in Montgomery County that employ 1 or more employees in the County (not counting the business owners) are subject to the requirements of...

Kollman, Saucier, & Jackson

07/07/2021

Sex Discrimination, Supreme Court Decisions, Virginia Employment Law

On June 28, 2021, the Supreme Court denied the Gloucester County, Virginia School Board’s petition to review Gloucester Co. Sch'l Bd. v. Grimm, No. 20-1163. The denial leaves a Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals’ s ruling intact, making it unlawful in this jurisdiction (South Carolina, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia) to prohibit students from using bathroom facilities that align with their gender identity....

Kollman, Saucier, & Jackson

06/30/2021

Disability & Leave

A major component of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the interactive process. The law requires employers and employees to actively engage in this dialogue when exploring reasonable accommodations. But there is no requirement that an employer agree to an employee’s preferred accommodation if there is another accommodation that is less expensive or easier to provide that will have the same effect. As long as an...

Kollman, Saucier, & Jackson

06/28/2021

Wage & Hour

Overreaching has become an unfortunate consequence of life these days. Here’s one example. The Fourth Circuit recently affirmed dismissal of a lawsuit filed by a group of Lowe’s employees who alleged that bonus payments and volunteer time should count in the calculation of overtime due them. McPhee v. Lowe’s Home Ctrs., 2021 U.S. App. LEXIS 18076 (4th Cir. June 17, 2021). You may recall way back in late 2017 there was a change in the...

Kollman, Saucier, & Jackson

06/21/2021

Virginia Employment Law, Wage & Hour

On July 1, 2021, Virginia’s new Overtime Wage Act will take effect. Employers with employees in Virginia need to review the way in which they calculate overtime for salaried non-exempt employees, as the new law makes it impermissible to use the FLSA’s “fixed salary for fluctuating workweek” methodology that allows employers to pay a half-time premium for overtime hours. The new law was signed by Governor Northam or March 30, 2021, and...

Vincent Jackson

06/18/2021

COVID-19

In one of the first rulings of its kind, a federal judge upheld a company policy requiring that employees at a Texas hospital be vaccinated against COVID-19. The lawsuit, brought by 117 employees against Houston Methodist Hospital, bore all the hallmarks of a frivolous case: dubious application of legal doctrines, conspiracy theories, and (of course) Nazi comparisons. It alleged claims for wrongful termination, violations of federal law governing...

Kollman, Saucier, & Jackson

06/17/2021

Disability & Leave

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is clear: it is crucial for employers to timely and thoroughly explore avenues of reasonable accommodation (that do not create an undue hardship) for employees with disabilities. This is not a one and done thing; an employer needs to be fully engaged in the interactive process and keep a good record of what it has done to meet its obligations. The failure to do so may result in an employee getting...

Kollman, Saucier, & Jackson

06/15/2021

Uncategorized

I am spending a lot of time these days counseling employers who are in the middle of having their employees return to the worksite. One of the big issues (no surprise here) is whether employees have been vaccinated. Do you request documentation? Do you rely on someone’s statement that they cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons, or because they have a religious objection? Do you punish those who chose not to vaccinate just because? For...

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Email Updates

Employer Defeats Title VII Claims With Consistent, Documented Explanation

Virginia Employers Must Post Reasonable Accommodations Poster In Workplace

Montgomery Co. Employer Alert: Minimum Wage Increase Effective July 1

Fourth Circuit Decision Protecting Transgender Student Rights Stands After Supreme Court Denies Review

Reasonable Accommodation and the ADA’s Interactive Process

Bonus and Volunteer Work Counts Toward Overtime? Fourth Circuit says “No!”

New Virginia Overtime Law Takes Effect July 1

Federal Judge Dismisses Employees’ Lawsuit Challenging Employer’s Mandatory Vaccination Policy

A Reminder of the Importance of the ADA’s Interactive Process

Building Trust as We Return to the Workplace

Email Updates