Allyn & Fortuna LLPPaula Lopez, August 22, 2017 The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), in its recent decision in Butler Medical Transport LLC, upheld an administrative law judge’s decision that Butler Medical unlawfully terminated an employee for a Facebook post responding to a co-worker’s announcement that she had been terminated. In the Facebook post, William Norvell advises his former colleague and work partner to “think about getting a lawyer and taking them to court” and to “contact the labor board too.” In a split decision, the NLRB ruled that Mr. Norvell’s…
Paula Lopez, July 10, 2017. New York City’s recently passed package of bills, referred to as “Fair Work Week” laws, impose significant scheduling and notice requirements on certain businesses operating in New York City. The laws will go into effect on November 26, 2017. Employers covered by this law include retail businesses and fast food establishments, which are known for subjecting employees to changing work schedules. A “fast food establishment” covered by the new law is defined in the same way as a “fast food establishment” subject to…
Paula Lopez, May 5, 2017. In a challenge by a New Jersey law firm and the National Employment Lawyers Association to N.J.A.C. 12:17-2.1, a 2015 regulation passed by the Department of Labor and Workforce defining employee conduct that renders him or her ineligible to receive unemployment benefits following termination, the New Jersey Appellate Division ruled that the Department’s attempt to define “simple misconduct,” and distinguish it from behavior amounting to “severe misconduct” and “gross misconduct,” is arbitrary and capricious and therefore invalid. A worker in New Jersey fired…
Paula Lopez, April 11, 2017. Last week, in McLane Co. Inc. v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-1 to vacate a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit’s decision that overturned a district court’s decision to quash subpoenas served by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) in the course of investigating a sex discrimination charge filed by a terminated employee. The Court held that the Ninth Circuit had erred in applying “de novo” review, a more searching form of review, instead of the…
Paula Lopez, February 10, 2017. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) protects employees, age 40 and older, against age discrimination. The Third Circuit, in Karlo v. Pittsburgh Glass Works, 129 Fair Empl.Prac.Cas (BNA) 1461, split from the Second, Sixth and Eight Circuits by holding that employees over the age of 40 can make out a disparate impact claim under the ADEA by showing that an employer’s actions disproportionately impacted a subgroup of employees over 40, within a larger group of employees over 40 years of age, but younger…
Paula Lopez, November 22, 2016. On November 16, 2016, Mayor Bill de Blasio signed into law the “Freelance Isn’t Free Act,” which amends Title 10 of the N.Y.C. Administrative Code to provide certain protection to freelance workers. In passing this law, New York City is the first city in the country to enact legislation that affords protections to freelance workers. Proponents of the law note that independent contractors and freelance workers make up the fastest growing sector of the workforce and should have protections that ensure full and…
Paula Lopez, September 29, 2016. On September 25, 2016, California Governor, Jerry Brown, signed into law legislation that voids contract provisions in any agreement entered into between an employer and a California resident that requires, as a condition of employment, that an employee agree to have disputes adjudicated (includes litigation and arbitration) outside of California and under the laws of another state. The law, known as Senate Bill 1241[1], will apply to contracts entered into, modified or extended on or after January 1, 2017. Key provisions of the…
Paula Lopez, July 29, 2016. In Smith v. Millville Rescue Squad, the New Jersey Supreme Court reversed the trial court’s dismissal of an employee’s discrimination claim based on marital status, finding that New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD)’s prohibition against workplace discrimination based on marital status extends beyond whether an individual is married or unmarried, and protects employees in all marital phases (e.g., engaged, separated, divorcing, divorced, or widowed). In Millville Rescue Squad, Robert Smith and his wife Mary Smith both worked for Millville Rescue Squad (MRS). In…
Paula Lopez, May 13, 2016. Earlier this month, a split three-member NLRB panel affirmed the December 24, 2015 administrative law judge’s decision invalidating a class and collective action waiver contained in CVS’s workplace arbitration policy. The administrative decision was one of a flurry of decisions issued by the NLRB at the end of 2015 addressing this issue and continuing to apply the Board’s decisions in D.R. Horton and Murphy Oil U.S.A., Inc. to invalidate class action waivers. D.R. Horton and Murphy Oil U.S.A. hold that implementing and maintaining…
Paula Lopez, March 11, 2016. New York City’s Council has been active in passing legislation that impacts the workplace and imposes new legal obligations on New York City employers. This week, we discuss the recently enacted New York City Commuter Benefits Law and the Caregiver Discrimination Act, and highlight employment related legislation currently pending before the New York City’s Council. New York City’s Commuter Benefits Law (NYCCBL) went into effect on January 1, 2016. NYCCBL requires employers with 20 or more full-time employees working in New York City…