Miscellaneous Legal Issues
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Labor Department Proposes Allowing Coca-Cola to Fund Life, AD&D Benefits in Captive
Atlanta-based Coca-Cola wants to use its Red Re Inc. captive to reinsure life insurance and accidental death and dismemberment policies written by Metropolitan Life Insurance Co.
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Pot Laws Facing High Court Scrutiny?
Nothing is on the U.S. Supreme Court docket yet but with recent passage of liberal marijuana-use laws, a case could fire up justices.
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Headed to Work in Washington State? Don't Fire Up That Bong Just Yet …
Despite voter approval liberalizing pot laws in two states, state marijuana laws haven't taken away an employer's right to maintain a drug-free workplace, especially as mandated by the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 for companies with federal grants or contracts.
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New Pot Laws? No Worries
Following voter approval of recreational marijuana use in Washington state and Colorado, one employment lawyer nevertheless recommends making any necessary revisions to company drug policies so no gray areas exist between state and federal law.
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Oracle, CedarCrestone Legal Battles Heat Up
The former Oracle partner says the lawsuit signals a 'broader war on competition' against the third-party support industry.
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Supreme Court to Hear Title VII, Class-Action Cases in 2012-13 Term
As Littler Mendelson's Garry Mathiason says, 'There are always some surprises from the Supreme Court.'
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Gay-Rights Advocates Urge Employers Not to Be in a Hurry to Drop Domestic-Partner Benefits
Although same-sex marriage is legal in some states, 'It's not as straightforward as one might think,' says Deena Fidas of the Human Rights Campaign. Opposite-sex and same-sex marriage are still not an 'apples-to-apples comparison,' she says.
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Middle-Income Americans Wing It on Financial Decisions
About 67 percent of people with household annual income between $30,000 and $100,000 have made at least one 'really bad financial decision.' Those stumbles cost families an average $23,000.
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Financial Whistle-blowers: A New Employment Law Challenge
Employers should seriously consider all allegations of wrongdoing and proactively attempt to avoid litigation in the first instance. These goals can be achieved by coordinating human resources and compliance programs.
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Feds Formally Delay ICD-10 Deadline
The federal government formally delayed the compliance date for new codes used by healthcare providers to classify diseases and health problems until October 1, 2014.
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Merrill $40M Class-Action Settlement With Advisers Could 'Open a Pandora's Box'
About 1,500 former advisers would qualify for the deal, which would settle the class action filed in October 2009 by brokers claiming rights to stock grants that had not been fully vested before the Bank of America acquisition.
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'Great Texas Lactation Case' Debates Whether Breast-Milk Pumping Is a Pregnancy-Related Condition
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is acting for a Texas mother who was fired days after she asked her employer about a room to pump breast milk. A judge ruled that after the woman gave birth the former employee 'was no longer pregnant and her pregnancy-related conditions ended.'
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Employee Retirement Statements Get a Fee Makeover
Participants in defined contribution plans should receive the first of two fee-disclosure notices by Aug. 30. This notice should include a listing of all the investments available in the plan as well as the options' fees and historical performance.
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Audit Causes Some Family Members of Minnesota State Workers to Lose Health Benefits
Approximately 3,100 people were deemed ineligible for state-sponsored health care in a recent audit of Minnesota's employee benefits program.
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Ministerial Exception' Exempts Religious Employers
Federal, state and local employment discrimination laws may not apply to religious institutions and their employees who play some role in disseminating the employer's religious message.
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Outside Sales Pay Exemption Clarified
The Supreme Court has taken a broad approach to interpreting the overtime exemptions, which may allow for more employees to be classified as exempt.
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Men Get Prison, Must Repay $5 Million for Defrauding Staffing Firms
The incidents occurred from October 2002 to February 2005, according to the indictment in the case.
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Mine Safety Agency Cites Tire, Mining Companies in Worker's Death
Purcell Tire & Rubber Co. said it will contest citations from the Mine Safety & Health Administration over the Oct. 28, 2011, death of a mining tire technician at the Newmont USAgold mine in Carlin, Nevada.
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Fired Employee Admits to Hacking Gucci
Just before his trial was to begin, Sam Chihlung Yin pleaded guilty to an attack that cost the luxury goods maker about $200,000.
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Substance-Abuse Intervention Works Best When the Boss Steps In: Study
A new study reveals supervisors must go past detection and aid in enforcement of substance-abuse policies to deter use of alcohol and drugs on the job.
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Security Guards Awarded $89.7M in Rest-Break Class Action
At issue in the litigation was that guards were given 'on-duty' breaks during which they were required to keep their cellphones or pagers on.
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Staffing Firm Settlement Results in $11.4 Million Charge
Cases involved include groups of employees, but the named plaintiffs in the three cases were Mark Laffitte, Isabel Apolinario and Van Williamson. All cases were filed in California Superior Court.
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Racial Discrimination Lawsuit Against Humana Reinstated
Kathryn Keys' employment was terminated by Humana Inc. in June 2008, citing a 2006 negative performance assessment and ignoring a 2007 favorable performance appraisal, according to the ruling.
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Tech Firms Hit With Antitrust Lawsuit
Agreements made between companies that restrict competition between their employees may violate antitrust laws.
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Alliant Wins Battle With Aon Over Poaching Charges
In a lawsuit filed last year, London-based Aon has alleged that several of its former executives conspired with Newport Beach, California-based Alliant to solicit at least 40 other employees of Aon's construction services group to quit Aon and join Alliant.
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Employers Could Unlike Outcome of Facebook Password Requests
No court has specifically addressed the legality of a social media background check. 'Privacy is very much a floating concept,' one expert says.
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Civil Rights Protections Don't Extend to Wife of Illegal Immigrant
Civil rights law does not protect workers or their spouses against employer discrimination based on their alien status, says an appellate court.
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Grocery Chain to Indemnify Directors, Officers Against All Litigation Losses
The indemnification agreement that Safeway Inc.'s directors and officers will sign says in part that Safeway's board has determined the agreement is needed 'in order to attract and retain qualified individuals.'
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Washington Redskins' Workers' Comp Cases Head to Maryland Court
The Redskins practice at the team's Virginia headquarters, but play home games at FedExField in Landover, Maryland.
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Court: Worker Not Entitled to Free Speech Protections During Employment Duties
An issue in the case was the U.S. Supreme Court's 2006 ruling in Garcetti vs.
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Fidelity-ABB Ruling First in What Could Be String of Excessive-Plan-Fee Cases
The case is significant because new federal rules that go into effect this summer will require 401(k) plan service providers—such as record keepers and investment managers—to report detailed fee information to plan sponsors.
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Woman Injured Having Sex During Work Trip Can Collect Workers' Comp
Her workers' comp claim for facial and psychological injuries initially was rejected, the reports state. But her attorney argued that sex is an ordinary life activity, similar to showering in a motel room.
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Retirement Savings Tax Breaks Safe—for Now
At a House hearing, neither Dems nor Republicans seemed eager to tinker with main selling point of 401(k)s and IRAs.
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Bill Barring Firms From Requiring Applicant Passwords Awaits Governor's OK
Calls have been growing for federal and state legislation that would bar employers from requiring access to job applicants' social media postings.
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Wisconsin Law Repeals Punitive, Compensatory Damages in Bias Cases
The bill, which was supported by numerous business groups, was signed into law by the governor April 5, but not announced until April 6.
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PBGC Director Gotbaum Discusses New Retirement Plan Options
'What we need to do is provide options so that, case by case—employer and employee—they have choices. … And I think that, actually, is an important part of the future,' Joshua Gotbaum told the National Press Club on April 3.
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Data Bank Focus On: Occupational Fraud
Occupational fraud—internal theft perpetrated by a company employee, manager, executive or owner—costs organizations on average 5 percent of their annual revenue, according to the latest fraud study from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.
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Employers Struggle to Control Wage-and-Hour Litigation
Employers can minimize the chances of litigation by taking steps that include periodic audits to determine whether employees are being properly classified, as well as careful record-keeping.
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Whistling While You Work
With changes in whistle-blower laws, companies must be even more diligent about protecting workers who speak out.
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Protecting Whistle-Blowers
The Hanford Concerns Council in Washington state was formed according to state mediation laws, and members include company representatives, advocacy group members and independent parties.
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How to Blow the Whistle
In most cases, employees know the right thing to do morally or ethically, but aren't sure how to discuss it. "The primary reason people don't speak up is fear of retaliation and fear of futility," says Mary Gentile, a research scholar at Babson College in Babson Park, Massachusetts.
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Worker Fired After Urinating on Co-Workers' Chairs
Police reportedly are trying to determine whether they can charge the 59-year-old information technology worker with criminal mischief, according to the Des Moines Register.
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Official Sentenced for Staffing Firm Bribes
Bribe payments were calculated by multiplying the total number of hours worked by temporary employees at a firm by 25 cents.
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Ethics Group Warns of ‘Steep Declines’ in Workforce Trust
The ‘ominous warning signs’ of an ethics decline, says the Ethics Resource Center in a new survey, include a sharp increase in retaliation against employee whistle-blowers.
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Health Exchanges Must Notify Employers About Employees Eligible for Subsidies: HHS
Among other things, exchanges will have to provide a notice to employers that identifies by name the employees who have applied for and have been determined by exchange administrators as eligible for premium subsidies.
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Sex Club Shooting Case Goes to Jury for Workers' Comp Fraud Decision
A jury was deliberating the workers' compensation felony fraud case against a correctional guard and his wife who claimed his shooting outside a San Francisco sex club was work-related.
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Court Rejects Choice of Law in Driver Agreements
Because states have varying rules regarding whether a person is an independent contractor or an employee, employers should be cautious when making that designation.
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Judge Rules Law Mandating State Employee Contributions Is Unconstitutional
the law constitutes 'an unconstitutional impairment of plaintiffs' contract with the State of Florida, an unconstitutional taking of private property.'
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Wal-Mart Asks for Texas Gender Bias Suit to Be Thrown Out
Last June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against a proposed class of some 1.5 million members nationwide in Betty Dukes et al. vs. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., deciding that the class of plaintiffs did not have enough in common to pursue the lawsuit.
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Staffing Firm to Pay $148,000 in Pregnancy Suit
The lawsuit alleged HCS owner Charles Sisson discriminated against Roxy Leger, the company's bookkeeper, when he made offensive comments about her pregnancy and fired her because she needed to take maternity leave following the birth of her son, according to the EEOC.
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Back Injuries Account for 26 Percent of Workers' Comp Payments in California
Back injuries reportedly comprised 26.3 percent of workers' comp payments in California between 2001 and 2011—the highest percentage of any injury type.
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Despite Confusion at State Level, E-Verify Finds Federal Support
Though a federal mandate for the employee eligibility check could face strong opposition, President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, seen by many as the frontrunner for the Republican nomination to face Obama in the November election, have voiced support for a federal mandate.
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Arbitration Pact Barring Class Lawsuits Violates NLRA
In a Jan. 3 decision, the NLRB ruled that "employers may not compel employees to waive their National Labor Relations Act right to collectively pursue litigation of employment claims in all forums, arbitral and judicial."
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Lactation Discrimination Is not Sex Discrimination: Judge
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 amends Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to say discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions constitutes unlawful sex discrimination under Title VII, according to the EEOC.
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Aetna Accuses New York Doctors of Overcharging Patients
The insurance company's lawsuit takes aim at the practice called 'balance billing,' which wallops some customers with fees big enough to buy a house.
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EEOC Files Sex Bias Suit Against Mavis Discount Tire
Filed Jan. 31 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the suit accuses Mavis Discount Tire and its allied companies of violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.
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Court: Warehouse Can't Fire Contract Workers
A California judge ruled the workers, who are suing the warehouse and staffing provider, would likely be able to prove the firing was retaliatory.
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EEOC Issues Final Rule on Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act Records
GINA, which was signed into law by President George W. Bush in May 2008, protects job applicants, current and former employees, labor union members and apprentices and trainees from discrimination based on their genetic information.
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Lockout of Union Workers in New York Shines Light on NLRB Appointees
In a memo released last month, the Department of Justice's Office of Legal Counsel wrote that President Obama was justified in making the appointments.
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NFL Concussion Lawsuits May Turn on Workers' Comp Rules
The pro football league is named as a defendant in 21 suits that allege the league negligently misled at least several hundred players about the dangers of concussions and other head injuries.
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EEOC Actions, Enforcement Trends Focus of Report on Agency
The report noted that the agency identified combating systemic discrimination as a top priority in a 2006 task force report.
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Former Groupon Employees Countersue Over Contract Terms
The countersuit, filed Jan. 25, reveals an increasingly testy relationship between two high-profile Internet players: Google, the king of search advertising, based in Mountain View, California, and Chicago-based Groupon, the leader in the new online-advertising business with daily deals.
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NLRB: Employer Social Media Policies Should not Bar Protected Worker Activity
An analysis of the NLRB's rulings also indicates that if an employee makes a comment on Facebook and fellow employees respond, it is considered protected activity. It is not protected, however, if only friends respond to the posting.
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Court: Ex-Temp Creates Fake W-2s
The former temporary worker, Valerie Yvonne Brown, faces charges of aiding or assisting the preparation of a false or fraudulent document and identity theft, according to the filing.
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Waste Companies, Workers Adapting to Phone Ban
Trash collectors around the country are getting used to stringent federal rules that severely restrict the use of cell phones while they are behind the wheel.
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Nurse's Wrongful Termination Based on Facebook Post May Proceed, District Court Rules
An employee's complaints about working conditions, even where made public such as on a Facebook post, may be protected by state law and form the grounds for wrongful discharge.
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California Prevention Program Has Little Effect on Worker Injuries, Fatalities: Report
The California Commission for Health, Safety and Workers' Compensation released a draft of the study on Jan. 12.
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Worker Can't Sue Employer if Collecting Workers' Comp, Virginia Court Rules
A worker cannot sue an employer in addition to collecting workers' compensation benefits, even when the employer fails to purchase mandatory workers comp insurance, Virginia's Supreme Court ruled Jan. 13.
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Worker's Marijuana Use Cause of Explosion; Comp Benefits Denied
Three of the court's nine judges dissented to a portion of the opinion. Judge Raymond Abramson noted that Greg Prock had used a torch in the past to open barrels, and said the accident may not have been directly caused by Prock's past drug use.
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Pepsi Settles EEOC Charges of Racial Bias in Screenings for $3M
Under Pepsi's former policy, job applicants who had been arrested pending prosecution were not hired for a permanent job even if they had never been convicted of any offense.
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Court: Comp Benefits Due to Restaurant Manager Despite Being Smoker
Edmondo Bemis—who smoked for 30 years according to the appellate court's ruling—eventually filed for workers' comp benefits, claiming that his work injury worsened until he needed the surgery and that he was totally disabled.
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Financial Rewards of International Operations Comes With Potential Employment Costs
The hiring and firing of employees at will, setting working hours, requiring employees to agree to noncompete agreements and even deciding whether to offer health care, vacation or maternity benefits are areas in which American employers enjoy a great deal of latitude, with relatively little...
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Law Barring Legal Immigrants from Massachusetts Health Care Program Unconstitutional
The U.S. Census Bureau reported in September that at 5 percent—averaged over 2009 and 2010—Massachusetts had the lowest uninsured rate of any U.S. state.
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Supreme Court Showdown: Big Pharma Firms vs. Sales Reps
At stake is a case that could not only determine whether they are eligible for millions of dollars in unpaid overtime but also could affect the livelihood of other workers who ‘promote' products.
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Staffing Executive Convicted for Not Paying $15 Million
money from the firms was used to buy homes and a yacht for Harrison as well as to finance commercial motion pictures including 'National Lampoon's Pucked' and 'Home of the Giants,' the U.S. Attorney's Office reported.
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California Supreme Court Nears Ruling on Meal Breaks
While meal-period laws vary nationwide, California is among the states wrestling with how far employers should go in policing meal and rest breaks.
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EEOC Sues Wal-Mart for Disability Discrimination
Despite a 10-year-old settlement involving disability discrimination with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the agency has filed another lawsuit charging Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
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Hotel Chain Sues Search Firm for $5 Million
UPDATE: A hospitality industry executive search firm that was sued by a New York hotel operator in a lawsuit seeking $5 million in punitive damages said the allegations in the lawsuit are false.
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NLRB Issues Proposed Union Election Changes
THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD will be approving a series of changes intended to streamline procedures for employee votes for union representation that will include: limitations on pre-election hearings; restrictions on post-hearing requests intended to facilitate prompt rulings;...
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Best Practices for Conducting Criminal Background Checks
From the National Employment Law Project's guide Criminal Background Checks: A Best Practices Guide for Employers:
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No First Amendment Right to Display Religious Posters in Classroom
Speech made by government employees who are acting in their government capacity is not protected under the First Amendment.
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U.S. Agency Accuses Cargill of Discrimination, Seeks to Halt $60M in Contracts
The OFCCP said it has been unable to secure a fair resolution from Cargill to pay back wages and interest to the rejected job applicants and to extend job offers to at least 167of the affected workers.
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Suit Claims Worker was Fired for Refusing to Wear '666' Sticker
In March 2010, as a company's accidnt-free tally approached the number 666—identified in the 'Revelations' book of the Bible as 'the number of the beast' and a representation of Satan—the employee informed his supervisors that his religious beliefs wouldn't allow him to wear that number.
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New Law Sinks Teeth into Misclassification of Workers
Recently signed California legislation comes just weeks after the Labor Department announced a memorandum of understanding with the IRS that, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said, would bring the agencies together ‘to end the practice of misclassifying employees.'
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OSHA Issues Safety Guidelines for Black Friday Retailers
In a tip sheet posted Nov. 17, OSHA said workplace injuries during jam-packed holiday sales have increased, and cited the 2008 death of an employee trampled by Black Friday shoppers.
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OSHA Tightens Its Fall Protection Rules
The new directive states that all residential construction industry employers must protect their workers who are engaged in work at six feet or more above lower levels by conventional fall protection systems or by other fall protection measures.
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PBGC Deficit Hits Record $26 Billion
As was the case in the prior fiscal year, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Fund did not incur any multibillion-dollar losses in fiscal 2011.
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Court Ruling Puts Workplace Grief on Trial
Even though the defendants avoided liability, grief recovery experts say the case illustrates the pitfalls for managers who are not trained to be sufficiently sensitive toward and educated about grief.
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Supreme Court to Review Health Care Reform Law
Observers have said that decisions for cases argued in the court's spring term would likely by published by June, which could thrust the case into the national run-up to the November 2012 presidential election.
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Court: Workers' Comp Is Exclusive Fix for Construction Injury
Charles DeFrates sought to sue Robert Clark, sole owner of R.G. Clark Construction Inc. in Calpella, California, for personal injury after he slipped and fell while working on the roof of Clark's new duplex, court records show.
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Hospital Employee Sues Employer After Being 'Traumatized' in Hostage Drill
In the complaint, Ourida Diktakis alleges that the hospital's administrators intentionally did not inform her or the ICU staff of the drill.
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Court Rules Employer Liable for Accident Involving Employee's Vehicle
A contractor can be held liable for an employee hitting and injuring another worker with a truck, even though the accident involved the employee's personal vehicle, a California appellate court has ruled.
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The Impact of Motors & Mobiles
Experts recommend that employers establish and enforce policies about talking or texting while driving on the job. As many companies have discovered, distracted drivers are a liability to themselves and other motorists—as well as the employers for whom they work.
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Employee Facebook Complaints Protected by NLRA
The NLRB has received an increasing number of charges related to social media in the past year, but this is the first case involving Facebook that resulted in an administrative law judge's decision after a hearing.
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Back-Pay Damages and Reinstatement Denied to Undocumented Workers
Employers should remain diligent in collecting work authorization documentation from employees.
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California-Only Class Refiles Sex Discrimination Suit Against Wal-Mart
The U.S. Supreme Court had ruled against a proposed class of some 1.5 million members nationwide in June. The majority ruled that the 'respondents have not identified a common mode of exercising discretion that pervades the entire company.'
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Teacher Alleges Retaliation by School District for Giving Newspaper Interview
A Long Island, New York, elementary school teacher has filed a lawsuit claiming her former employers tarnished her reputation and fired her after she gave an interview to a local newspaper.
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Deceased Truck Driver’s Estranged Wife Entitled to Survivor Benefits
The appellate court’s decision in Sifford v. Sifford et al. reverses a ruling from the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission.
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Former Press Box Hostess Sues Indianapolis Colts Over Pay, Work Hours
According to court documents, the woman is seeking class-action status that would include other unnamed hostesses, in part because ‘some, if not most, of the individual group members may not be aware of their rights to wages under federal and Indiana law, or may not, because of financial...
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HIV-Positive Teacher Alleges Disability, Race Discrimination
The lawsuit alleges that teachers who are not of African-American descent and have been habitually late have not been subject to adverse job actions.
