Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Typically, harassment claims involve allegations that an individual has been harassed by a coworker or supervisor. A recent case involving an Illinois casino demonstrates the importance of employers guarding against potential harassment by non-employees as well. Cornered at the Beer Tub Laura Wong worked as a beverage server at Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, Illinois. […]
Over the last decade, there has been a significant amount of litigation over how to determine if multiple companies are joint employers of a workforce. Joint employer status can create significant liability issues for the secondary employer in areas such as wages and safety matters. The rules governing that determination may be about to change.
Massachusetts enacted significant noncompete reform in 2018. Under Massachusetts law, noncompete agreements entered after October 1, 2018, can only be used and enforced if they comply with the standards of the Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act (MNAA).
In pursuit of customer satisfaction, employers may be inclined to take a hands-off approach when customers or other third parties exhibit discriminatory conduct towards their employees. This can be a costly mistake.
Recently, the influential U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. Circuit ruled that denial of a lateral transfer request based on protected status is actionable under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 without proving additional harm, such as a change in pay or benefits. Though circuit courts are split […]
An employer that had a sexual harassment policy but that failed to train its employees on the policy—and failed to insist that managers who received complaints forward them to the HR department—will face a jury trial in an Ohio federal court.
In the aftermath of the Astroworld music festival gone wrong, event organizers are reconsidering the safety risks at large events. Live Nation and other organizers of the Houston festival are facing numerous lawsuits based on injuries and deaths caused by the failure to host the concert safely. Organizers’ awareness of the risks presented at the […]
The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals (which covers Michigan employers) recently issued a long-awaited decision about the appropriateness of interest rate assumptions used by union pension funds to calculate withdrawal liability. The court affirmed a district court’s opinion holding the Ohio Operating Engineers Pension Fund’s use of the “Segal Blend” violated the Employee Retirement […]
Is an employer liable for employee misconduct at “after-hours” gatherings? When a trial court adopted a narrow view of what constituted “the workplace,” an appeals court weighed in using a “totality of the circumstances” test.
A federal court recently dismissed a lawsuit filed by an employee and his spouse attempting to hold his employer liable for both of them contracting COVID-19. The dismissal should bring comfort to employer anxiety over negligence lawsuits by employees and their family members seeking damages for possibly bringing a coronavirus infection home from the workplace.