This is a difficult time for unions throughout United States. The percentage of private sector employees covered by unions is at a historic low. Even in the public sector, unions are under stress due to straitened economic circumstances facing public sector employers and legal challenges to the union’s right to collect fair share dues. In spite of this however, a company or public entity which has a collective bargaining agreement and is faced with upcoming negotiations needs to carefully plan if it wants to maximize its chances of improving its position during negotiations. Based on my experience over the last …
Supreme Court Decides Religious Discrimination in Employment Case
An employer cannot refuse to hire an individual because of a religious practice that the employer could reasonably accommodate without hardship. In EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc., the Supreme Court addressed the issue of whether an employer must have actual knowledge of the need for an accommodation. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc. (“Abercrombie”), a clothing store, requires all store employees to comply with a dress code policy that includes a prohibition on wearing informal “caps.” Samantha Elauf was unaware of the dress code policy when she applied and interviewed for a sales position. At the interview she wore …
NLRB Supports Obscene Facebook Vulgarity, Punishes Common Sense Response
The National Labor Relations Board’s decision in Pier Sixty, LLC, 362 NLRB 59 (2015), will be startling to many managers struggling to maintain civility in the workplace. Increasingly, supervisors and human resource departments are expected to behave like lawyers and to ignore common sense for what should be routine discipline decisions. Although union activity is on the decline in most private sector industries, the catering company Pier Sixty was recently faced with an effort to unionize its New York operations. Two days before the employees were scheduled to vote on the EGU union petition, and just after receiving a reprimand …
EEOC Making It More Difficult To Consider An Applicant’s Criminal History
Stephen M. McHugh and C. Mark Kingseed, Coolidge attorneys and DBA Committee Members, co-authored an article for the May 2015 edition of the Dayton Bar Association’s magazine, Dayton Bar Briefs, entitled “EEOC Making It More Difficult To Consider An Applicant’s Criminal History.”
Supreme Court Upholds DOL Authority to Determine Employee Status
On March 9, 2015, the United States Supreme Court issued a significant decision impacting employers who are concerned with whether or not their workers can be classified as exempt employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The decision in Perez v. Mortgage Bankers Assn. confirmed that the DOL had the ability to interpret its rules to determine that mortgage lenders were non-exempt employees. As such, mortgage lenders need to be paid overtime for every hour worked over forty per week. However, the impact of the decision extends far beyond the mortgage banking industry. Perez dealt with the much broader issue …
Employee Background Checks: The Importance of Doing Them Right
Many of us know the name Edward Snowden. He is the Computer specialist accused of espionage and theft of government property. He allegedly revealed large-scale domestic spying efforts conducted by the United States and British governments. As a former contractor with access to highly sensitive information, his actions caused international scandal, a manhunt, and general animosity toward the United States and its secret, sanctioned invasion of the rights of its citizens. This past June, the government Office of Personnel Management noted that Mr. Snowden’s pre-employment background check may have been done incorrectly. This revelation – and the security breach resulting …
Another Billion Dollar Rebate!
State fund employers in Ohio will be pleased to know that the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation is again preparing a $1 billion rebate of premiums to them. Based upon payments made in 2012, state fund employers will qualify for another rebate of premiums. It is important to note, though, that you must be up to date in premium payments in order to qualify for the rebate. The BWC Board of Directors is expected to approve this proposal during the week of September 22 with rebate checks being issued in October. If you have questions, please contact David Korte at 937-223-8177 …
Failure to Provide COBRA Notice Results in Penalties Even When Employer Pays the Bills
Regina Honey was pregnant with her second child and experiencing pre-term labor. Her doctor ordered bed rest for about two weeks. When Ms. Honey was ready to return to work at Dignity Health, she was told her employment was terminated. About two months later she was reinstated. However, the pre-term labor returned and her doctor ordered bed rest for the remainder of the pregnancy. Ms. Honey remained on bed rest until her son was born in July 2010. When the doctor approved her return to work in September 2010, she was never scheduled to return. After several attempts to reach …
Recent Ruling May Allow for Unionization Among NCAA Athletes
The board of directors of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has granted the largest college athletic programs in the country with partial autonomy. The move, approved by the board in a 16-2 vote, could allow members of the NCAA’s five wealthiest conferences to provide benefits to student-athletes beyond scholarships and increased health care coverage. This measure comes in the midst of controversy regarding the NCAA and whether or not athletes should be entitled to compensation for the millions of dollars in revenue they help generate for their schools. Earlier this year, football players at Northwestern University in Illinois attempted …