September, 2015

POLL: Should Congress require companies to provide paid family and medical leave from work?

September 16, 2015 | by Eric B. Meyer

Last week, President Obama signed an Executive Order requiring federal contractors to provide paid sick leave. More on that here. The Department of Labor has a roadshow and social media campaign, through which it is touting the benefits of paid family and medical leave. And the Family and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act is currently pending in Congress. This bill would provide create a family and medical leave insurance program.

As the debate over government-mandated paid sick leave continues, Patrick Kulp at Mashable reports here that over 200 faculty members from 88 institutions across the country, including MBA programs at NYU, Harvard and Wharton, have signed this open letter calling upon Congress to adopt a national paid family and medical leave policy.

Another appellate court dropkicks the DOL’s unpaid-internship test

September 15, 2015 | by Eric B. Meyer

“So, dynamic, Eric. Is there anything you can’t do?”

Oh, hey there. Didn’t see you come in. You probably didn’t come here to read about Law360 naming me one of the 20 attorneys who are killing it on Twitter. (You can follow me here).

No, you’re looking for some Fair Labor Standards Act goodies. Well, I’ve been known to “prolifically tweet[] about news and issues affecting labor and employment, from links to interesting articles to posting [my] personal take on developing stories.” In case you didn’t know. But, enough about my Twitter crown. Let’s keep it here at the award-winning The Employer Handbook, and talk about internships.

A Bipartisan “Ban the Box” Bill is Introduced in Congress

September 14, 2015 | by Eric B. Meyer

Some states and cities have made it illegal to ask about criminal convictions on job applications. A new bill introduced last week in both the U.S. House and Senate called the Fair Chance Act may “ban the box” across the country for all federal agencies and federal contractors.

GUEST POST: The pesky FLSA implications of the Papal visit.

September 11, 2015 | by Eric B. Meyer

Friends, it’s been a long week. ~~No it hasn’t. It was a short 4-day workweek, on 2 of which I came to work in pajamas.~~ So, I’m handing the keys to The Employer Handbook to a guest blogger. It’s my buddy, Behnam Salehi. Behnam is an Associate Attorney at Freeman Mathis & Gary, LLP. If you want to give Behnam a shout, maybe ride shotgun in my Ferrari before he returns it washed and waxed, you can email him. And if you want to guest blog on an employment-law topic at The Employer Handbook, email me.

Firing an employee for complaining on Facebook about discrimination = retaliation

September 10, 2015 | by Eric B. Meyer

And when the employer practically admits as much at a deposition = hella-stupid retaliation

The limits of employee free speech on social media

September 9, 2015 | by Eric B. Meyer

One of the finest employment-law bloggers, Daniel Schwartz, recently marked the eight-year anniversary of his Connecticut Employment Law Blog with a post about the three most notable changes in employment law over that span. Number one was social media.

While for us bloggers, social media presents the lowest-hanging clickbait fruit, its metamorphosis and overall effect on the workplace is undeniable. Social media presents a slew of issues, from hiring (all those state laws on social media passwords) to firing (like the time those Facebook postings bungled an employee’s FMLA claims) and so much more.

President Obama requires federal contractors to offer paid sick leave

September 8, 2015 | by Eric B. Meyer

I swear. If you put ketchup on that Labor Day hot dog, I’ll find and you and— Oh, hey! Didn’t see you there. Happy Tuesday to you. I hope that you had a nice mustard-covered-hot-dog-filled Labor Day. Me? I ~~forgot how bloody awful it was to spend hours in blazing heat~~ miniature golfing with four kids. I was pretty sweet, I tell you.

But, did you see the news yesterday? President Obama signed an Executive Order requiring federal contractors to ensure that employees on those contracts can earn up to 7 days or more (56+ hours) of paid sick leave annually.

Ok, how about the details…

FMLA Basics: Which employees are eligible to take leave? And are there any exceptions?

September 4, 2015 | by Eric B. Meyer

The Family and Medical Leave Act allows eligible employees to take up to 12 workweeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period for a variety of reasons, including for one’s own serious health condition. An employee with a serious health condition can take FMLA leave if the employee satisfies three additional requirements:

He was late for work 111 times because of….BREAKFAST?!?! (And kept his $90,000 job).

September 3, 2015 | by Eric B. Meyer

Earlier this year, I shared the most unique late-to-work excuses. “I have a bad habit of eating breakfast in the morning, and I lost track of time” did not make the list. However, according to the Associated Press, a New Jersey teacher used that excuse to explain away the 111 times he was late to work.

SURVEY: Are you using social media to find job candidates? If not, you’re in the minority.

September 2, 2015 | by Eric B. Meyer

The recent uptick in activity on my “fired AND Facebook” Google Alert suggests that individuals with jobs continue to struggle with social media (Exhibit A, B). However, according to a recent survey from the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM), 65% of surveyed employers found their new hires through social media this past year. LinkedIn was the most popular social networking platform for sourcing job candidates. Indeed, 87% of HR professionals said it was either “very or somewhat important for job seekers to be on LinkedIn.”

But, wait, there’s more…