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Articles Posted in Pennsylvania

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4 Free Social Media Q&A Sessions for Proactive Employers

On four Thursdays in March and April (3/17, 3/24, 3/31, 4/7), I am hosting a free breakfast in Philadelphia, PA for all of my readers. With your bagel and schmear, I throw in four all-star panels of lawyers and industry professionals who will offer up their social media best practices…

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Can an employer legally refuse to hire a smoker?

Keeping with this week’s smoking theme, I see that the The New York Times recently ran a story discussing how some employers are refusing to hire smokers. The article warns, ““Smokers now face another risk from their habit: it could cost them a shot at a job.” But is this…

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PA employee sleeps on the job and still collects unemployment

Hi there, Pennsylvania employers. Do you have employees that remind you of the sleeping gentleman in the picture to the right? After the jump, read about a local employee who was fired after getting caught sleeping on the job four times, and still successfully obtained unemployment compensation benefits! The case…

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PA: Misclassify an independent contractor and go to jail

Do I have your attention now? Early next year, the Construction Workplace Misclassification Act goes into effect. Signed in October, 2010, this legislation provides criteria for classifying a person as an independent contractor (versus an employee) in the construction industry. If you operate a business in the construction industry, you…

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Hi, PA, NJ, and DE employers. Meet GINA.

Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA), which prohibits genetic information discrimination in employment, took effect on November 21, 2009. Nearly a year later, the EEOC published the final GINA regulations. How does this law affect employers? I’ll break it down for you after the jump.…

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How enforceable is a non-solicit agreement after you fire an employee?

To answer your question, it depends. And in Pennsylvania, there are a lot of factors that a court will consider, based on a recent case decided by the Pennsylvania Superior Court. But, unlike many prior Pennsylvania decisions that deal with the enforceability of a non-competition agreement after an employee is…

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Third Circuit: The Lily Ledbetter Act Does not cover failure-to-promote claims

Our old friend Robert Rank-And-File is at it again. He has sued his employer, Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Delaware, Inc., in federal court. Robert claims that Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Delaware, Inc. violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 when it failed to promote him because of his gender, national origin and race.…

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How do PA, NJ, and DE address discrimination based on sexual orientation?

Recently, I read an article by Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle about a speech from U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in which he told law students from U.C. Hastings that the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees equal protection to all U.S. citizens, do not…