Probably not. My Google Alerts were blowing up this weekend with reports of the story: Florida teacher allegedly fired after discussing sexuality with students Florida Teacher Fired for Discussing Sexual Orientation Sparks Debate Teacher Says She Was Fired After Talking to Students About Sexuality Most of the reports I read…
The Employer Handbook Blog
How in vogue has forming a union become? A group of LA strippers is trying to do it too.
Usually, when you reach the intersection of exotic dancers and employment law, you find Fair Labor Standards Act lawsuits, like this one, about misclassifying dancers as independent contractors. But this situation. This one is different. Very different. According to Otillia Steadman, writing here for Buzzfeed News, a group of strippers…
I’ve got your VIP passes to hear the Department of Labor discuss possible OT changes tonight
Don’t worry. I can get you past the bouncers. The Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) previously announced that it is reviewing the minimum wage and overtime rules — specifically, as they relate to exemptions that employers take for bona fide executive, administrative, and professional (EAP) employees under…
Healthcare CEO gets fired after viral TikTok video altercation with a boy in a red dress, sues Kathy Griffin.
I’ll take “blog post titles that I never thought I’d be using in 2022 ever” for $500. On this blog, I’ve often said that employees may have freedom of speech on social media. But their actions can have consequences at work because there is no corresponding constitutional right to a…
Supreme Court to decide if a supervisor making $200K+ per year should get overtime too
Whether a six-figure supervisor is exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act overtime rules is probably not something that’s kept you up at night — unless you pay your employees a lot of money without paying them a salary (e.g., day rates). Or you’re just an FLSA nerd like me.…
Two gifts for employers from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is providing strategies for employers to expand employment opportunities for workers with unemployment gaps. And there’s also a double-secret EEO-1 Component 1 Report filing extension. Employing the unemployed Last week, the EEOC and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance…
Company pays EEOC $79,000 rather than provide a pair of gloves to an employee with a skin rash
That reads a little bit like a headline from The Onion. But according to this press release from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, a company will pay $79,000 and provide other relief to settle a federal disability discrimination lawsuit in which the EEOC charged that the company violated the…
Can an employee legally be fired for using over-the-counter CBD products?
Last night, I read this federal court opinion where a defendant, sued after firing a plaintiff who used CBD for her disability, got the entire case dismissed. So, let’s talk about how and why. According to the plaintiff’s complaint, she had a disability for which she used an over-the-counter CBD…
The case of the $250,000 thumb drive porno and hacking (allegedly)
A former bank employee is now facing up to $250,000 in fines and ten years in prison because he allegedly wanted to watch The Matrix on a work laptop. Actually, there’s a little more to this story. Shout out to Google, which alerted me to Nate Gartrell’s article at The Mercury…
When do N-words and sex jokes NOT create a hostile work environment?
Hopefully, this question doesn’t have you clutching your pearls. I assume that your business has both an anti-harassment policy and regular training. But some of your employees are jerks. Some use foul language, make rude comments, and even cross the line into behavior that may foster a hostile work environment,…