Articles Posted in Hiring & Firing

Three reasons why a Texas federal court may block the FTC’s noncompete rule nationwide

August 13, 2024 | by Eric B. Meyer

At noon ET today on Zoom, we aim to cover everything employers need to know now about the Federal Trade Commission’s blunderbuss Non-Compete Rule. (We may have a few seats left. Click here to register for this free Zoom powered by HRLearns.)

If we don’t actually cover “everything” this afternoon, I wanted to highlight here three arguments from a brief that the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) filed yesterday in one of the pending lawsuits supporting a nationwide injunction of the Rule. Continue reading

HR told me I was fired for not losing my religion

August 12, 2024 | by Eric B. Meyer

Well, not me. But, a former employee claimed it happened to him. So, let’s cue R.E.M. and talk about religious expression in the workplace. Continue reading

“This case arises from a workplace romance.” It began as “an affair” when “they were not yet colleagues, only lovers.”

August 9, 2024 | by Eric B. Meyer

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Kind of sounds like the start of a beautiful movie or novel, doesn’t it?

Unfortunately, however, it became more Lady Gaga. Or, more precisely, the writings of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals adjudicating an on-again-off-again sexual relationship between the “lovers” who became “colleagues” in the “workplace” and, later, plaintiff and defendant in a quid pro quo sexual harassment lawsuit.

An employer that supposedly instructed employees to pray away COVID-19 now must face religious discrimination claims.

August 7, 2024 | by Eric B. Meyer

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Colloquially, today’s topic is “reverse religious discrimination.” But, more accurately, it’s about a claim of “religious nonconformity.”

In plain English, what happens when an employee refuses to comply with their employer’s religion? Continue reading

This, if true, is what we call direct evidence of race discrimination

August 6, 2024 | by Eric B. Meyer

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Yesterday’s post discussed how direct evidence “proves impermissible discriminatory bias without additional inference or presumption,” i.e., the proverbial smoking gun. But smoking gun evidence in discrimination cases is rare. Employers aren’t out there telling employees that their race will cost them their jobs.

Well, most employers, that is. Continue reading

Two white men suing for discrimination got called out for a “serious misunderstanding of the law or its purposeful misapplication.”

August 5, 2024 | by Eric B. Meyer

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They lost.

Proving a disability in court isn’t that hard. (Even judges mistake how easy it is.)

August 2, 2024 | by Eric B. Meyer

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A man walks into a job interview. Continue reading

Oh, you think you know retaliation, do you? Wait until you see this.

July 30, 2024 | by Eric B. Meyer

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Yesterday, I read a press release in the EEOC’s Virtual Newsroom announcing the resolution of a retaliation lawsuit. In my twenty-plus years of practicing employment law, I didn’t recall seeing retaliation claims quite like this one. Continue reading

Firing fast in certain situations can help defeat retaliation claims. Yes, firing FAST!

July 25, 2024 | by Eric B. Meyer

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The common logic is that firing an employee shortly after complaining about workplace discrimination isn’t a good look. Continue reading

Previously overlooked, a black man changed the name on his resume to sound less ethnic. Then, he got an interview. Now, he’s suing.

July 16, 2024 | by Eric B. Meyer

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Yesterday, we discussed unconscious bias training in the workplace. Today, we’ll talk about an employer that may need some if the allegations in a recently filed complaint against it are true. Continue reading

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