Articles Posted in Pennsylvania

New PA bill would ban sexual orientation, gender identity discrimination

August 20, 2013 | by Eric B. Meyer

Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia have laws banning workplace discrimination in the private sector on the basis of sexual orientation. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, which currently bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression in public employment, may soon become the latest state to ban it in the private sector as well.

(The term “gender identity or expression” means actual or perceived gender identity, appearance, behavior, expression or physical characteristics whether or not associated with an individual’s assigned sex at birth).

A bill to amend the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act to add these workplace protections was introduced last week in the PA Senate with some bipartisan (but most Democratic) support. The same bill was introduced in the PA House the week before. Each measure would also carry the same restrictions in housing, credit and public accommodations.

When it comes to ADA accommodations, reasonable is good enough

August 15, 2013 | by Eric B. Meyer

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, an employer must make reasonable accommodation to the known physical or mental limitations of an individual unless the employer can show that doing so how cause it undue hardship.

Generally, an employee will initiate the process by advising her employer that she is disabled and needs an accommodation to perform the essential functions of her job. What then ensues is an interactive dialogue in which both sides work together in good faith to decide on what that accommodation may be.

But here’s the rub:

A woman sharing topless photos at work prolly isn’t an invitation to grope her

August 14, 2013 | by Eric B. Meyer

[Click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click]

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Dear Google User Who Got Five Words Into The Lede And Clicked:

It’s THIS easy to be considered disabled under the ADA

August 7, 2013 | by Eric B. Meyer

When the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act went into effect in 2009, it significantly lowered the bar for proving a “disability.”

How low did it go?

[cue ironic music, you’ll see in a sec…]

YYYOUCH! Employee fired for refusing Brazilian wax claims sex discrimination.

July 3, 2013 | by Eric B. Meyer

You know, maybe I should have gone with the porta-potty-harassment post that I originally had planned for today. Nah. My analytics tell me that my best-received posts have a common theme: crotch and Brazil. Besides, everyone knows that nothing says Friday like a porta-potty post. Just wait ’til Friday.

So today, after the jump, let’s wax poetic, shall we?

(Ouch, again).

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No non-compete in the offer letter, but here’s a way to enforce one…

July 1, 2013 | by Eric B. Meyer

You’re hiring for an engineer position. To assist, you engage a search firm, which finally locates an ideal candidate. After a telephone conversation, and a subsequent tour and in-depth interview, you know that you have the right person for the job. So, you prepare and send an offer letter.

The offer letter includes a summary of the position, responsibilities, location, base salary, benefits, effective date, and confidentiality. The letter also states: “You will also be asked to sign our employment/confidentiality agreement. We will not be able to employ you if you fail to do so. In addition, the first day of employment you will be required to sign an Employment Agreement with definitive terms and conditions outlining the offer terms and conditions contained herein.”

The offer letter does not contain any mention of a non-competition agreement.

3d Cir: Obama NLRB recess appointments (Becker too) were unconstitutional

May 16, 2013 | by Eric B. Meyer

In a 2-1 decision issued today (copy here), the Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the National Labor Relations Board lacked the authority to act as early as March 2010, when President Obama appointed Craig Becker to the Board. The Third Circuit held that Member Becker’s appointment to the Board while the Senate was on an intrasession recess (a break within a session of the Senate) was unconstitutional. Implicit in the court’s decision is that the appointments of Members Block, Griffin, Flynn in 2013, while the Senate held pro-forma sessions, were also invalid.

The Third Circuit ruled that recess appointments are only valid if made during intersession breaks (i.e., between sessions of the Senate).

This decision is crazy-long (102 pages plus a 55 page dissent). Thankfully, my Dilworth Paxson colleagues, Erin Galbally and Marjorie Obod prepared an e-alert summarizing the decision.

Third Circuit says VIPs cannot sue for Title VII discrimination

May 1, 2013 | by Eric B. Meyer

Robert Mariotti was the vice-president and secretary of the company his father founded. Not only was he a corporate officer, but Mariotti also served as a member of the board of directors, and was a shareholder who could only be fired for cause.

In 1995, Mariotti had a spiritual awakening, which he claims resulted in a resulted in “a systematic pattern of antagonism” toward him in the form of “negative, hostile and/or humiliating statements” about him and his religious affiliation. Mariotti claimed that this behavior ramped up for over a decade and, ultimately, resulted in his termination. Thereafter, he sued his former employer for religious discrimination. The company moved to dismiss the claim on the basis that a shareholder-director-officer is not an “employee” under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and, thus, has no standing to assert a claim for religious discrimination.

What happened you say? Well, even if you read the lede, click through for full analysis…

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Employee caught in a pick, Supreme Court scratches her FLSA claims

April 17, 2013 | by Eric B. Meyer

** drops microphone, walks off stage **

Fine, I’ll play a quick encore.

Are Flounder from Animal House and Left Ear from The Italian Job “disabled”?

April 4, 2013 | by Eric B. Meyer

– “Mr. Dorfman?”
– “Hello!”
– “0.2… Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son.”

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– “That’s Left Ear. Demolition and explosives. When he was ten, he put one too many M-80s in the toilet bowl. Lost the hearing in his right ear. He’s been blowing stuff up ever since.”

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Good start to a blog post, amirite? Now, allow me to dork this up with two employment-law questions:

If Flounder were Dean Wormer’s employee (rather than just a student at Faber College), would Wormer’s calling him “stupid” mean that Faber regarded Flounder as “disabled” under the Americans with Disabilities Act?

Since Left Ear is deaf in one ear, would he qualify as “disabled” under the ADA should he return from his Spanish villa and seek gainful employment in the USA?

Tough questions. But here, at the ole Handbook, when the going gets tough…[wait for it]…The tough get goin’! Who’s with me?

Let’s do it!!!! (after the jump…)

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You know that scientist in the action movie who has all the right answers if only the government would just pay attention? If you want a nerdy employment-lawyer brain to help you solve HR-compliance issues proactively before the action sequence, I’m here to help. I'm not only an EEOC-approved trainer, I offer day-to-day employment counseling, workplace audits and investigations, and other prophylactic measures to keep your workplace working while you focus on running your business. And for those employers in the midst of conflict, I bring all of my know-how to bear as your zealous advocate. I’m a trial-tested, experienced litigator that has represented companies of all sizes in a veritable alphabet soup of employment law claims, such as the ADA, ADEA, CEPA, FMLA, FLSA, NJLAD, PHRA, Title VII, and USERRA. I also help clients litigate disputes involving restrictive covenants such as non-competition and non-solicitation agreements, as well as conflicts over use of trade secrets and other confidential information. For more about me, my practice, and my firm, click on my full bio.