Articles and Blogs

Employers may run into trouble with employees and the NLRB for interfering with protected activity if social media posts are restricted. On the other hand, employers could be liable to customers if they permit employees to post hostile statements and information. This quandary was highlighted by the holding in a recent federal court case. Was... READ MORE

By now private employers should be well aware that employees who openly criticize management and refuse to obey instructions will often be found to be engaging in lawful, protected activity by the NLRB. Another very recent decision by the NLRB brings home that point again – even where no union is involved. READ MORE

Providing notice to employees utilizing FMLA can be difficult. Unfortunately, it’s only getting worse. A federal court recently decided  the issue of whether an employer, by informing an employee of the FMLA recertification requirement via email, gave proper notice. Although the employer previously sent FMLA notices to the employee via email, the court found... READ MORE

Executive Summary On November 20, 2014, President Obama announced the Immigration Accountability Executive Action, a series of steps directed toward reforming the United States immigration system.   As part of these initiatives, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) Director León Rodríguez announced yesterday that the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) is extending eligibility for... READ MORE

On February 23, 2015, the U.S. Department of Labor announced a rule change to be issued February 25, 2015 that ensures that all eligible employees in same-sex marriages will enjoy the same rights and protections under the Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) as employees in opposite-sex marriages. READ MORE

Have you ever heard of trypanophobia? If not, it means a fear of needles, which, in this case, resulted in a jury verdict of $2.6 million to a Rite Aid pharmacist whose fear of needles prevented him from giving flu shot immunizations as a required part of his job. Is “Needle Phobia” an ADA... READ MORE

One day after issuing a controversial decision regarding employees’ rights to use an employer’s email system for union organizing (detailed in this blog), the NLRB has adopted its final rule significantly shortening the timeline for union elections in the private sector. We have blogged extensively on the development of this rule as can be... READ MORE

Rejecting and overruling its 2007 decision in Register Guard that limited employee rights to use employer email systems for union organizing, the NLRB, in a three to two decision, significantly broadened the scope of private employee rights to use an employer’s email system for union organizing purposes and other protected activity.  The decision focused on... READ MORE

Does an employer have to pay its employees when it requires them to stand in line every day for up to 25 minutes waiting to go through security screening at the end of the day?  It seems like that’s a lot of time and that it might be fair to compensate those employees for... READ MORE

On November 20, 2014, President Obama announced the Immigration Accountability Executive Action, a series of steps directed toward reforming the United States’ immigration system. Although the media’s attention has primarily focused on provisions relating to deferred action for unauthorized persons, the measures also contain several initiatives aimed at improving the nation’s employment-based immigration system.... READ MORE