The Employment Brief | Employment Law | Kollman & Saucier, P.A.

President Obama Proposes Mandatory Paid SIck Leave Law

Kollman & Saucier

01/15/2015

Two years ago, my twins were born ten weeks premature in a foreign country. Five months in the NICU followed by a terminal illness diagnosis for my son, I was left with no choice but to leave my job. I was fortunate. Not only did I receive support as I navigated those initial months of uncertainty, when circumstances changed and I was able to come back to work, I was invited to return to my former position. For many American workers, this would not...

Kollman & Saucier

01/12/2015

Business Law

The Protecting Pregnant Workers Fairness Act of 2014 took effect January 6, 2015. The Act requires all employers in the District of Columbia, regardless of size, to make reasonable accommodations for employees affected by childbirth, pregnancy, and related medical conditions, unless the employer can show that doing so would cause an undue hardship (significant difficulty or expense to the employer’s business.) An employer’s duty to engage in an...

Kollman & Saucier

01/09/2015

Disability & Leave, Reasonable Accommodations/Undue Burden

In a 2-1 decision, the First Circuit Court of Appeals held that an employee who prematurely ended the interactive process when she quit could not maintain her ADA failure to accommodate claim against her former employer. In EEOC v. Kohl's Dep't Stores, Inc., No. 14-1268 (1st Cir. Dec. 19, 2014), Pamela Manning, a sales employee with diabetes, had requested a steady and predictable work schedule from the department store, where she worked from 2006...

Kollman & Saucier

01/08/2015

Hiring Process, Legislative Developments, State Law

Montgomery and Prince George's Counties join Baltimore City (and the District of Columbia) to now limit an employer's ability to inquire about an applicant's criminal history. This trend continues to grow, and very likely, will become Maryland state law sooner than later. Montgomery County Ordinance Effective January 1, 2015, most private employers with 15 or more full-time employees and that do business in Montgomery County may not inquire about...

Kollman & Saucier

12/31/2014

Labor Law

For approximately thirty years, religious colleges and universities could sleep easy at night knowing that the Establishment and Free Exercise clauses of the First Amendment generally shielded them from the long arms of the National Labor Relations Act. However, a recent decision from the National Labor Relations Board greatly expands the reach of the NLRA and establishes a new test for union organizing at religious schools. Pacific Lutheran...

Kollman & Saucier

12/18/2014

Class Actions, Wage & Hour

On Monday, Pennsylvania’s highest court affirmed a $188 million award against Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club (collectively “Wal-Mart”) in a class action encompassing almost 187,000 employees who worked for Wal-Mart between 1998 and 2006. Braun v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., No. 32 EAP 2012 (Pa. Dec. 14, 2014). Employees were awarded back pay, because the retail giant promised them paid breaks but required them to miss or work through them and to work...

Kollman & Saucier

12/16/2014

Independent Contractors

Time and time again, employers get dinged for improperly classifying employees as independent contractors. Whether it is unpaid taxes or employees seeking unpaid wages, these cases are increasing. Ruiz v. Affinity Logistics Corp., 754 F.3d 1093 (9th Cir. 2014) is no different. Here, the Supreme Court decided it would not reconsider the employer's argument that its furniture delivery drivers were independent contractors, and not employees, and...

Kollman & Saucier

12/15/2014

Labor Law

I thought that headline might grab your attention. Shocking as it may sound, that is one of the requirements of the NLRB's new 700 page rule on representation elections. The rule is published in the Federal Register today, and takes effect on April 14, 2015. The rule was first issued in 2011 but later was invalidated by a federal court because the Board lacked a quorum when it was enacted. Chamber of Commerce of the U.S. v. NLRB, 879...

Kollman & Saucier

12/12/2014

Labor Law

In a much anticipated decision that came as no surprise, on December 11, 2014, the NLRB ruled that employers generally must allow employees to use the company's email system to organize a union, solicit complaints, criticize managers, and otherwise discuss terms and conditions of employment. Purple Communications, Inc. 361 NLRB No. 126 (2014). Although the ruling has been expected for some time, many employers will need to review and likely...

Kollman & Saucier

12/11/2014

Wage & Hour

In a unanimous decision, the United States Supreme Court held Tuesday that time employees spend going through an employer’s theft-prevention security screening process is not compensable under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) because the screening is not “integral and indispensable” to the worker’s principal activities. Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc. v. Busk, No. 13-1433 (Dec. 9, 2014). The Integrity employees involved in this case...

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Email Updates

President Obama Proposes Mandatory Paid SIck Leave Law

Two New Employment Laws Take Effect this Month in the District of Columbia

Employee Who Quit, And Ended Accommodation Talks, Has No ADA Claim

"Ban The Box" Continues To Catch On In Maryland

Religious Universities No Longer Sacred Ground For Union Organizing

The Next Big Supreme Court Labor & Employment Class Action Case May Be Here

The Supreme Court Will Not Review "The Truck Drivers Are Employees" Decision

NLRB Requires Employers to Disclose Employees' Personal Email Addresses & Phone Numbers to Unions

NLRB Rules That Employees Have Presumptive Right to Use Company Email for Union Organizing

Supreme Court Holds Time Spent in Security Screening is Not Compensable

Email Updates