Employment Law Alert Many employers administering leave under the FMLA are ignorant of the following notices that must be provided to employees invoking FMLA leave rights: Eligibility Notice: provided within five business days of a leave request informing the employee whether or not they meet the FMLA’s eligibility requirements. In…
Employment Law Newsletter On June 27, 2012, the Untied States Department of Labor (DOL) issued a new 16-page guide book entitled “NEED TIME? The Employee’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act.” The guide book provides a “simple overview” of the leave benefits accorded to employees under the FMLA.…
Employment Law Newsletter Many employers use criminal background checks to “weed out” individuals who engage in activities that pose significant risks to the workplace. This past April the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued its Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions…
The prevalence of social media in today’s workplace is undisputed. With the lack of discretion often displayed on social media sites such as Facebook, it is no wonder employers seek to control inappropriate employee communications and the unauthorized dissemination of confidential employer information through policies restricting employee social networking activities.…
Internal investigations by employers into allegations of unlawful harassment, theft or other workplace misconduct are commonplace in today’s work environment. In an effort to protect the complainant, the accused and the witnesses – not to mention the fundamental integrity of the investigation – employers typically warn those participating in the…
Employment Law Newsletter For the first time in three years, proposed legislation being championed by Senate and Assembly Democrats would raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $8.50. The bill was introduced despite the December recommendation from the Minimum Wage Advisory Commission that the rate remain unchanged for 2012. Should…
Employment Law Newsletter Although many domestic workers are covered by the Fair Labor Standard Act’s (FLSA) minimum wage and overtime requirements, there presently exists an exemption from these requirements for home health care workers providing “companionship services for individuals who are unable to care for themselves.” In 2007, the United…
Employment Law Newsletter The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued two Fact Sheets to provide general information about employee rights under the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Family Medical Leave Act. Fact Sheet #73: Break time for Nursing Mothers under the FLSA: This Fact Sheet provides information about…
Employment Law Newsletter In an earlier issue we advised that the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) had issued a final rule requiring most private-sector employers to conspicuously post a notice of employee rights to unionization in the workplace. The posting requirement was to take effect on November 14, 2011, but in…
Employment Law Newsletter The NLRA posting requirement discussed above is only one of several recent actions taken by the NLRB that serve as a sober reminder that even in non-unionized workplaces, private sector employees have statutory rights under Section 7 of the NLRA to engage in concerted activity for, among…