Workforce Bulletin

By:  William J. Milani and Anna Kolontyrsky

The Eastern District of New York has rejected a claim for relief under the New York State Human Rights Law (“NYSHRL”) brought by a job applicant who alleged that a bank unlawfully discriminated against her based on her criminal history. In Smith v. Bank of America Corp. (subscription required), Smith, who worked as a temporary employee at Bank of America, was encouraged by her supervisor to apply for full-time employment.  Before doing so, she informed her supervisor that she had been arrested and charged with a misdemeanor but that the ...

by Adam C. Abrahms

Continuing its effort to “outreach” to non-union employees and educate them on their rights under the National Labor Relations Act, the NLRB has launched a new webpage on Concerted Activity.  The NLRB’s announcement  of its new webpage made clear the page is designed to inform employees of their rights “even if they are not in a union.”

The webpage, in addition to giving basic descriptions of concerted activities, asserts that “The law we enforce gives employees the right to act together to try to improve their pay and working conditions or fix job-related ...

by Adam C. Abrahms

Continuing its effort to “outreach” to non-union employees and educate them on their rights under the National Labor Relations Act, the NLRB has launched a new webpage on Concerted Activity.  The NLRB’s announcement  of its new webpage made clear the page is designed to inform employees of their rights “even if they are not in a union.”   

The webpage, in addition to giving basic descriptions of concerted activities, asserts that “The law we enforce gives employees the right to act together to try to improve their pay and working conditions or fix job-related ...

By Paul H. Burmeister

The OSHA/Hyatt Hotels saga continued with a recent exchange of letters between OSHA and the hotel chain’s attorney.  In April, OSHA issued a “5(a)(1) letter” to the CEO of Hyatt Hotels, indicating that OSHA believed there were ergonomic risks associated with the daily work activities of the company’s housekeeping staff.  The letter put the hotel chain “on notice” that while OSHA did not believe that a “recognized hazard” existed at the  time of the inspection, such that a General Duty Clause citation should issue, if the same hazard was later ...

Join us Wednesday, June 20, 2012 at 9:00 am Eastern either by Webinar or in person for a complimentary briefing presented by Epstein Becker Green attorneys Eric J. Conn and Amanda R. Strainis-Walker of the Firm’s national OSHA Practice Group.

The briefing will cover actions that employers should take now to prepare their workplaces and workforce for unexpected visits from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), review employers’ and employees’ rights during an OSHA inspection, and discuss inspection strategies to ensure the best possible outcome from ...

by Margaret C. Thering and Lauri F. Rasnick

Violence against women has been in the headlines lately – the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act is engendering vigorous debate, and as of last month, federal agencies were ordered to implement policies to assist their employees who are victims of domestic violence.  Also last month, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the Injury Control Research Center at West Virginia University published a paper entitled “Workplace Homicides Among U.S. Women: The Role of Intimate Partner Violence” in the ...

By: Paul Rosenberg

Last week the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) urged the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit to uphold its controversial Specialty Healthcare decision.  The NLRB’s 3-1 split decision in Specialty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center of Mobile, overturned a 1991 decision and held that an employer that challenges a proposed bargaining unit on the basis that it improperly excludes certain employees is required to prove that the excluded workers share “an overwhelming community of interest” with those in the proposed unit. 

The NLRB ...

By:  John F. Fullerton III

As a direct result of the financial crisis, an increasing number of states have enacted or are considering statutes that prohibit or restrict employers from obtaining and using credit reports for making hiring and other employment decisions.  Eight states have now passed such legislation - California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Oregon, Washington and Vermont.  Similar legislation is pending in many other states - including New Jersey and New York - and bills have been introduced at the federal level as well.  In most states that have ...

by Margaret C. Thering and Lauri F. Rasnick

Violence against women has been in the headlines lately – the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act is engendering vigorous debate, and as of last month, federal agencies were ordered to implement policies to assist their employees who are victims of domestic violence.  Also last month, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the Injury Control Research Center at West Virginia University published a paper entitled “Workplace Homicides Among U.S. Women: The Role of Intimate Partner Violence” in the ...

By Evan Rosen

Hospitality employers continue to get hit with class action lawsuits alleging that they are unlawfully taking the tip credit for their employees.  Under federal law, and the law of most states, an employer may pay less than the minimum wage to any employee who regularly and customarily receives tips.  The difference between the minimum wage and the hourly wage rate is called the "tip credit."  

This compensation system, when administered correctly, has the advantage of saving employers a significant sum of money.  But employers must implement ...