By: Barry Guryan and Jeff Ruzal
In a highly publicized March 23, 2010 decision, Awuah v. Coverall N. Am., Inc., 707 F.Supp.2d 80 (D. Mass. 2010), U.S. District Judge William Young for the District of Massachusetts rocked the Massachusetts business community by ruling that a group of janitorial franchisees were improperly classified as independent contractors, and that they were instead “employees” of commercial cleaning franchisor Coverall who are entitled to statutory protection under Massachusetts’ Wage laws including, among others, minimum wage, overtime pay, meal ...
Our colleague Julie Saker Schlegel at Epstein Becker Green recently posted “Supreme Court Holds That Only Employees Who Have Authority to Take Tangible Employment Actions Constitute Supervisors for the Purpose of Vicarious Liability Under Title VII” on the Retail Labor and Employment Law blog, and we think hospitality employers will be interested. Following is an excerpt:
In a 5-4 decision the dissent termed “decidedly employer-friendly,” the Supreme Court held on June 24, 2013 that only employees who have been empowered by the employer to take tangible employment ...
By Michael Kun
On Monday, June 25, 2011, the California Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Coito v. Superior Court, addressing the issue of whether a party in litigation could rely upon the work product doctrine to withhold witness statements obtained by its attorneys or the identities of persons who had given such statements.
In short, while parties in California have long relied upon dicta in the Court of Appeal decision known as Nacht v. Lewis for the proposition that such information is protected from disclosure by the work product doctrine, case-by-case ...
By Michael Kun and Betsy Johnson
In a much-anticipated decision, the California Supreme Court has expanded the scope of California’s complex wage-hour laws to non-resident employees who perform work in California. While the decision leaves more than a few questions unanswered, it will require a great many employers to review their overtime and other payroll practices. Perhaps just as importantly, it will likely open the door to lawsuits, including class actions, regarding prior overtime and payroll practices.
The case, Sullivan v. Oracle, has had a tortured history. In the ...
Recent Updates
- New Jersey’s Employer Response Portal: What You Need to Know
- Final Rules Dismantle Civil Rights Protections for Minorities, Women, Individuals with Disabilities, and Veterans
- U.S. Court of Appeals Decision Highlights Retaliation Risks During Employee Separations
- Fast Facts About the DOL Proposed Rule for Electronic Disclosures for ERISA Group Health Plans
- San Francisco Amends its Fair Chance Ordinance