San Antonio Employment Law Blog

Advocating for Employees in San Antonio, TX and Beyond

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By: Law Office of Thomas J. Crane

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Thomas J. Crane

Latest from San Antonio Employment Law Blog

Employers do some crazy things, sometimes. One employer in New Braunfels has been paying “volunteers” with gift cards and fabric. Quilt Haus and Way to Sew have been paying some workers with gift cards payable to the store itself. The workers would receive one gift card valued at $8 for each hour of work. The worker could then use the card to buy fabric. The store referred to the workers as “volunteers.” But, as I…
Public discourse has taken a turn for the worse. Things are so bad that criticism of federal judges has become common place. Last week, Pres. Trump spoke about the Ninth Circuit in demeaning terms, clearly saying the Ninth Circuit attracts lawsuits against his policies and is likely to rule against him. A few days later, Roger Stone, a long-time adviser to Mr. Trump, posts a photo of U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson with cross…
Some judges are exceedingly difficult. Judge Lynn Hughes in Houston seems to consistently press folks’ buttons. Most recently, he has barred a female Assistant U.S. Attorney from his court. Tina Ansari has appeared in Judge Hughes’ court twice in the past few weeks. She was excused from the court by Judge Hughes both times right after she announced her name for the court reporter. Meaning right after saying hello, the judge told her to leave.…
The recent government shutdown can have a profound impact on federal workers. Research by management experts shows that the threat of imminent uncertainty, such as furlough or layoff, can be just as stressful as the furlough or layoff itself. A management professor at West Chester University, Anthony Wheeler, says psychologically, they are the same, the threat to one’s sense of security is the same. The more often the worker hears the threat, such as Presidential…
Most large employers have employee handbooks, those set of policies that explain things like vacation and sick leave, discipline, etc. Employers will often describe how they are “binding” and must be followed. But, legally, they are not binding, at all. They look thorough and professional and provide some comfort to employees in an uncertain world. They are generally not binding on the employer. They are nothing more than a guideline.  If the employer included a…
You know, there is nothing good about racism. Of course. But, we seem to have become lynching parties whenever the least evidence of racism rears its ugly head. The new Mary Poppins movie has been attacked because it supposedly revives a racist portion of the famous Julie Andrews version. In the original movie, Mary Poppins dons a bit of black on her face when she dances with the chimney sweeps. I have always assumed that…
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Defamation refers to uttering an untruthful statement about someone. “Libel” refers to written defamation. “Slander” refers to oral defamation. In the employment context, defamation has an extra hurdle. In Texas, to constitute defamation at work, the defamation must be made in the course and scope of employment. That is, the defamatory statement must be related to the speaker’s job. So long as the speaker makes the statement to persons with a duty or need to…
Great Hall
Luis Cristain sustained an injury at work. His employer, Hunter Buildings and Manufacturing, fired him soon after he fell from scaffolding. Eight days later and a few days after filing a claim for worker’s compensation benefits, the employer moved him to a position where he would be supervised by Kevin Edmonds. Mr. Edmonds had already been scrutinizing Mr. Cristain’s performance. Now, he would have direct supervision. The job was a new job, which did not…
Great Hall
One of the more difficult problems for employers is harassment by unknown co-workers. The law was designed for harassment by supervisors. It functions not so well when the harassment is caused by co-workers. In Tolliver v. YRC, Inc., No. 17-10294, 2018 US LEXIS 17806 (5th Cir. 6/28/2018), African-American workers were harassed in various ways for over 15 years. The black workers encountered racist graffiti, nooses, and other incidents. The district court refused to allow evidence…
Well, the Tarrant County (Ft. Worth) Republican party voted to keep Dr. Shafi in his position as Vice-Chairman of the party. By a vote of 139-49, the precinct chairpersons voted to keep the doctor in his position. I previously wrote about this vote here. A lady named Dorrie O’Brien and others had pushed the idea that because he was Moslem, he had some connection to jihadists. That notion would be humorous if it was…