In what may be the beginning of a wave of post-COVID-19 lawsuits, a former Assistant Director of Nursing filed a whistleblower complaint against her employer, a long-term care facility. The lawsuit claims termination for raising concerns about alleged health and
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Missouri Legislature Passes Bill Increasing Standard for Plaintiffs to Receive Punitive Damages
Recently, the Missouri Legislature passed a bill that would make it more difficult for a plaintiff to obtain punitive damages. For a full discussion of the bill expected to be signed by the Governor, see the article from our colleagues…
NLRB ALJ Reinforces Protection for Concerted Activity in Camp Counselor’s Termination
By Diane Krebs
On March 25, 2020, a National Labor Relations Board Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”) emphasized the broad reach of Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (“Act”) in non-union settings. Ground Zero Foundation d/b/a Academy for Creative Enrichment, Case 4-CA-245956.…
Federal Court: Sweeping Accusations Alone Do Not Meet The Standard For Age Discrimination and Retaliation
As the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s FY 2019 report reflects 21.4% of all employment charges handled in 2019 were for age discrimination; 41.4% of all charges allege retaliation. Recently, seven former directors of a grocery store chain filed suit alleging…
A Quick Overview of New Jersey’s New WARN Act
New Jersey’s WARN Act (the Millville-Dallas Airmotive Plant Job Loss Notification Act) has been amended, effective July 19, 2020. N.J.S.A. § 34:21-1, et seq., to expand greatly its scope and requirements:
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Federal Court Dismisses Discrimination and Retaliation Claims But Not Hostile Work Environment
On January 28, 2020, the Southern District of New York allowed a hostile work environment claim to proceed based upon allegations of racial slurs, demeaning comments, and relegation of Hispanic to the least favorable job assignments and shifts. Ramirez v.…
Refusal To Re-take Physical Abilities Test Dooms Plaintiff’s Ability To Allege Adverse Employment Action
The absence of an adverse employment action by an employer routinely is fatal to a claim of discrimination (absent proof of constructive discharge). This bedrock principle was reiterated recently in a case where an applicant alleged that she was forced…
Second Circuit: Migraines Insufficient to Support a Disability Under the ADA
The Second Circuit recently held that an employer did not violate the Americans with Disabilities Act when it refused to transfer, and then terminated, an employee because of his inability to perform his job due to migraines caused by the…
“No Backsies?” — Not Rehiring a Recently Retired Employee Can Lead to Liability
Based on a set of somewhat unusual facts, a federal district court in Ohio ruled that an employer that refused to rehire a recently retired individual to his former position will need to argue at a jury trial that its…
Severe and Pervasive: Pay Attention to Your State’s Sexual Harassment Standard
A Georgia EMT sued her former employer, alleging sexual harassment and retaliation in violation of Title VII. Plaintiff alleged that sexual comments during the four months created a hostile environment. The comments included an owner calling Plaintiff attractive, saying he…