4 articles found.
In Good Times and Bad: Employers Must Be Proactive To Minimize the Risk of Employment Litigation in A Down Economy
March 2, 2009by April Upchurch Olsen (Graham & Dunn, P.C.)
With the loss of 600,000 jobs in January alone, and unemployment rates soaring to 7.6%1, many companies are doing everything they can to reduce operating expenses in light of the economic downturn. As a result, many businesses have significantly reduced their workforce by implementing layoffs, or by terminating select employees with substandard performance. Whether your company is considering an isolated termination, or a larger reduction-in-force, there are practical steps that you can (and sho...
Tags: Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Handbooks and Policy Drafting, Sex Discrimination, WARN Compliance, Wrongful Discharge, Employment Litigation
A New Era of Paycheck Litigation
March 2, 2009by
Ivan B. Perkins
(Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp)
and
Jolene Konnersman
(Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp)
The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act Just nine days after taking office, President Obama signed the first piece of legislation to reach his desk: the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act (“Ledbetter Act”).1 This was hardly a surprise. During the campaign, Senator Obama repeatedly invoked Lilly Ledbetter’s name, told her story, and pledged to sign her bill. Ledbetter also spoke at the Democratic National Convention and campaigned on Obama’s behalf. Her ...
Manager Misclassification: Still Business as Usual?
September 26, 2006by Douglas H. Duerr (Elarbee, Thompson, Sapp & Wilson)
In 2001, a federal court in Tennessee hit Treetop Enterprises, Inc., a Waffle House franchisee, with a damage award over $2.8 million (plus prejudgment interest and attorneys fees) in a lawsuit claiming that Treetop had misclassified its managers as exempt from overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). While shocking at the time, it proved to be the precursor to a cottage industry of copycat lawsuits -- with companies such as Starbucks® and others being hit with big...
Managing Exposure to ADEA Liability in Executing Layoffs
March 12, 2009by Mary E. Pivec (Keller and Heckman LLP)
Recently, the Wall Street Journal reported that more workers are filing claims of age discrimination in the aftermath of the wave of layoffs that are taking place across the country. The Journal report cited soon to be released EEOC statistics showing a 29% spike in age claims filed in FY 2008 over FY 2007 (24,600 vs. 19,103), compared with a 15% spike in discrimination claims overall. Yet these statistics reflect reaction to layoffs that occurred before the major financial failures of last fal...
Tags: Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Wrongful Discharge, Employment Litigation
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