As we blogged earlier this month, the DOL’s proposed rules on overtime exemptions will significantly narrow the number of employees who can be classified as exempt from overtime.  One result, as pointed out by Society for Human Resource Management, is that employers will have to strictly monitor after-hours use of email, text messaging and other… Continue reading Proposed Overtime Rules May Change How Employers do Business

As part of the DOL’s efforts to combat misclassification of workers, the DOL recently issued Administrator’s Interpretation 2015-1. The Interpretation analyzes in detail the factors in the “economic realities test” currently applied to whether a worker is an employee or a contractor with the goal “not simply to tally which factors are met, but to determine whether the… Continue reading New DOL Guidance on Independent Contractors

The EEOC recently sued Rotten Ralph’s Restaurant for firing an employee for wearing a headscarf.  The employee notified the general manager that she covered her hair for religious reasons during the application process, was hired, and worked wearing a headscarf without incident.  However, when the general manager actually saw the employee wearing a headscarf at… Continue reading A Headscarf is not a Hoodie

Most employers would rather provide a chair to an employee as a reasonable accommodation than get sued by the EEOC.  In a recent EEOC lawsuit against Walmart, the EEOC alleged that after providing a chair and a modified schedule to an employee undergoing treatment for bone cancer, Walmart revoked the accommodation, began requiring the employee… Continue reading Chair for Disabled Employee vs. EEOC Lawsuit