Recent Circuit Court Split Creates Confusion About Mealtime Pay
How do three Federal Circuit Courts of Appeals hear separate but factually identical cases, yet come to three distinct holdings? That is what happened recently when one set of facts with different plaintiffs was litigated in the Ninth, Fifth, and Eleventh Circuits. The result? A split in the circuits regarding when employers must pay for…
How Employers Can Help Ease Mental Health Issues Due to the Pandemic
As the pandemic creeps on into year three, many are noticing a significant deterioration in their mental health—either through an exacerbation of their existing mental health conditions or simply from exhaustion. Fortunately, all is not lost! There are several strategies that employers may implement to assist their employees through this difficult time, and some are…
Two-Timing Employees in the Work-from-Home Environment
Juggling two or more part-time jobs, or “moonlighting”, has always been the norm for many people struggling to make ends meet. This is especially true in the gig economy, with many people working on several platforms at once. However, recently, with the rise of the work-from-home trend, some full-time employees found a way to double…
When to Consider the Four-Day Workweek
In the midst of unprecedented numbers of job departures being dubbed “The Great Resignation,” many employers are seeking creative ways to retain or attract new talent. One hot topic in the discourse? The four-day workweek. Common for years among those in the healthcare profession, the four-day workweek is being discussed by employers in other sectors.…
EEOC Issues Updated Guidance on COVID-19 Retaliation
According to EEOC statistics, the most common basis for charges of discrimination filed with the agency is retaliation. Issues related to COVID-19, such as the ongoing need for sick leave, vaccine hesitancy, religious exemption requests from vaccine mandates, and long-COVID have added new retaliation concerns for employers. The EEOC’s most recent guidance provides some helpful…
The Latest on Religious Exemptions to COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates
Many employers are being inundated with employee requests for religious exemptions to vaccine mandates. Employers who are evaluating religious exemption requests must take a nuanced approach or risk violating federal anti-discrimination statutes, such as Title VII and the ADA. Those employers hoping for clear-cut answers from the EEOC are likely to be disappointed, as the…
Unemployment Benefits Unavailable for Those Who Refuse to Comply with Employers’ Vaccine Mandates
Due to the alarming spread of the COVID-19 Delta variant among the unvaccinated, coupled with FDA approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech Vaccine, many private employers have implemented vaccine mandates. These mandates are permissible, so long as precautions are taken to comply with various anti-discrimination laws. A less obvious implication of these vaccination mandates is that employees…
Wal-Mart Ordered to Pay Over $125 Million to Former Disabled Employee
Wal-Mart has been hit with over a $125 million dollar jury verdict in a lawsuit filed against it by the EEOC. A Wisconsin jury found that Wal-Mart was in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) when it discriminated against an employee with Down Syndrome and ultimately terminated her. Further, Wal-Mart was found to…
Federally Enhanced Unemployment Benefits to Remain in Effect in Maryland
On July 13, 2021, Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Fletcher-Hill enjoined the State from opting out of the federally enhanced unemployment program under ARPA. In June, Governor Hogan provided Congress with the State’s written intent to withdraw from the program, effective July 3, 2021. The Governor primarily cited increased vaccine availability and a marked number of job vacancies in support of…
DIY Background Checks Can Create a Legal Risk that Companies Often Don’t Consider
As the state of emergency in Maryland ends this summer, many employers are looking to hire new employees to deal with an increase in customer and client demand. For many of those employers, the hiring process includes some form of a background investigation of a prospective employee. Many employers that perform background checks on applicants hire a third party to do that…
