Federal Court Denies Plaintiffs’ Motion to Equitably Toll Statute of Limitations in FLSA Claim
In Dolphus v. Servis One, Inc., No. GLR-16-1075, 2018 BL 277246 (D. Md. Aug. 02, 2018), Plaintiffs filed suit against Servis One, Inc. D/B/A BSI Financial Services (“Servis One”) on behalf of themselves and similarly situated current and former Servis One asset managers, alleging that they consistently worked more than forty hours per week, but Servis…
Maryland Federal Court Allows Plaintiff’s Retaliation Claim to Proceed Despite not “checking the box” on the EEOC Charge
In Loconte v. Montgomery County, No. PWG-17-2052, 2018 BL 273880 (D. Md. Aug. 01, 2018), Defendant Montgomery County, Maryland (the “County”) hired Plaintiff Anthony Loconte as a Hazmat Permitting Program Manager in July 2005 and terminated his employment on January 2, 2015. Believing that his termination, as well as his supervisors’ treatment of him leading up to…
Case Analysis: What is Discoverable in Litigation?
In litigation, opposing parties can sometimes get carried away with the quantity and quality of the information requested in discovery, raising doubts about the relevancy and necessity of the requested information. In Terrell v. Memphis Zoo, Inc., No. 17-cv-2928-JPM-tmp (W.D. Tenn. July 20, 2018), the Court grappled with several fascinating questions regarding what was discoverable in…
Maryland’s Disclosing Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Act of 2018
The “Disclosing Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Act of 2018″ goes into effect on October 1, 2018. The Act first concerns a provision in an employment contract, policy or agreement that waives any substantive or procedural right or remedy to a future claim of sexual harassment or retaliation for reporting or asserting a right or remedy based on sexual…
Maryland Minimum Wage Law Updates
On July 1, 2018, the minimum wage rate for Maryland increases to $10.10 and the minimum wage rates for Montgomery County increases to $12.25 for employers with 51 or more employees and $12.00 for employers with 50 or fewer employees.
NLRB Denies Reconsideration of Joint Employer Decision
On August 27, 2015, in Browning-Ferris Industries of California, Inc. d/b/a BFI Newby Island Recyclery (Browning-Ferris), 362 NLRB No. 186 (2015), the National Labor Relations Board established a new legal standard for determining whether two employers are joint employers under the National Labor Relations Act. The Browning-Ferris standard: The Board may find that two or more entities are…
NLRB General Counsel Issues Guidance on Employee Handbooks
On June 6, 2018, the National Labor Relations Board General Counsel issued a Memorandum to its field offices with guidance on how to interpret whether employers’ workplace rules violate workers’ labor rights. The Memorandum directs the application of the NLRB’s decision in The Boeing Company, 365 NLRB No. 154 (Dec. 14, 2017), where the Board reassessed…
Federal Court Rules that pregnancy – alone – is not a disability
A Federal Court has ruled that an employee cannot sue under federal law for discrimination based on her pregnancy, because pregnancy alone isn’t a “disability” under the law. In Arozarena v. Carpenter Co., 2018 BL 184934, E.D. Pa., No. 5:17-cv-05457, Plaintiff Gina Arozarena filed a Complaint against her former employer, Defendant Carpenter Co., alleging that it discriminated…
Employee’s Facebook Post Does Not Qualify as Complaint Under the FLSA
In Trigueros v. New Orleans City, 2018 BL 183305, E.D. La., 17-10960, the Court ruled that the plaintiff employee may not move forward with her claim that she was fired in retaliation for commenting on her lack of overtime pay on Facebook, because comments to a general audience of friends and acquaintances do not qualify as complaints directed…
FMLA Claim Loses Due to Employer’s Handbook
A recent Federal Court case demonstrates the advantage an employer enjoys by including FMLA notice requirements in its employment handbook. In Everson v. SCI Tennessee Funeral Services, LLC, 2018 WL 1899368, (M.D. Tenn. Apr. 20, 2018), Plaintiff Ommer Everson alleged unlawful employment practices against his former employer, Defendant SCI Tennessee Funeral Services, LLC. Plaintiff asserted claims under the Family and Medical Leave Act…