Archive for 2008
Grandfather Eligible for Leave to Care for Newborn Grandchild under FMLA
Under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), a parent is entitled to take FMLA leave for the birth or care of a newborn child. An interesting twist on this issue was recently addressed by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals (the federal appeals court with jurisdiction over the federal district courts of Florida, Georgia and…
Read MoreCity Firefighters not Entitled to Overtime under Fair Labor Standards Act
In most overtime cases under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the courts interpret the exemptions to the law narrowly, in favor of the employees seeking to be paid overtime. However, in a recent overtime collective action case decided by the Eleventh Circuit (the federal appeals court with jurisdiction over the federal district courts of…
Read MoreEEOC Issues New Guide to Americans with Disabilities Act
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently issued a new guide to help both employers and employees better understand some complicated issues under the Americans with Disabilities Act: The Americans with Disabilities Act: Applying Performance and Conduct Standards to Employees with Disabilities. The new guide addresses an issue under the ADA that has given rise to a good deal…
Read MoreAmendments to Americans with Disabilities Act Promise New Day for Disability Discrimination Plaintiffs
In late September, President Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments of 2008, which will become effective January 1, 2009. As we wrote in a prior post, although the ADA is, in theory, a wonderful law for disabled employees, in practice, it has been very difficult for employees to prevail in disability discrimination cases. The United States…
Read MoreSexual Harassment-Speak Now or Forever Lose your Claim
The law of sexual harassment requires employees who believe they have been harassed to follow their employers’ anti-harassment procedures-which typically require employees to complain to a high company official in order to allow the company to remedy the situation-before they may file a sexual harassment lawsuit. A recent decision from the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, Adams v.…
Read MoreSkycaps’ Claim for Tips under FLSA Grounded by Eleventh Circuit
In what appears to be the first such case to reach a federal appeals court, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals (the federal appeals court for the federal district courts of Georgia, Florida and Alabama) recently affirmed a decision by a Miami federal district court, which held that the airlines’ practice of charging baggage handling…
Read MoreSixth Circuit Recognizes FMLA Retaliation Claim
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) contains an anti-discrimination provision that prohibits employers from discriminating against employees “for opposing any practice made unlawful” under the FMLA. However, the text of the FMLA does not contain an express provision that prohibits retaliation against an employee simply for requesting or taking FMLA leave, and aggressive employers…
Read MoreMinimum Wage Update
Because we just recently launched the Overtime Lawyer Blog, we didn’t get a chance to update you on an important FLSA development that happened last summer. On July 24, 2008, the minimum wage increased from $5.85 to $6.55 per hour. If you are in a minimum wage job, make sure to review your paychecks closely…
Read MoreUnemployment Claims Hold Steady at Recessionary Levels
If you’ve recently lost your job, you’re not alone. Recent statistics from the Department of Labor on the level of weekly unemployment compensation claims reveal that the job market is a basket case these days, and that unemployment levels are soaring. On August 7, the Labor Department announced that new applications for unemployment claims rose…
Read MoreSenate Introduces Bill to Expand Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a wonderful law; unfortunately, it has not proven to be easy for employees to win cases under the ADA. A recent bill introduced in the Senate to amend the ADA, if passed, may make it easier for disabled employees to prevail in disability cases. Senate Bill 3406, entitled…
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