Today I had the honor of speaking on a panel with three distinguished advocates for disability rights, Lewis Bossing of the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, Brian East of Disability Rights Texas, and Christopher Kuczynski of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Here are eight things employers need to know when managing employees with …read more »
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Holds that Title VII and the PDA Cover “Lactation Discrimination”
In Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Houston Funding II, Ltd., No. 12-20220 (May 30, 2013), the Fifth Circuit ruled that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (“PDA”) prohibit discrimination against women who are lactating or expressing milk. It held that lactation is a “related medical condition” to pregnancy and …read more »
Update Your Company’s Fair Credit Reporting Act Summary of Consumer Rights Form Prior to January 1, 2013
The government is changing your hiring process. The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) requires that employees and job applicants provide written consent before an employer can use a third party credit reporting agency to obtain a credit report, including a criminal background check. In addition, before an employer can take an adverse employment action …read more »
Common Sense Tips to Keep Your Company Out of the Courtroom
A couple of months ago, the South Texas College of Law held its annual, highly-regarded Employment Law Conference. Three lawyers who represent employees talked about common mistakes they see employers make, and also what facts persuade them to bring lawsuits. These plaintiffs’ lawyers talk to many employees about unfair treatment at work, but only a …read more »
To the Employer, It’s “Insubordination”; To the NLRB, It’s Protected Conduct
In a presentation given to Houston employment lawyers last week, Martha Kinard – who is a Regional Director of the National Labor Relations Board – highlighted the Board’s continued focus on “protected, concerted activity,” an area of labor law that applies to unionized and non-unionized workplaces alike. Although many non-union employers believe labor law doesn’t …read more »
Don’t Hold Your Breath for the New ADA Rules
The January 2009 amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act expanded the scope of the definition of “disability” to include far greater numbers of employees with impairments. Since that time, we have all been waiting for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to re-write the regulations interpreting the ADA to conform to this new law. Proposed …read more »