As reported in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, there is a very interesting sideshow developing in the bankruptcy case of former auto mogul Denny Hecker: his attorneys are demanding that one of his creditors, Chrysler Financial, return thousands of internal documents that Hecker alleges were stolen in 2008 by his former executive assistant, Cindy Bowser. Chrysler Financial, [...]
Time to update your EEO posters
The Equal Employment Opportunity Ccommission (EEOC) has released an update to its required “Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law” posting. The new version reflects current federal employment discrimination law, and adds information regarding the new Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) and ADA Amendments Act regulations. The revised poster also includes updates from the U.S. Department of Labor. [...]
Another way for employers to get into trouble
Most claims against private employers for invasion of privacy are dismissed because employees have no “reasonable expectation of privacy” in most areas of the workplace. A restaurant in New Jersey recently discovered a novel way to violate an employee’s rights by violating a federal statute. A manager at a Houston’s restaurant pressured an employee to [...]
Congress is considering paid sick leave for employees
Congress is considering a bill that would guarantee five paid sick days for workers sent home by their employers due to a contagious illness. The bill’s chief author, Rep. George Miller, said that 40 million workers do not have paid sick days and that many of those might choose to go to work with H1N1 [...]
Race in Sports and the Workplace
Here is a very interesting article from today’s NY Times about race and athletics that has obvious implications for the discussion of race and employment. There is apparently a debate raging about whether Meb Keflezighi, who won the NY marathon on Sunday, is truly “American” since he did not come to this country until he [...]
Guest Post: Pets at work
This is T.J.’s associate, Calhoun, writing with a guest post on one of my favorite topics, Pets at Work. Loved the piece in the recent MinnLawyer Blog (although not happy that it featured a cat!). One small kibble quibble with the post: I’m not sure having me at work is all that relaxing, because I [...]
Are employers really under siege?
As a sidebar to my previous post, here is an interesting article claiming that employers are “under siege” by the EEOC. The numbers do suggest more cases: from 2007 to the end of 2008, overall claims filed with the EEOC increased by 28%. Observers also suggest that the EEOC is being more aggressive in its [...]
The EEOC wants Schwan’s to deliver (documents, not food)
Things should be interesting in St. Paul on Wednesday when my former partner, Magistrate Judge Janie Mayeron, hears a discovery motion in a sex discrimination case brought against frozen-food company Schwan’s by a former employee, Kim Milliren. Milliren was accepted into a Schwan’s manager training program intended to prepare her for a position overseeing one [...]
