Well, regardless of your political leanings, it’s definitely been an interesting political season. I have witnessed several heated political discussions among my acquaintances, and even in my family (let’s just say that my crazy teenagers don’t share my political views). Although physical violence has not yet been involved, there has been some nasty name-calling. And
Thoughts on Equal Pay Proposals from a Management Lawyer
Equal pay has become a hot topic on both the state and federal levels. As a woman who is a management-side employment attorney, I sometimes find myself puzzled as to how this topic came to be such a hot button issue, especially since there are already many laws on the books that address equal pay.
Return of the Beast: Religious Accommodation Redux
Back around Halloween, we offered you a seasonally appropriate and cautionary tale about accommodating an employee’s religious concerns. As we discussed in that blog about the case of EEOC v. Consol Energy, Inc., the employee refused to use a biometric hand scanner because he was afraid it would reveal or imprint the mark of the beast. Because the mark of the beast is supposed to appear on the right hand, the company told him to use his left hand, but the employee believed that using either hand was a problem. The company refused to permit him to record his time manually or to report it to his supervisor, and the employee chose to retire under protest. The EEOC brought suit against the company on his behalf for failure to provide a reasonable accommodation for his religious beliefs and constructive discharge (i.e. the employee was forced to quit), and the employee was awarded over a half-million dollars in damages- a death knell to the employer’s arguments!
Like a zombie, the employer has returned from the grave to ask the court to throw out the judgment on various grounds. The court’s reaction to the employer’s arguments provide some additional lessons for employers generally.
Continue Reading Return of the Beast: Religious Accommodation Redux
President Obama Radically Expands EEO-1 Reporting Requirements
On January 29, 2016, President Obama announced a series of actions intended to close the gender pay equity gap, including proposed revisions to the EEO-1 form that would require the submission of detailed pay information.
As President Obama stated in his press conference, and as set forth in a White House Fact Sheet, “New Steps to Advance Equal Pay on the Seventh Anniversary of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act,” the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission today issued a proposed rule to expand the information collected on the EEO-1 form. The EEO-1 form must be submitted annually in September by (1) employers with more than 100 employees and (2) government contractors with more than 50 employees and more than $50,000 in federal contracts or subcontracts. It requires employers to provide information regarding the race, ethnicity, sex, and job category of their workforce. The proposed revision would add the requirement to provide aggregated data on pay and hours worked, broken down into pay bands by the same race, ethnicity, and sex categories. According to the EEOC’s press release on the EEO-1 revisions, the EEOC and the OFCCP will use the submitted data to analyze pay disparities across industries and occupations, and facilitate federal antidiscrimination actions. In addition, EEOC will publish aggregated data that employers can use in their own voluntary compliance efforts.
Continue Reading President Obama Radically Expands EEO-1 Reporting Requirements
Employees Staying Over in the Storm – Sleep Time Deductions
With the imminent blizzard of 2016, employers are thinking about work coverage issues. This is of particular concern for those employers who function on a 24-hour basis, like healthcare entities. In order to ensure coverage during perilous travel conditions, some employees may agree to (or even be required to) stay overnight. Obviously, any hours actually spent working must be paid, but they are likely not working during all of that time onsite. In fact, some of that time may be sleep time. What are the rules on pay under those circumstances? 
The Fair Labor Standards Act provides that if an employee works for more than 24 hours, up to 8 hours of sleep time may be deducted pursuant to an agreement between the employer and employee. The FLSA does not define what is such an “agreement.” However, various courts have done so, and these courts have found that if an employer publishes a policy that explains the sleep time deduction and if employees continue to work for the employer, this constitutes an agreement for the deduction. In at-will employment states, any employee who chooses not to agree to any company policy, including one like this, can certainly choose not to work for the company. Conversely, the company can choose to terminate any employee who chooses not to agree to any of its policies. That is what at-will employment entails. If the company does not have a published policy on this issue, it will not be able to deduct for the sleep time.
Continue Reading Employees Staying Over in the Storm – Sleep Time Deductions
The Rules on the Key Employee Exemption Under the FMLA (Part II)
Last time I talked about how to determine if an employee is a “key employee” under the Family and Medical Leave Act. This time, we’re going to talk about the actual steps you need to take in order to invoke this exemption.
There are very specific, mandatory notice requirements that apply. 29 C.F.R. Section 825.219(a) requires an employer to notify the employee of the employee’s status as a “key employee,” that it may deny reinstatement following FMLA leave if it determines that substantial and grievous economic injury will occur, and the potential consequences with respect to the maintenance of health benefits. This requirement may be met by checking off the appropriate provision on the DOL’s model “Notice of Eligibility and Rights & Responsibilities,” WH-381. (Are you using the DOL’s model forms? If not, why not? They’re actually pretty good – and I have never seen an individualized employer-prepared form that was any better! In fact, most employer-prepared forms that I’ve seen have various problems. Big ones.)
The employer should give this first notice as soon as it is able to determine that the employee is a key employee. Hopefully, this should happen when the employee gives notice of the need for leave, but may occur after the leave begins if the employer needs time to make that determination. Please note that if the employer fails to give timely notice, the employer will not be able to deny restoration – even if there is substantial and grievous economic injury!!!Continue Reading The Rules on the Key Employee Exemption Under the FMLA (Part II)
The Rules on the Key Employee Exemption Under the FMLA (Part I)
I’m an Family and Medical Leave Act geek – I find the twists and turns and intricacies of this law and its regulations just fascinating. ( I know, that’s really geeky). I was recently advising a client on the key employee exemption under the FMLA, which reminded me of how technical the rules are with regard to this particular issue. I thought some of you might appreciate a primer on this exemption – what it is and how to apply it.
Under the FMLA regulations, a key employee may be denied restoration to his job position if such restoration would cause “substantial and grievous economic injuries to the employer’s operations.” 29 C.F.R. Section 825.216. A key employee is a salaried FMLA-eligible employee who is among the highest paid 10 percent of all the employees employed by the employer within 75 miles of the employee’s worksite. (Keep in mind that overtime payments to non-exempt employees can increase their income significantly and throw off the top 10%!)
The regulations discuss what “substantial and grievous economic injury” means. Of particular note, the “substantial and grievous economic injury” must be based on the restoration, and “not whether the absence of the employee will cause such substantial and grievous injury.” (Emphasis added). 29 C.F.R. Section 825.216. This is a very important distinction – several courts have found the employers failed to establish “substantial and grievous economic injury” where the employer focused on the effect of the employee’s absence rather than the impact of the employee’s restoration on its operations. Let me repeat that – FOCUS ON THE IMPACT OF THE RESTORATION, NOT THE ABSENCE!
Continue Reading The Rules on the Key Employee Exemption Under the FMLA (Part I)
No Protection for a Breastfeeding Mother?
As you may know, I am a die-hard management lawyer. For example, I recently saw a production of J.B. Priestly’s, “An Inspector Calls.” The titular Inspector forces various members of a wealthy family in Edwardian England to examine their roles in putting a young woman on the path to suicide. In particular, the father had fired the young woman from his factory for being a labor agitator. I know I was supposed to sympathize with the young woman, but I frankly thought the father had behaved in an completely 
understandable manner (although, of course, it would now be a violation of the National Labor Relations Act to do so). My husband told me, “Well, I guess you’re in the right profession.”
But every now and then, there is a case that just smacks of unfairness to me, even though it may be legally correct. Frederick v. State of New Hampshire was just such a case.
The employee’s new baby had difficulties with bottle feeding. In addition, the employee’s doctor provided a letter explaining that the employee should breastfeed as must as possible to minimize her anxiety disorder. In preparation for returning to work, the employee asked for either an extended break time to go to her baby’s nearby daycare center to breastfeed, or to have her baby brought to her and to be allowed to breastfeed her baby in the employer-provided lactation room.Continue Reading No Protection for a Breastfeeding Mother?
Two or More Genders? Gender Identity and the EEO-1 Form
As those companies who are required to submit an EEO-1 form know, the extended deadline for the annual submission this year (2015) is coming up soon – October 30 (Normally it’s September 30 each year). Generally speaking, covered employers must report on the form, by establishment/company totals and job group (e.g. first level officials and managers, professionals, administrative support employees, etc.), the number of employees by sex and race or ethnic category. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission requires most private employers with 100 or more employees to submit the EEO-1 form, while the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs requires most government contractors with 50 or more employees and $50,000 or more in federal contracts to submit this form.
Originally on the EEO-1 form, multi-racial employees had to be designated a single racial or ethnic category. For example, an individual who had a Black father and a White mother would have to be identified as solely White or solely Black. In 2005, however, the EEO-1 form was revised to include new racial and ethnic categories, including “Two or More Races.” This change was entirely appropriate in our increasingly multi-racial society, and permitted a more accurate reflection of the racial makeup of a company’s workplace.
But what about sex? There has been a lot of recent media attention to gender identity issues (in case you’ve been living in a cave) – and the choice of gender identity is apparently far broader than I could have possible imagined. As Slate reported, in July, Facebook began allowing its users to self-identify as other than just “male” or “female.” In fact, Slate counted 56 options!!! (Whaaaaat?!!! Naïve me.) Many of these terms were ones that I had never heard of before – agender/neutrois, gender questioning, intersex, non-binary, pangender, two-spirit….Continue Reading Two or More Genders? Gender Identity and the EEO-1 Form
EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch: The Epilogue
I’m the type of person who reads the ends of books first (which drives my book club friends crazy). I always want to know how things turn out, which can be a little frustrating in my area of practice. I provide advice and counsel to clients on how to deal with sticky employment situations, but