Last week, the United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the First Amendment protects a religious institution’s autonomy to choose its ministers, placing these decisions beyond the reach of employment discrimination statutes. The case, Hosanna-Tabor v. EEOC, involved a religious school teacher who spent most of her time teaching secular subjects, but also taught religious [...]
The Obama Administration may go down in history as the Administration of Enforcement: investigations of worker misclassification and wage and hour issues are way up. Now we’re seeing it also applies to the civil rights arena. Last year was a record-setting year for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. It received more charges than ever, resolved [...]
As published in the July 25, 2011 CT Law Tribune
Do you want to hold a company holiday party, but worry about being sued? In the past, employers have faced worker’s compensation claims for holiday party injuries as well as lawsuits for sexual harassment, drunk driving by employees, and religious discrimination. Some companies are asking employees to sign holiday party waivers, but they won’t [...]
Hertz recently fired 26 Muslim drivers for failing to clock in and out for their ten minute breaks. The union representing the employees claims discrimination based on religion. Hertz’s conduct is a great example of the value of having and following reasonable Company policies. The drivers claim Hertz, at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, fired them [...]