Labor & Employment

A&P v. Workers in $1 M Veggie Video Suit

Two New Jersey brothers apparently meant to be funny when they filmed a gangsta rap parody, “Produce Paradise,” at the A&P supermarket at which they then worked. But management isn’t getting the joke. The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., which owns A&P, has not only fired the two shelf-stockers…

Aug 28, 2007 10:41 PM CDT

Visa Squeeze Sparks Legal Creativity

A land rush on coveted visas permitting skilled foreigners to work in the U.S. legally is prompting alternative approaches by those who don’t win the lottery. Some denied the so-called H-1Bs—three-year visas for skilled workers with college degrees—are going back to school or applying for other types of visas. But…

Aug 27, 2007 8:28 PM CDT

11th Circuit: Return Katrina Docs!

In a blunt opinion filed today, a federal appeals court says two sisters portrayed as whistle-blowers in ongoing litigation over Hurricane Katrina insurance claims must return some 15,000 internal documents concerning State Farm Insurance Co. The unpublished ruling by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is potentially important not…

Aug 24, 2007 9:38 PM CDT

Sarbanes Misused, Expert Says

Whistle-blower complaints brought under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act are failing because claimants are “misusing the law as a club in garden-variety workplace disputes,” according to an expert in the field. Michael Delikat, a lawyer with Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, writes in a Wall Street Journal commentary (sub. req.) that 1,000 whistleblower…

Aug 23, 2007 5:39 PM CDT

Maid’s Suit Can Raise Model’s Past

A Manhattan judge has ruled that a former maid for Naomi Campbell can introduce evidence of past dust-ups with hired help in her lawsuit against the model. Gaby Gibson claims Campbell hit her and made discriminatory comments when she couldn’t find a pair of Stella McCartney jeans, the New York…

Aug 23, 2007 3:36 PM CDT

Ex-Exec’s Wal-Mart Suit Tossed

A Michigan state judge says a former Wal-Mart executive’s lawsuit was filed in the wrong state. Julie Roehm should have filed her wrongful termination suit in Arkansas rather than Michigan, according to Judge Denise Langford Morris of Oakland County, who dismissed the suit. Roehm’s lawyer, B. Andrew Rifkin, told the…

Aug 23, 2007 3:06 PM CDT

Rove Comments Led to Firing, Lawyer Says

A Texas lawyer contends in a lawsuit that she was fired from the state secretary of state’s office in violation of her First Amendment rights for comments she made in an article about Karl Rove. Elizabeth Reyes claims she was fired in 2005 because her remarks to a Washington Post…

Aug 23, 2007 12:15 PM CDT

Proposed Laws Target Abusive Bosses

Nobody wants to work for a jerk. But unless abusive bosses violate specific prohibitions, such as discriminating against someone because of race or gender, treating employees badly generally isn’t illegal. That could be changing, however. At least four states are considering legislation that would give workers a right to sue…

Aug 21, 2007 4:37 PM CDT

Clifford Chance Settles Sexual Pref Case

In a precedent-setting case in the United Kingdom, a London-based megafirm has reportedly reached a settlement with a former partner who claimed he was discriminated against because of his sexual preference. The agreement, between famed “magic circle” firm Clifford Chance and former partner Michael Bryceland, is for an undisclosed amount.…

Aug 20, 2007 7:30 PM CDT

ABA: End Forced Retirement

The ABA House of Delegates decided Monday that the time has come for law firms to put mandatory age-based retirement policies out to pasture. In addition to recommending that law firms end those policies, the House of Delegates urged that law firms evaluate their older partners on the basis of…

Aug 14, 2007 2:10 AM CDT

Illegal Workers to Enforce Labor Laws?

As the government threatens a crackdown against employers who hire illegal immigrants, companies should also be wary of potential amped-up enforcement of labor law violations by another group—illegal immigrants themselves. If they are fired from their jobs because of federal enforcement of immigration laws, they will have less to lose…

Aug 10, 2007 4:59 PM CDT

Immigrant Crackdown, But More Temps

Updated: An effort to get Congress to pass an immigration bill promoted by the White House failed this year. So the executive branch is trying again. An enhanced program of government enforcement against employers who hire illegal immigrants was announced by the Bush administration today. Employers who ignore immigration laws…

Aug 10, 2007 4:15 PM CDT

Are FedEx Drivers Really Contractors?

Are Federal Express drivers independent contractors? That is the potentially very expensive question to be answered by a federal case in South Bend, Ind., where a judge is to hold a hearing later this month about whether similar claims from drivers in 29 states that they are actually employees should…

Aug 8, 2007 4:12 PM CDT

Fire Illegal Workers, Or Else

Employers will need to start paying attention when they receive a so-called no-match letter informing them that a worker’s Social Security number doesn’t match his name. Under rules expected to be issued this week, employers will have to clear up any clerical error or fire the worker within a fixed…

Aug 8, 2007 12:38 PM CDT

States, Feds Ponder ‘Gender ID’ Bills

Gender identity isn’t a phrase that traditionally comes up in everyday conversation. But it’s a hot topic among lawmakers and lobbyists these days, as both Congress and a growing number of states consider legislation to make discrimination based on gender identity illegal. At this point, it isn’t completely clear what…

Aug 7, 2007 3:56 PM CDT