The Supreme Court of the United States (“Supreme Court’) recently clarified the standard for claims brought under Title VII involving allegations of discrimination related to job transfers. Specifically, the Supreme Court held that employees only need to show “some harm” to the terms and conditions of their employment resulting from the transfer and unanimously rejected
Litigation
Supreme Court Announces New Test for Determining Whether Social Media Posts Constitute State Action
Earlier this month, the Supreme Court considered whether James Freed, a city manager who maintained a “mixed use” Facebook account on which he posted information about his personal life and his job, violated the First Amendment and was subject to liability under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (“Section 1983”) when he deleted comments with which he…
What Employers Should Do When Employees Fail to Report Time
Employers often struggle with what to do when employees fail to report their time accurately. A recent decision by the Second Circuit illustrates how costly it can be for employers who don’t address the issue properly.
In Perry et al. v. City of New York, the Second Circuit upheld a significant jury verdict in…
U.S. Supreme Court Revises Long-Standing Religious Accommodations Test
This morning, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously toppled decades-old precedent governing an employer’s treatment of religious accommodation requests. While the decision in Groff v. DeJoy has been overshadowed by Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, which threw out Harvard and UNC’s affirmative action programs, Groff has broad-reaching impacts…
Supreme Court Holds that Salary Test Still Applies to Highly Compensated Individuals Under FLSA
This week the United States Supreme Court held that highly compensated employees are not exempt from overtime requirements unless they are paid on a salary basis. In other words, employers cannot avoid paying overtime to employees simply because they earn a high hourly or daily rate. Rather, employers must provide employees with a reliable, predetermined compensation regardless…
Third Circuit Hears Case on Whether College Athletes May Be Employees
Current and former college athletes are suing the National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”) over the NCAA’s failure to pay them an hourly wage. Last week, the Third Circuit heard argument about whether student athletes may be considered employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act. (“FLSA”).
The case before the Third Circuit is not unique. In 2016…
NLRB Issues Four Decisions in Five Days
As the holiday season approaches, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) issued four pro-labor decisions of varying impact. One decision maintains the status quo; two decisions return to an Obama-era standard, and the fourth creates an entirely new remedy for unfair labor practice cases. Each case will be addressed in turn below.
Maintaining the Status…
NLRB Reverses Course on Trump-Era Rule Regarding Union Apparel Bans
On August 29, 2022, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) reversed Trump-era case law and significantly limited when employers may restrict union insignia on clothing in the workplace.
The case, Tesla, Inc. 370 NLRB No. 131 (2022), arose after Tesla prohibited employees at a manufacturing facility from wearing clothing bearing union insignia during a union…
Second Circuit Holds that Individuals Can Sue Their Employers for Discrimination under Title IX
On June 2, 2022, the Second Circuit held that individuals could sue their employers for gender discrimination under Title IX, resolving a prior split of authority among the lower courts. The lawsuit was brought against Cornell University by a male faculty member claiming that Cornell discriminated against him in violation of Title IX, Title VI,…
Ten Key Issues for Employers to Consider Concerning OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard for COVID-19 Vaccinations
On November 5, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published an emergency temporary standard (ETS) that sets COVID-19 vaccination and safety standards for private employers with 100 or more employees. The ETS creates new obligations for employers, new rights for employees, and generally requires compliance within thirty days. Here are ten key…