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The City of Alexandria is setting itself up to be among the first municipalities in the state to pass an ordinance allowing for collective bargaining by unions on behalf of city employees.
A recent change in Virginia law, codified in Virginia Code § 40.1-57.2, permits counties, cities and towns to adopt an ordinance to legally recognize and negotiate with labor unions or other employee associations who represent the interests of public employees. The law goes into effect on May 1.
Read moreComplex cases can present difficult legal issues but may also illuminate how courts evaluate questions such as when a party has waived its right to arbitrate. This is true regardless of the type of claims presented because the analytical framework spans diverse areas of law. District Judge Allison D. Burroughs’ recent Memorandum and Order addresses arbitrability issues and waiver of the right to seek arbitration in a detailed fashion. In re: Intuniv Antitrust Litigation, Case No. 1:16-cv-12653-ADB, (D. Mass.), originally decided Jan. 29, 2021, but filed Feb. 11, 2021.
Read moreAs Democrats in Congress craft an agenda in line with President Joe Biden’s stated focus on worker issues, they’re resurfacing long-standing efforts to address arbitration clauses in the employment context.
Controversial arbitration clauses in employment contracts are those that generally require those who sign them to agree not to pursue workplace disputes through lawsuits in court, and to instead pursue any claims through an arbitration process. By 2024, such agreements would apply to roughly 80 percent of private-sector employees not in a union, according to an estimate in May 2019 by the nonpartisan research nonprofit the Economic Policy Institute and the pro-worker social justice advocacy group The Center for Popular Democracy.
Read moreOver 2,500 COVID-19–related employment lawsuits were filed in the United States in 2020. Ogletree Deakins’ Interactive COVID-19 Litigation Trackerhighlights the industries impacted, locations, and types of claims in these matters.
Read moreAn employee sued her former employer and coworkers in the Eastern District of Michigan for sexual harassment, defamation, and for subjecting her to a hostile work environment. The employer argued that the employee’s claims fell within the scope of an arbitration agreement, but the district court held that the agreement was void because the employee had been coerced into signing it.
Read moreMost employers have seen the forecasts. The waves of employees let go in the COVID crisis will file a surge of employment claims. Worse, plaintiffs’ lawyers will scrutinize the many changes required by the pandemic and assert class actions and collective actions in response to practices or policies that are not on rock-solid legal ground.
Read moreIn Garcia v. Haralambos Beverage Co., the California Court of Appeal embraced the adage “time kills all deals” to conclude that an employer waived its right to arbitrate the wage-hour claims at issue in the case by, among other things, delaying two years to seek arbitration as a last resort and waiting to locate the plaintiffs’ signed arbitration agreements. By waiving its right to arbitrate, the employer also lost its ability to strike class claims as a result.
Read moreOver the past few years, qualified retirement plans, including employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) have been adding provisions requiring participant breach of fiduciary duty claims to be resolved through mandatory arbitration on an individual basis rather than through the courts or on a class basis. One reason for doing so is to prevent plaintiffs from bringing spurious lawsuits that contain sufficient facts to survive a motion to dismiss, which would lead to expensive discovery exercises. The risk of such expense could create an incentive for ESOP fiduciaries to agree to substantial settlements to avoid the cost of further litigation regardless of the underlying merits of the allegations. However, there are downsides to having such mandatory arbitration provisions, including the risk of facing a non-appealable adverse arbitration decision and its impact on the ESOP, the ESOP sponsor and the ESOP fiduciaries. While courts have generally held that such provisions are not per se invalid, a number of courts, including the Southern District of Illinois, have limited their scope.
Read moreOn March 2, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit will hear oral argument in a case that could test the boundaries of mandatory arbitration, and determine whether employees can be tethered to arbitration agreements for years after leaving a company.
Read moreFor many employers, an important reason for rolling out arbitration is a desire to avoid class and collective actions. In this article, we consider whether arbitration agreements live up to their billing in this regard. As explained below, while they aren’t fool-proof, for many employers and many employment claims, arbitration agreements do in fact significantly reduce the risk of class or collective actions.
Read moreOn Dec. 17, 2020, the New York City Council voted to approve Int. No. 1415-A and Int. No. 1396-A, which will prohibit fast food employers from terminating or cutting workers’ hours without just cause and, additionally, require fast food employers who need to lay off employees due to legitimate economic reasons to do so in order of seniority. These bills significantly expand upon worker protection laws passed in 2017 and continue to redefine key aspects of the employer-employee relationship for fast food employers. Mayor Bill de Blasio is publicly supportive of the legislation and is expected to sign both bills.
Read moreGenerational differences influence how people communicate, think and work. There are four active generations in the workforce in 2021, each with unique characteristics and worldviews. For business owners and managers, it's vital to understand the characteristics of each generation, including what motivates them and their communication style, so you can successfully utilize the talents your multigenerational workforce offers to benefit your organization and other employees.
Read moreArbitration has become a popular dispute method in many partnership agreements and, increasingly, in employment contracts.There are two main reasons for this. The first is that arbitration is private and confidential, which can be attractive both for the organisation and the individual.
Read moreThe New York City Council has passed two bills, Int. No. 1415-A and Int. No 1396-A, that, when enacted and effective, will impose significant obligations on covered New York City fast food industry employers.
These bills would expand New York City’s Fair Workweek Law to provide “Just Cause” protection from discharge and significant reductions in hours for fast food employees, require employers to engage in seniority-based reductions and rehiring if staff reductions are due to bona fide economic reasons, and provide for a private right of action. Mayor Bill de Blasio has described the bills as a “big victory for job stability and dignity” and is expected to sign the legislation. These bills would take effect 180 days after becoming law. When enacted, this legislation potentially will pave the way for a great overhaul of the at-will employment system that has long-defined the employer-employee relationship in New York State and New York City.
Read moreRecently, I conducted two mediations that revealed the importance of flexibility, creativity and being prepared.
The first one was an alleged wrongful termination case in which the employer was disputing that the alleged employee was even terminated. According to the alleged employer, the alleged employee quit while the employee claimed she was fired.
Read moreAs the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic continues to turn many workplaces upside down, employers have implemented COVID protocols to facilitate a safe return-to-work. Employers should have COVID screening measures for employees to self-report any symptoms before entering the workplaces (in most jurisdictions in Canada, employers are legally required to implement such screening measures).
Read moreEveryone in society has been affected in different ways by the COVID-19 pandemic. Employers in particular have faced difficult challenges and have been required, in many cases almost immediately, to make decisions that potentially impact employees’ privacy and other rights while attempting to ensure that the health and safety of their employees, their clients and those that they provide services to, are adequately protected. A common question that has arisen over the last few months for employers is simply this – can they require their employees to take a COVID test as a condition of working in order to satisfy their employer they can safely attend the workplace?
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