Articles Posted in Blog

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently handed New York’s Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) a huge blow, when it issued a determination against the agency totaling more than $246 million. Details of the Case On behalf of a group of African American and Hispanic Administrative Managers, the Communications Workers of America filed a charge…

When most people hear the word internship, they think of an unpaid employment opportunity that offers a chance to learn the ropes of a job. In recent court cases, that general perception has been challenged as interns ban together and fight for various types of compensation. One such case involved the media group Gawker. What…

A $188 million judgment for damages has Wal-Mart officials asking the United Supreme Court to step in. The dispute started with a Pennsylvania class action lawsuit, involving approximately 187,000 Wal-Mart employees who worked for the company between the years of 1998 and 2006. The employees alleged that they were forced to skip breaks or otherwise…

The Fourth Circuit reopened the door for a class action suit to proceed against a South Carolina company on allegations of racial discrimination. The suit started with seven black plant employees who brought suit in 2004 on behalf of a proposed class including more than 100 former and current black employees. The plaintiffs alleged that…

The legislative debate continues on the necessity for noncompetition agreements under Massachusetts state law. On the one hand, noncompetition agreements severely limit workers from changing companies, often requiring individuals to leave the state or work elsewhere altogether. On the other hand, employers complain that they must keep their workers from joining competitors in order to…

Have you ever been told to report fewer hours on your time card than you actually worked?  Employees were given a much need break when the Eleventh Circuit Court recently ruled against an employer that encouraged under-reporting of overtime work.  In the case of Bailey v. Titlemax of Georgia, the facts were presented as follows: The…

Before class action lawsuits can proceed, they must be certified as such by the court. In order for this to occur, the individuals bringing the suit must present evidence that “questions of law or fact common to the class members predominate over any questions affecting only individual members,” as required under 23(b)(3) of the Federal Rules…

How do you prove you worked? Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers must compensate employees for any work that the employer did “suffer or permit” the employee to perform. It is a highly debatable standard that is often contested by workers who are classified as exempt employees, but seek compensation for overtime work that they…

The Massachusetts legislature stood up for fathers when it expanded the state’s family leave act. The Massachusetts Maternity Leave Act provided female employees with eight weeks of unpaid leave for the birth or adoption of a child, without fear of termination or retaliation. On April 7, 2015, the law will officially become the Massachusetts Parental…

The Massachusetts legislature recently gave workers a boost, with an increase in the state’s minimum wage. As of January 1, 2015, the wage increased to $9 per hour. The increases will continue over the next two years, reaching $10 per hour as of January 1, 2016 and $11 per hour as of January 1, 2017. Employees…