Sunday, July 5, 2026Labor & Employment Law
Employment Law Information Networklocated at elinfonet.com since 2001Affiliate Firm
5416 articles on ELINFONET
Pennsylvania - Restrictive Covenants
When may attorneys’ fees be imposed on a plaintiff for prosecuting a claim for misappropriation of trade secrets in bad faith under the Pennsylvania Uniform Trade Secrets Act (PUTSA)? In a matter of first impression, in Best Medical International v. Spellman [pdf], a Pennsylvania district court he
California - Wage & Hour
In the waning days of 2011, a unanimous California Supreme Court gave California employers a holiday present in its long-awaited opinion that diminishes the importance of the outmoded analytical tool known as "the administrative/production worker dichotomy" for determining whether employees are prop
California - Wage & Hour
In Arnold v. Mutual of Omaha Insurance Company, a California appellate court issued a published decision holding that insurance agents are not employees under the California Labor Code. This appears to be the first time the court has addressed the status of insurance agents.
FMLA - General
In 2011, our most popular blog entries involved two general topics: 1) employers' best practices for FMLA administration; and 2) leave as a reasonable accommodation under the ADA when FMLA leave ends. We share these posts again below, since we believe the guidance is valuable as we enter a new year.
California - Wage & Hour
In a long-awaited decision, the California Supreme Court unanimously gave California employers a holiday present in an opinion that follows the majority of federal courts in finding that insurance claims adjusters are exempt administrative employees.
FMLA - Medical Certifications
In a flurry of activity at the end of 2011, several employers contacted me to determine whether the DOL notice and certification forms still were valid, even though they contain an expiration date of December 31, 2011. In short, employers may continue to use the DOL's FMLA forms, although consider o
Maryland
On December 23, 2011, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Kunda v. C.R. Bard, Inc. held that employers in Maryland may have their employees execute employment agreements with a choice of law provision other than Maryland, so long as the other jurisdiction has a “substantial relatio
California - Wage & Hour
California's Wage Theft Prevention Act of 2011 ("WTPA" or "Act")1 takes effect on the first day of next year – January 1, 2012. The WTPA is one of half a dozen new laws that affect an employer's wage payment obligations. The WTPA amended five existing statutes within the California Labor Code, and
California - Wage & Hour
In Aleman v. Airtouch Cellular, a California Court of Appeal ruled on December 21, 2011 that one class representative was not entitled to additional reporting pay or split shift premiums and a second class representative could not pursue such claims because she had signed a release in exchange for e
California - Wage & Hour
On December 13, 2011, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reconsidered the case, Sullivan v. Oracle Corp., after the California Supreme Court had decided several certified questions of law. The Ninth Circuit had previously delayed ruling, and instead asked the California Supreme Court to decide three
FMLA - Leave Year
When it comes to the holidays, FMLA administration can be most difficult -- both in terms of employee absences and how to calculate them. As I covered last month, the FMLA regulations provide very specific rules for calculating an employee's FMLA leave for a holiday or when the employer is shut down
Virginia
In Home Paramount Pest Control Cos. v. Shaffer, No. 101837, 2011 Va. LEXIS 222 (Nov. 4, 2011), the Virginia Supreme Court ruled that a covenant not to compete was overbroad and unenforceable, even though it was identical to a covenant the court had upheld 22 years earlier in Paramount Termite Contro
Colorado - Wage & Hour
On December 5, 2011, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) and the U.S. Department of Labor's (DOL) Wage and Hour Division signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the improper classification of employees as independent contractors.
California - General
In the first significant ruling of its kind, the Los Angeles Superior Court in Bright v. 99¢ Only Stores granted the defendant’s motion to strike the plaintiff’s representative Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) allegations. The plaintiff, Eugina Bright, filed a complaint against 99¢ Only St
California - General
In a ground-breaking decision that will make it easier for employers to obtain restraining orders to protect their employees from violence in the workplace, a California appellate court has ruled that "all relevant evidence" must be considered in such proceedings – even otherwise inadmissible hear
California - General
Responding to a stated concern over human trafficking and goods that are produced by forced or child labor, the California Legislature passed the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act of 2010 with the goal of "ensur[ing] large retailers and manufacturers provide consumers with information reg
FMLA - General
Cynthia Adams was a registered hospice nurse for Fayette Home Care and Hospice. According to one of her hospice patients, Adams apparently showed him and his wife three pictures of her boyfriend's genitals, the photos of which were stored on her cell phone. Not surprisingly, the patient told another
New Jersey - Wage & Hour
On November 16, 2011, the New Jersey Appellate Division affirmed a finding that registered nurses who were paid on an hourly basis were exempt from the overtime requirements of the New Jersey Wage and Hour Law (“NJWHLâ€), even though the regulation applicable at the time only extended the “prof
Massachusetts - Anti-Discrimination Statute
On November 23, 2011, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick signed into law the "Gender Identity Bill." This makes Massachusetts the 16th state – along with California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Iowa, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Oregon, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wa
New Jersey - Wage & Hour
In an ASAP published on October 17th, Littler reported that, in recent amendments to its overtime regulations, New Jersey had inadvertently eliminated the exemption for sales employees paid on commission, which closely tracked an exemption in Section 7(i) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (sometimes k