State Employment Law Articles

On July 8, 2015, a federal district court judge held that a section of the Massachusetts Independent Contractor law, as applied to same-day delivery services, is preempted by the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (FAAAA). This is a significant development because Massachusett

Departing from the state’s normally pro-employer laws and judicial attitudes regarding non-compete covenants, a new law bars high-tech companies in Hawaii from requiring their employees to enter into “non-compete” and “non-solicit” agreements as a condition of employment. The new law, Act 158, went

Executive Summary: The Tennessee Court of Appeal has held that a bartender can proceed with her lawsuit under §107 of the Tennessee Wage Regulation Act (TWRA), claiming her employer failed to pay her and other similarly situated employees tips and that it distributed tips among tipped and non-tipped

Executive Summary: On the heels of an appellate decision providing employees a virtual how-to manual to misuse and exploit confidential employer documents and safely provide them to a competitor, New Jersey's Supreme Court reversed course last week by suggesting that employees do not have competing

Legislation restricting employers from inquiring about an applicant’s criminal background during the initial stages of the application process has been signed into law by Governor Kate Brown on June 26, 2015. The “Ban the Box” law, H.B. 3025, will take effect on January 1, 2016.

The Montgomery County, Maryland Council recently passed two amendments to the County Code that impact employers. First, the County has joined in the recent trend of mandatory sick leave laws by requiring employers with one or more employees in the County to provide paid sick and safe leave to covere

Executive Summary: In a case of first impression, the California Court of Appeals recently held that, unlike cases where only class allegations are asserted, California's "death knell" doctrine does not apply to cases where class certification is denied and representative claims under California's P

On June 26, 2015, a California appellate court rendered a precedential opinion1 that should hopefully put to rest the issue of whether an employer must withhold taxes on settlements or judgments made to former employees in employment-related litigation. The case, Cifuentes v. Costco Wholesale Corpor

Five years ago, in Quinlan v. Curtiss-Wright Corporation, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that a trusted employee's act of stealing and using her employer's confidential personnel documents in furtherance of her discrimination lawsuit constituted protected activity under the New Jersey Law Agains

The Alabama legislature recently passed changes to Section 8-1-1 of the Code of Alabama, the provision which contains the state’s non-compete statute. Governor Bentley signed the new version of the statute and it will become effective January 1, 2016. While the new version does not drastically chang

On July 1, 2015, Chicago's Minimum Wage Ordinance goes into effect for all covered employers and employees. The Ordinance, which will raise the minimum wage for Chicago workers to $13 per hour by 2019, was passed on December 2, 2014, and contains gradual increases for covered employees.

Williams-Sonoma is embroiled in a contentious trade secret theft case with its former executive and direct competitor. On June 18, 2015, a federal district court in Tennessee granted a preliminary injunction motion to enjoin Williams-Sonoma’s former vice president and direct competitor from using co

On June 22, 2015, Connecticut Governor Dannel P. Malloy signed into law a new statute that extends workplace harassment, discrimination and retaliation protection to unpaid interns. Historically, it was unclear whether an individual working as an unpaid intern was protected from workplace discrimina

On June 23, 2015, Connecticut Governor Dannel P. Malloy signed into law a new statute that imposes double damages on employers who fail to pay an employee minimum wage or overtime. With one exception, the new law requires a court to award double damages plus court costs and attorney’s fees if it fin

Effective July 1, 2015, all private-sector employers in Massachusetts must provide their employees with up to 40 hours of sick leave per calendar year.1 Earlier this year, the Massachusetts Attorney General published proposed regulations concerning the implementation of the new law.2 After receiving

A former school board employee who removed confidential documents to assist in her employment lawsuit filed against the school board may be criminally prosecuted, the New Jersey Supreme Court has ruled, affirming an Appellate Division decision. State v. Saavedra, No. A-68-13 (June 23, 2015). The Sup

Executive Summary: Like the hit show "How to Get Away with Murder," the recent New Jersey ruling in Spencer Sav. Bank SLA v. McGrover (App. Div. March 5, 2015), instructs employees looking to remove their employers' confidential documents and trade secrets. While still employed with Spencer Savings

The wave of new sick leave legislation continues across the country. At the same time, state and local governments continue to refine existing laws to address new laws passed, as well as the complexities that surround providing for and administering paid sick leave benefits.

Under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), background screening companies (or consumer reporting agencies) are generally prohibited from reporting certain types of derogatory information that the FCRA considers to be too old to be useful, i.e., obsolete. For example, background screening co

Next week, on July 3, 2015 the ordinances collectively known as the “Retail Workers Bill of Rights” - passed unanimously by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in November 2014 - will go into effect in the City of San Francisco and the City will begin enforcing its provisions. The ordinances requ