Employment lawyers like myself deal with my fair share of FMLA cases for clients. Among those FMLA claims I see employers violate FMLA often because the employer was ignorant of FMLA regulations or had serious misconceptions about FMLA. I also get plenty of calls from employees who believe their employer violated FMLA but the employee […]
5 FMLA Myths You Might Believe Read More »
The Americans with Disabilities Act and the Texas Labor Code require an employer to provide a reasonable accommodation to a qualified employee to assist the employee in performing the essential functions of the employee’s job and/or access the workplace. These federal and state laws require employers to engage the employee in an interactive process to
Does an ADA accommodation have to be the one an employee wants? Read More »
An article published today by Ignites discusses the annoying habits of coworkers according to a poll of mutual fund employees. Although we’re not all mutual fund employees, the habits pointed out in the survey are the annoying habits you find across all industries. The worst of the worst was loud phone conversations. A lot of
Coworkers and Their Annoying Habits in the Workplace Read More »
If the calls and emails coming into my office are any indication then there is a growing problem with unpaid wages, minimum wage violations, minimum wage tip violations and unpaid overtime pay here in Texas. I am getting a lot of contacts from people with unpaid wages. The Fair Labor Standards Act and the Texas
Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas unpaid wage claims and attorney fees Read More »
As somebody who spent a decade working in employee benefits and now practices employee benefits law, I have an understanding of the employee benefits industry. When I saw WFAA in Dallas covering a report about retirement savings I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to fact-check. Predictably, the piece mixes a little truth with a lot of
Dissecting fact and fiction from a recent report on retirement savings Read More »
Sarbanes-Oxley, passed in 2002 in the wake of the Enron disaster, includes a protection in Section 806 that employees of a publicly traded company from retaliation for whistleblowing on accounting fraud and other prohibited acts under Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX). In the past, most courts held that the employees of contractors to public companies did not enjoy
Sarbanes-Oxley retaliation claims apply to employees of contractors Read More »
Today’s society is moving increasingly towards becoming a paperless society. That includes the way we pay for goods and services. It is rare that people pay in cash, especially with the reward systems attached to credit cards. The convenience of throwing down plastic comes with a price, at least to the business owners. Credit card
When can employers deduct credit card fees from tips in Texas? Read More »
Back in 2012, several local Dallas, Fort Worth and Denton media outlets reported a racial discrimination suit involving a prosecutor at the Denton County District Attorney‘s office and her allegations that an assistant DA, much higher up the food chain, had made racially discriminatory remarks that constituted a hostile work environment. The trial court awarded
Denton County prevails in racial discrimination appeal Read More »
Overtime rules under the Fair Labor Standards Act and Texas Payday Law result in improper wage calculations in employment law. Some employers engage in illegal acts to avoid paying overtime. Many fail to fully understand when they must pay overtime and how the calculation of overtime pay must occur. (For a primer on overtime pay,
Overtime pay with personal leave in Texas Read More »
Although diminished value claims are on the rise in Texas, insurance companies still feel like they are winning the war. Insurance claims adjusters know that for the majority of people the adjuster can take advantage of the claimant’s inexperience in dealing with insurance claims and personal injury litigation. Insurance claims adjusters have heard everything imaginable and
5 diminished value mistakes that will make the claims adjuster laugh at you Read More »
I often receive questions regarding Texas employees and when they should receive their final paycheck from their employer. In Texas, the law governing the timing of your final paycheck is the Texas Payday Law, which is similar to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act but includes some additional, state-specific rules for employee wages. Under the
Texas Payday Law and final paychecks Read More »
This Dallas employment retaliation case is best summed up in three letters: WTF? Not only are the facts of the case full of WTF; but the decision of our federal District of Northern Texas keeps up with the conduct of the alleged harassers. The lawsuit Royal v. CCC&R Tres Arboles, L.L.C. is a local Dallas decision on a significant legal
Dallas woman wins appeal on retaliation claim for complaining about sexual harassment Read More »
Employers who want to thin the herd of highly paid, older employees often offer early retirement incentive packages that trade off an increased pension benefit or severance package in exchange for an employee agreeing to voluntarily retire early. Early retirement is typically offered to a large number of employees before the company decides to engage
Age Discrimination and Early Retirement Incentives Read More »
FMLA (Family Medical Leave Act) issues represents a substantial portion of the employment law work I perform for clients. FMLA claims are common due to employer mismanagement or misunderstanding of FMLA duties. Even large, Fortune 500 employers fail to properly administer FMLA leave. The employee seeking FMLA leave may suffer discrimination, harassment, interference with FMLA
FMLA D.O.L. complaints and lawsuits Read More »
At the heart of a lot of age discrimination cases under the federal ADEA and state-level Texas Labor Code is an employer trying to modernize the business and employs age stereotypes to justify eliminating older workers. Employers in these cases want a “youthful appearance” or “faster” or “more energetic” or “more tech savvy” workforce. They
Is “workforce modernization” code for age discrimination at work? Read More »
The fluctuating work week is perhaps the least understood subject in wage law under the Fair Labor Standards Act. It is so misunderstood that even federal judges in Texas don’t understand it. The Fifth Circuit rejected the improper application of the fluctuating work week by the Northern District of Texas in Dallas in Black v.
Fluctuating Work Week FLSA calculations Read More »
Texas and federal discrimination law prohibit only certain types of employment discrimination. An employee may file a charge of discrimination or lawsuit on employment discrimination only for a trait protected by law. If your employer takes action against your job or compensation then you must show the employer did so because you have a protected trait. The traits
When can I sue for employment discrimination? Read More »
I was down in Cleburne, Texas this morning for a hearing on behalf of a client and decided to check out the scene of Cleburne’s most famous (or infamous) location, the property at the heart of the Supreme Court case City of Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center. To very briefly explain the facts, in 1980
City of Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center Read More »
Often Texas employees who are victims of employment discrimination lose their jobs through either the employer’s direct efforts to terminate the employee or by the employer’s indirect efforts to harass the employee until he or she feels like there is no choice but to quit (this is known as constructive termination). In most cases, employees
Employment discrimination and job reinstatement Read More »
A common question for Texas employees is, “what rights do I have to maternity leave”? Under Texas law, employees have limited rights to maternity leave. Texas state law does not increase maternity leave rights beyond the rights protected under federal law. The rights to maternity leave come from the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and the Family Medical
Maternity leave rights under federal and Texas employment law Read More »