Labor & Employment Law Update

On June 15, 2015, the Colorado Supreme Court upheld the appellate court’s ruling that employers can lawfully terminate employees for use of medical marijuana outside of work in compliance with a drug free workplace policy in Coats v. Dish Network, 2015 CO 44 (June 15, 2015).

This is an important decision for employers as many of the state laws “legalizing” marijuana for medical and/or recreational use have been recognized as providing protections from criminal laws, but are unclear as to how much, if any, civil or employment protections are provided to employees under ...

On June 1, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court decided EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc., ruling that it was unlawful for an Abercrombie clothing store to reject an otherwise qualified applicant because, as a practicing Muslim, she wore a headscarf.

That rejection arose from Abercrombie’s unfortunate application of the company’s “Look Policy,” which prohibited employees from wearing “caps”—a term that the Look Policy did not specifically define.  Abercrombie believed—but was not certain, as there was no discussion of the issue with the applicant—that the ...

The articles claiming the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Tibble v. Edison International are plentiful.  Each one seems to claim with a great sense of urgency that a new increased liability is now imposed on employers.  If you read enough of them, the sky seems to be falling on all those who operate and administer 401(k) plans.  In reality, most of these articles appear to be quoting language from the decision completely out of context.  Where an employer has been advised properly, Tibble should not require any change in the administration of an employer’s 401(k) plan.

A recent court decision from the Eastern District of New York found that posting a summary plan description (SPD) on a company Intranet, without additional notice to participants, does not satisfy the electronic disclosure rules for employee benefit plans under ERISA.

In Thomas v. CIGNA Group Ins, an employee was participating in her employer’s life insurance plan at the time she became disabled. She stopped working and ceased paying the insurance premiums. The life insurance plan included a waiver of premium provision under which a disabled employee could request that life ...

Good news: Unlike employees, an independent contractor (“IC”) is not eligible for unemployment benefits when the work relationship terminates.

Bad news: When a former IC files an unemployment claim (and they sometimes do) or the government disagrees with the IC status (either in approving a claim or performing an audit), whether the IC will be denied benefits often depends on whether the IC:

A. Is free from control and direction; and

B. Performs services outside the usual course of business for the enterprise for which such service was performed; and

C. Is engaged in an ...

The Illinois Appellate Court’s latest decision could make defending cases where an injured worker has permanent restrictions more challenging and costly. It increases the importance of co-opting with a trusted workers’ compensation and employment attorney earlier in the overall process.

However, the same decision exemplifies why disputing certain cases can still yield good results if done properly. Over the years and at an increasing rate, we hear insured’s and claims professionals wondering aloud if there is a point to litigating or denying and compromising ...

Moments after President Obama announced that he would be expediting H-4 work authorizations last November, I received a call from a client inquiring about how to start the application process for his wife.  I can understand their desire to jump on the opportunity. The green card acquisition process can drag on for years, testing the patience of many foreign nationals and frustrating their spouses who want to work, but who cannot by law. A dependent spouse’s inability to work can strain the couple’s economic viability and their marriage and prompt them to consider moving to ...

As California employers are well aware, the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) gives employees certain leave rights for medical conditions, similar to the federal Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA).  However, starting July 1, 2015, the regulations are updated to align more with FMLA in certain areas and to clarify areas where CFRA is different than FMLA.

CFRA alignment includes:

• “Covered employers” now contains successors in interest and joint employers are defined similar to FMLA;
• Spouse is defined to include same-sex spouses as FMLA;
• When calculating the 12 months of ...

In a 2-1 decision, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued a decision against an auto dealer, finding that the company violated the National Labor Relations Act (act) by implementing and maintaining: (1) a 2010 social media policy that required employees to identify themselves when posting comments about the company, its business, or a policy issue and prohibited employees from using the company’s logo in any manner; and (2)  a 2010 dress code policy that prohibited employees from wearing pins, insignia or other message clothing.  Boch Imports, Inc., 362 NLRB No ...

Amid much anticipation, the Court unanimously held in Mach Mining, LLC v. EEOC that under Title VII, the EEOC must attempt to conciliate prior to filing suit against an employer. U.S. Sup. Ct., No. 13-1019 (Apr. 29, 2015). Title VII’s enforcement mechanism governs employment discrimination and retaliation claims related to race, color, religion, sex/pregnancy, national origin, age, and disability.  Under Title VII, the EEOC’s duty is to endeavor to eliminate discrimination by informal methods of conference, conciliation and persuasion and to insist upon ...