On Tuesday, February 11, 2014, Judge Sara L. Ellis of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois ruled that the EEOC could continue to pursue its ADA claims and challenge the United Parcel Service, Inc.’s (“UPS”) return-to-work rule of discharging employees who cannot return to work after twelve (12) months of continuous leave (EEOC v. UPS, Inc., No. 09-CV-05291, N.D. Ill. 2/11/14).

In this case, UPS had maintained a leave of absence policy, which provided in part that employees will be “administratively separated from employment” after ...

I’m going to come right out and say it: I hate Valentine’s Day.  Polls taken around this time of year prove that I’m not alone.  If you’re unhappily single, it’s a month-long in-your-face reminder of the fact that you’re single.  If you’re in a relationship, there is tremendous pressure to make a grand romantic gesture that’s not too grand or too romantic and proportionately matches your partner’s feeling.  The all-time absolute worst possible way to try to celebrate Valentine’s Day, however, is at the office.  At best, it creates a distraction that eats into ...

The Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) originally scheduled the employer mandates to take effect in 2014.  Then, on July 2, 2013, the White House announced that it would delay enforcement of the employer mandate provisions from 2014 to 2015.  Now – in line with the over-arching theme of the ACA which seems to be last minute postponement of regulations frustrating those proactively trying to ensure compliance — the IRS has now released new guidance further delaying the employer mandate until 2016 for those employers with less than 100 full-time employees.

Employers ...

A few weeks ago, the Seventh Circuit federal appellate court (Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin) held that an employee’s absence from work was protected by the Family Medical Leave Act – even though she was on vacation with her terminally ill mother in Las Vegas.   Ballard v. Chicago Park District, Case No. 13-1445 (7th Cir. Jan. 28, 2014).

There was no question that Ballard provided daily care to her mother.  However, when she requested FMLA leave to travel with her mother to Las Vegas, Ballard’s employer denied the request.  Ultimately, the employer terminated her for the ...

Federal:   Federal Contractors be on alert! In an attempt to get Congressional support to raise the federal minimum wage for all workers, President Obama announced that he was going to be issuing an Executive Order that will require federal contract employers to pay workers a minimum wage of $10.10 per hour on any new federal contracts.  This could happen as soon as the next week or so.

The NLRB poster rule has gone by the wayside.  The NLRB gave up its fight to require all private employers to post the union-friendly poster by allowing the Supreme Court’s review deadline to pass ...

Earlier today the National Labor Relations Board announced proposed rule changes that will drastically speed the union election process, limit issues employers can raise in the pre-election process, and limit employers’ appeal rights. The proposed amendments are nothing new. Substantively identical changes – dubbed the “Quickie” or “Ambush” Election Rule — went into effect April 30, 2012 but was quickly invalidated when the D.C. Circuit ruled the Board did not have a quorum when it passed the rule changes. The amendments proposed today are open for public ...

More employers are encountering issues with transgender employees and job applicants.  The term “transgender” has various meanings, ranging from people who have undergone a sex change operation, are considering or preparing for such an operation, or are merely dressed like the opposite sex.

There are indications that “gender identity” could become a category of work place discrimination.  The U.S. Senate recently passed a bill providing protection against work place discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, although the bill is considered ...

Making sure your company is complying with the ADA just got a little bit more difficult (as if it wasn’t already difficult enough).

The Appellate Court for the Seventh Circuit recently issued two rulings that have added to the complexity of the ADA.  In Spurling v. C & M Fine Pack, Inc., 13-1708, 2014 WL 107968 (7th Cir. Jan. 13, 2014), the plaintiff had been fired after repeatedly falling asleep while on the job.  After the district court granted summary judgment, the appeals court reversed finding that the company had notice that the employee was suffering from a medical condition ...

On January 27, 2014, in Sandifer v. U.S. Steel Corp., 12-417, 2014 WL 273241 (U.S. Jan. 27, 2014), the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Seventh Circuit decision that time spent donning and doffing protective gear was time spent “changing clothes” under Section 203(o) of the FLSA allowing parties to a collective bargaining agreement the ability to bargain over compensability of such time at the beginning and end of the work day.

Clifton Sandifer filed a collective action under the FLSA seeking compensation for the time he and others spent donning and doffing work gear items ...

Filings, filings and more filings…that is the theme of 2014. It seems like every month brings another looming deadline – taxes, 5500 etc. Well, let February be no exception. From February 1, 2014 through April 30, 2014, employers who are required to keep OSHA Form 300, the Injury and Illness Log, must post the Form 300A, the Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses, in a conspicuous workplace common area.

If you are reading this and saying ‘huh??’ or ‘uh oh!’, you are not alone. But never fear! Amundsen Davis will get you through yet another governmental regulatory ...

Welcome to the Labor and Employment Law Update where attorneys from Amundsen Davis blog about management side labor and employment issues. 

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