Newsletter Archive for October 2011

Whistleblower Uses Handbook and CEO Praise in His Lawsuit

The driver said he complained to his employer many times about hazardous conditions. He also filed anonymous complaints on the employer’s website established for reporting safety violations. In 2007, the company president and chairman wrote the driver a letter requesting his help in investigating dangerous practices and promising that there would be no retaliation. Read More

Facebook Page Helps Job Seekers

The Labor Department and three nonprofit employment-related groups have formed a partnership with the Facebook social networking site and launched a Facebook page designed to help job seekers find employment, DOL announced Oct. 20. The page, which is titled “Social Jobs Partnership,” may be accessed at http://www.facebook.com/socialjobs. It will link job seekers to information on job training and job openings in their geographical area. It also will help users to see how the skills they learned in their previous job … Read More

What Does Fired Nurse Have to Prove in FMLA Retaliation Case?

The nurse began FMLA leave in September 2008 and by Nov. 5 called her supervisor to say she had been medically cleared to return to work Nov. 13. The nurse said her supervisor did not acknowledge or return her calls. Instead, she received a letter terminating her because her FMLA medical leave had expired. Read More

Judge OK’s $42 Million Settlement

A federal judge approved Oct. 11 a $42 million settlement between JPMorgan Chase & Co. and a class of approximately 3,800 loan processors regarding overtime pay claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act and state law. Read More

Does Executives’ Praise of ‘Value of Youth’ Show Age Bias?

The employee began working for a subsidiary of a U.S. holding company for a German firm in 1986, and by 1992 had been promoted to be senior vice president of sales and marketing. But in 1996, he was relieved of his management responsibilities. He retained his salary and title, but was assigned to full-time sales duties. Read More

Agencies to Release Guidance On Lifetime Income Streams

The Treasury Department will release “soon” the first in a series of guidance items on providing and encouraging lifetime income options, J. Mark Iwry, senior adviser to Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner and deputy assistant treasury secretary for retirement and health policy, said Oct. 3.

“We’re phasing guidance between Treasury and Labor,” Iwry said at the conference, “Picturing Your Retirement Income,” sponsored by the American Council of Life Insurers, AARP, the American Benefits Council, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the Women’s Institute for a Secure Retirement.
The first guidance items will focus on educating people about the importance of lifetime income streams and annuities, he said. Read More

Do Anti-Christian Comments Create Hostile Environment?

An American defense contractor hired the information systems technologist to work in Germany under a U.S. government defense contract. The employment offer was contingent on his “meeting the Company’s security standards as imposed by the U.S. Government, including the issuance … by the U.S. Government of any necessary security clearance within a reasonable time after [the worker] begin[s] work.” Read More

August Mass Layoffs Idle 165,547 Workers, Most in 19 Months

The number of workers idled in mass layoffs rose to 165,547 in August, an increase of 20,547 from the prior month and the highest total since January 2010, according to seasonally adjusted figures released Sept. 22 by the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. Read More

Did Employer Disregard Its USERRA Obligations?

The employee, a former Marine, re-enlisted in the National Guard in January 2007 and was deployed to Iraq in May 2007. Upon the employee’s return from military duty, he informed the company of his availability to return to work on May 12, 2008.

The company, however, told the employee that it hired someone else to fill his position during his deployment and that it had no available positions for him. The employee in a May 22 letter to the company formally requested reinstatement to his pre-service sprinkler/service sales representative position and notified the company of his intent to report to work on June 30. Read More

Agencies, 11 States Join Forces to Fight Misclassification; IRS Launches Program

The heads of the Labor Department, the Internal Revenue Service, and 11 state agencies Sept. 19 signed an agreement to coordinate their efforts to fight employee misclassification.

Meanwhile, IRS Sept. 21 launched a settlement program to allow employers to reclassify their workers and come into compliance with the tax system at a low cost.
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