by Stephen D. Hans | Mar 19, 2024 | NLRB Upholds Worker's Right
Agency Says Home Depot Violated Federal Labor Law by Firing Employee Pursuant to a ruling from the National Labor Relations Board, an employee’s right to “engage in concerted activities for mutual aid or protection” is protected under federal labor law. That includes a worker’s decision to protest racial discrimination in the workplace. The NLRB ruling involved a worker at Home Depot who drew the letters “BLM,” representing the social justice movement Black Lives Matter, on his work apron. The employee said that he did so both in response to actual racial discrimination in the workplace and in an effort to bring the wrongful conduct to the attention of management. The Rights of Workers to Improve Working Conditions Whether or not a worker may display social justice banners, decals or insignia on clothing or wear social justice themed clothing at work has been a significant issue since the Black Lives Matter movement came to national prominence after the death of George Floyd in May, 2020. Many employers, including American Airlines and Delta Airlines, have voluntarily committed to allowing employees to sport BLM and other social justice pins, insignia and clothing. Famously, Starbucks initially banned the practice, but later reversed its position, even going so far as providing 250,000 BLM tee shirts to its employees. In its ruling, the NLRB cited the “well-established” rule “that workers have the right to join together to improve their working conditions.” The board found protesting racial discrimination on the job to constitute an attempt to improve working conditions. The board also held that employees have such a right regardless of whether they belong to a...
by Stephen D. Hans | Mar 12, 2024 | age discrimination
Fair Treatment of Older Workers Can Improve Your Bottom Line Older employees typically offer benefits to a company, but those benefits come at a cost. Most long-term employees have higher pay rates and they tend to have more health problems. As a consequence, many employers may lean, intentionally or involuntarily, toward hiring younger workers and squeezing out older employees. That’s a practice that can be fraught with peril. Here are some of the reasons it can be to your benefit to be intentional in your employment practices as they relate to the age of your workers. Defending an Age Discrimination Lawsuit Can Be Costly The federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) provides certain protections for Americans over the age of 40. Like other anti-discrimination statutes, it typically falls under the purview of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Historically, though, the EEOC has focused more of its efforts on other types of discrimination, but industry watchdogs say that is changing. They say that older workers are far more savvy today than they were 20-30 years ago, and are far more willing to take legal action to protect their rights. Age Discrimination Sends the Wrong Message to Younger Employees Experts also say that policies and practices that either overtly or unintentionally favor younger workers over seasoned employees send a message to the younger workers that their value will decrease as they get older. As a consequence, those younger workers have little sense of commitment or loyalty. That in turn translates to less motivation to be productive, as they see themselves being replaced by younger workers when they get closer...
by Stephen D. Hans | Mar 5, 2024 | Stephen D. Hans & Associates
City Commission on Human Rights Files Complaints to Ensure Compliance In 2022, New York City passed a law making it an “unlawful discriminatory practice” under the city’s Human Rights Law for employers to post or advertise any job or employment opportunity without including the expected salary range in the advertisement. Any such advertisement must clearly state the lowest and highest pay rates the employer in good faith expects to pay at the time the advertisement is posted. The New York City pay transparency law echoes a legislative trend that started gradually a few years ago, but has gained significant traction over the past three to four years. There are now pay transparency laws that apply to contractors and subcontractors on federal job. In 2023, the state of New York joined California, Rhode Island, Illinois, Washington and Hawaii in enacting statewide pay transparency laws. Michigan, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Washington, DC are poised to add similar legislation in 2024. In 2023, the Commission on Human Rights cited more than 30 employers for alleged violation of the law, including some prominent online job forums, such as CareerBuilder.com and Monster.com. Thus far, New York City officials have not levied fines against any of the infringing companies, seeking instead to try to bring them into compliance. Spokespersons for the job search websites say they often receive postings that do not include the required language to comply with the pay transparency laws. In the past, many of the online job search sites would estimate pay ranges in an attempt to comply. Industry officials say that practice has generally been abandoned. In addition, most online...
by Stephen D. Hans | Feb 26, 2024 | Stephen D. Hans & Associates
Employment Law Attorneys with More than Four Decades of Experience | Advocating for Owners and Management at Small and Mid-Sized Businesses throughout the New York City Metropolitan Area At the law office of Stephen D. Hans & Associates, located in Long Island City, we have provided comprehensive employment and labor law counsel to small and mid-sized companies in and around New York City and its five boroughs since 1977. We understand the challenges that businesses face every day and we’ll help you take proactive measures to minimize the risk of legal controversies. In our comprehensive employment and labor law practice, we handle: The defense of any allegations of workplace discrimination or harassment All matters related to whistleblower or workplace retaliation claims, including any litigation arising out of such allegations All issues related to compliance with wage and hour laws, including any litigation arising out of employee disputes All proceedings, hearings, meetings or interactions with U.S. or New York state departments of labor Any union or collective bargaining controversies, including the negotiation and implementation of collective bargaining agreements, as well as union grievances and arbitration proceedings We counsel and advise businesses on a broad range of employment and labor law concerns, such as: Employment and severance agreements—We will negotiate, draft and review all contracts with employees, including potential severance agreements Human resources compliance—We can conduct a human resources audit, make recommendations for compliance and prepare all necessary documents or manuals to minimize any potential human resources compliance issues We can advise you on a broad range of employment law issues, from FMLA concerns to workplace safety to compliance with a...
by Stephen D. Hans | Feb 23, 2024 | Non Union Shops
National Labor Relations Act Applies to Both Union and Non-Union Shops There’s a common misperception among employers the rules and regulations set forth in the National Labor Relations Act cover only companies that have union employees. While the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has customarily given more scrutiny to companies with union employees, and while the NLRA is typically thought of as the federal law that guarantees rights with respect to unionizing and collective bargaining, there are nonetheless areas where the NLRA poses concerns for non-union shops. Given the NLRB’s recent move toward a broader application of the law, it’s important for all employers to be vigilant. The Application of the National Labor Relations Act The provisions of the NLRA apply to most private sector employers and guarantee the right of workers to engage in “concerted activities” that include not only collective bargaining, but “other mutual aid or protection.” That can include any efforts by two or more employees to address conditions of employment, such as wages, benefits, work schedules or other working conditions. An employer may not take any action to “interfere with, restrain or coerce” workers who try to exercise those rights. Threats, disciplinary actions, workplace rules and promises of benefits to workers can constitute interference under the law. A common tool that employers use—the non-disparagement clause—has been determined by the general counsel for the NLRB to carry the potential for violating an employee’s rights under the NLRA. A recent ruling by NLRB counsel suggests that only a “narrowly-tailored” non-disparagement clause that prohibits statements that are maliciously untrue will avoid violation of an employee’s rights under the...
