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Karla Jameson was a server for the upscale Five Feet restaurant in Laguna Beach. The restaurant required servers to give 10 percent of their nightly tips to the floor manager. The floor manager supervised the servers, acted as host, greeted customers, set up the reservation sheet and seating arrangement, and assisted in servicing tables. Jameson […]
For more than 10 years, Pamela “P.J.” Harper was director of the legislative travel office, arranging air flights for Sacramento lawmakers. But shortly after returning from maternity leave, she resigned and filed suit against the State Assembly. The problem? Harper claimed she was demoted for taking time during the workday to breastfeed her infant daughter.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has announced the implementation of a voluntary mediation pilot program in which private-sector bias charges filed with the EEOC will be referred back to an employer’s internal dispute resolution program. To participate, the dispute resolution program must be voluntary and free to employees.
When Municipal Resource Consultants (MRC) tried to compel former employee Nicholas O’Hare to arbitrate a wrongful discharge and age-bias lawsuit, O’Hare contended the mandatory arbitration provision he signed wasn’t fair. The agreement required him to arbitrate all claims against the company, while it permitted MRC to file a lawsuit against him for injunctive relief. A […]
Orange-based Bergen Brunswig Corp. dashed off a settlement offer to its former president, Donald Roden, to resolve a wrongful-discharge lawsuit. Theoffer stated only that Roden would receive a $5 million lump sum plus attorney’s fees, and his retirement and other benefits would be continued. After Roden signed the agreement, Bergen Brunswig claimed it had intended for Roden’s […]
A recent verdict provides a good reminder ofwhy it’s important to listen to and follow up on employee complaints. A juryawarded maintenance technician Bob Haist $500,000 on his clam that his managerat Chula Vista–based Goodrich Aerostructures slandered him by accusing him infront of his co-workers of stealing from the company. Haist’s co-workers alsoallegedly watched managers […]
Since 1992, according to the U.S. Bureau ofLabor Statistics, the number of lost workdays because of work-related injuriesand illnesses has steadily declined. The decrease from 2000 to 2001 was 7.6percent. And strains and sprains, which generally account forabout four out of 10 injuries involving lost workdays, declined by 34.5 percentfrom 1992 to 2001.
The California Supreme Court has decided that its landmark ruling in 2000 that required mandatory arbitration agreements to contain certain fairness protections for employees isn’t just limited to discrimination and harassment claims. We’ll explain the court’s new opinion.
Over the last few years, the U.S. Supreme Court has issued several rulings narrowing the definition of what constitutes a disability under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Now, the California Supreme Court has ruled that California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) affords workers broader protections than the ADA.
Federal lawmakers are currently debating a variety of bills that could affect the workplace. Here’s a rundown of what’s on the table.