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Now that Sacramento lawmakers have wrapped up the 2001-2002 legislative session, several employment-related measures sit on Gov. Davis’ desk, awaiting his signature or veto. Among the bills Davis is considering are measures that would establish a paid family leave program, prohibit mandatory arbitration, and create new penalties for health and safety violations.
The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railroad Company will pay $2.2 million to settle a genetic testing lawsuit filed by the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The EEOC charged that Burlington Northern conducted genetic testing as part of a medical exam required of employees who had filed work-related carpal tunnel syndrome claims. Burlington Northern agreed […]
McKesson Water Products Co., a drinking water processing and delivery company, and Groupe Danone (which recently acquired McKesson) will pay $1.2 million to settle a race bias class action lawsuit brought by the EEOC. The lawsuit charged that African-American drivers were assigned to water delivery routes in low-income communities, which were less profitable than routes […]
Because of recent national events, many employers have been developing or revising their emergency procedures to help ensure that employees can be evacuated safely. One issue that arises is that some employees with medical conditions may need special assistance in an emergency. To help you plan more effectively to help these workers, the federal Equal […]
The U.S. Supreme Court has handed down a ruling that permits the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to sue you for job discrimination, even if the employee has signed a mandatory arbitration agreement. We’ll explain this new ruling and its impact.
California employers have long faced complex discrimination issues because of the state’s diverse population. And now a recently enacted state law imposes new restrictions on employers’ ability to set workplace language rules. Language Restrictions Must Be Justified Under the new measure, A.B. 800, it’s illegal to adopt or enforce a policy that limits or prohibits […]
Many employers don’t know they may have Americans with Disabilities Act obligations when they hire temps or other contingent workers through a staffing agency. New Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidelines hold employers and staffing agencies—including temporary employment agencies, contract firms and employee leasing companies—jointly responsible for ADA compliance. Employment Offers And Disability-Related Questions The staffing […]
An Alameda County Superior Court judge has certified a class action lawsuit on behalf of as many as 10,000 women who claim they were passed over for promotions and paid less than male colleagues at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. An attorney representing the scientists estimated that the employer may face damages of more than $250 […]
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently issued new guidelines explaining how federal employment discrimination laws apply to employee benefits. Last month we examined the rules regarding age discrimination. This month we look at the EEOC guidelines dealing with disability and pregnancy discrimination.
A record damage award levied against a telephone company that tried to prevent operators from speaking Spanish to each other in the workplace underscores the risks of enforcing English-only policies. Faced with this increasingly common type of bias case, a federal court has concluded that the language restriction amounted to illegal discrimination based on national […]