Tag: Employment law

Corporate Transparency Act Halted

A federal judge in Texas has instituted a nationwide injunction, halting the enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) and its associated reporting rule, which required “reporting companies” to submit reports to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) detailing the identity of each beneficial owner of the reporting company by January 1, 2025. In Texas Top […]

Good Job Interview? Here’s How to Help Seal the Deal!

Great interview! This is the job for you! Now what? Be strategic and thoughtful, as Art Markman suggests in his insightful article “4 Ways to Follow Up After a Job Interview,” published on November 5, 2020, in the Harvard Business Review. Four Options Always remember that your focus must be on the person who interviewed […]

Tackle This Simpler HR Checklist in the New Year

New Year’s resolutions: Be they professional or personal, simplistic or life-altering, the beginning of the year affords a fantastic—albeit arbitrary—opportunity to effectuate change. Whatever. I’m not great about keeping New Year’s resolutions. I make them. Usually. Sort of. Sometimes I even pick them back up mid-year, but usually they go dormant long before it warms […]

Navigating Immigration Changes in 2025: What to Know After the 2024 Election

As the dust settles from the 2024 U.S. presidential election, businesses with a significant international workforce are bracing for potential shifts in immigration policy. Former President Donald J. Trump’s return to office signals a likely shift toward more restrictive immigration measures, similar to his first administration’s policies and perhaps more expansive. With immigration playing a […]

Employee’s Personal Social Media Account May Create Hostile Work Environment

Workers continue to find new ways to create potential hostile work environment liability for their employers under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In June 2023, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals (whose rulings apply to employers in all the states covered by West Employment Law Letter) held that offensive music […]

Exploring Ways to Deal With Backlash While Still Achieving DEI Goals

Not so long ago, employers enthusiastically touted their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. But then the backlash set in. A growing number of employers–bowing to pressure from people opposed to what they see as “woke” policies–are dismantling their programs or at least being low-key about them. So now, many employers are exploring how they […]

Tips for Employers on What to Do When Weather Disasters Strike

It’s winter, and when the cold winds blow, blizzards, ice storms, and dangerous temperatures often disrupt business. Certainly, bad weather can hit at any time of year, so employers always need to understand their legal obligations. But an organization’s response should go beyond those requirements. Employers also need to know how to help their employees, […]

Circuit

5th Circuit Rules HR’s Discrimination Investigation Is Admissible Evidence

Is an HR investigation into discrimination admissible evidence? A recent case from the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals (the federal appeals court covering Texas) declares the answer is “yes.” But as the expression goes, the devil is in the details. Read on. Claim of No Service Because of Race Sharnez Hager and her family […]

She’s Too Sexy for Her Dress? Flight Attendant Sues for Discrimination, Harassment

Even if an individual employee complies with the dress code, can she be asked to change clothes because she is too distractingly curvaceous? Can she be terminated for inappropriate social media activity, when similarly situated males were not? Was she terminated because she complained about discrimination and harassment, or because she posted risqué pictures while […]

Pay Attention to Employer Considerations Following Wave of 401(k) Forfeiture Lawsuits

Over the past year, numerous employers and their 401(k) plan fiduciaries have faced lawsuits regarding how forfeited employer contributions to their 401(k) plan are used. This wave of lawsuits began approximately a year ago when an employees’ law firm filed putative class action lawsuits raising this novel claim in California federal courts against multiple large […]