Ten Common Ways Employers Illegally Deny Employees Overtime
Employers Do Not Pay Salaried Employees Overtime Most employees believe that if they are salaried, they are not entitled to overtime. This is simply not true. Whether an employee is entitled to overtime is based on the job duties the employee performs — not how the employee is paid.
Emp…
Fair Labor Standards Act
In an age of global economic change and dramatic alteration of the American work force, the Fair Labor Standards Act still stands as the preeminent tool for enforcing and protecting the rights and wages of employees. The Fair Labor Standards Act is a federal law that requires employers to keep ac…
What Are the Legal Responsibilities of Your Human Resources Department?
In many companies, the Human Resources (HR) department may not garner much respect. Perceptions about HR may include feelings that HR is...
Wage Theft Explained
If you put in the hours for an employer, you deserve to be paid for your time and effort, both from a moral and a legal standpoint. The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) explains it in black and white – American employees must make at least minimum wage for every hour they work, and in man…
Working with Cancer: What Are Your Rights?
Cancer is serious business. Even when cancer treatment successfully halts the disease, the recovery process can take months or years. In the meantime, cancer patients may have difficulty maintaining a normal lifestyle. The burdens of coping with cancer and/or cancer recovery may impact day-to-day…
What Is Maternity Leave?
For any parent, the arrival of a new child means a significant change in daily routine, possibly at work as well as at home. A lot of new parents are forced to rearrange work schedules to accommodate the new or expanded role as caregiver. This may include taking a temporary leave from the workpla…
Articles on Sex and Gender Discrimination in the Workplace
EEOC’s First Lawsuit to Protect Rights of Transgender Workers
Transgender Employee Issues
Gender Identity and Transgender Restroom Conflicts at Work and in Society
Handling Transgender Issues in the Worplace
Protecting the Rights of Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming Employees
Employee Di…
EEOC Files 3 New Pregnancy Discrimination Cases in August
Vigilant and diligent about enforcing federal anti-discrimination laws, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has filed three new pregnancy discrimination cases within the month of August. These cases, the defendants of which are companies based in Arizona, Maryland and Texas, e…
Reasons for Illegal Termination in Cobb County
Georgia is an at-will employment state, which means as long as you don’t have a contract in place, you can leave your job whenever you want. In turn, your employer has the right to terminate your position at any time and without any notice as long as that reason is not unlawful. Unfortunately, he…
What Makes a Workplace ADA-Compliant?
The Americans with Disabilities Act (signed in 1990, amended in 2008) is an important piece of legislation with far-reaching implications for employers and employees alike. There is no doubt that it has played—and continues to play—a fundamental role in protecting the rights of disabled persons w…
When Do You Have to Inform Your Employer About Your Disability?
For individuals suffering from physical or mental disability, maintaining employment and reaching full potential can be challenging. Employers and coworkers may be apathetic about the unique problems that disabled employees have in the workplace. Disabled employees may even face accusations that …
What is Maternity Leave and Do You Qualify?
The United States prides itself on its family values. But when compared to other industrialized countries – and even developing countries – its respect of maternity leave is at the bottom of the list. In fact, the U.S. is the only high-income nation that doesn’t offer paid maternity leave, placin…
Rates of Dismissal by Summary Judgement in Employment Discrimination Cases
This study was a featured article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Oct 18, 2013. Read the original article.
Justice at Work is an ongoing initiative with the primary purpose of protecting litigants’ rights to a trial by a jury of their peers. In an effort to further enhance Justice at Work…
Should Religion Be an Excuse for Carrying Daggers?
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 provides employees with a generous array of protections when it comes to religious expression and observance in the office. It forbids harassment or discrimination based on religion, such as denial of promotions. It also requires employers to ensure that…
What Is Meant by “Reasonable Accommodations” for Employees?
One of the crucial elements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the requirement it imposes on employers to provide workers with “reasonable accommodations” for mental or physical disability. This means that companies may need to make modifications to the work environment and/or employ…
Employees and Religious Holidays
As we make our way through the calendar year, a number of holidays come into play – not all of which are of equal importance to everyone. How many of us give a thought to our military on Veterans Day? Religious holidays do tend to command our attention, however, and this is true of the devout and…
Workplace Rights You Think You Have-But You Don’t
As a nation, Americans love to talk about their right to do just about whatever they please. We go where we want to go, say what we want to say, wear what we want to wear—and anyone who contradicts us on this topic is likely to receive an earful. It’s only natural to assume that the constitutiona…
Why Employers Should Take Pregnancy Discrimination Seriously
Pregnancy is a condition that has major repercussions across all aspects of a woman’s life, including employment. Pregnant women can face multiple obstacles in the workplace, from difficulty performing customary duties to unfairly denied promotions. There is good news, however: the law forbids bu…
What You Need to Know About Paid Leave
Most people pride themselves on being reasonably productive as employees, whether they work at a coffee shop or a Fortune 500 company. Yet, no matter how dedicated we may be to our jobs, life sometimes gets in the way of working a full 40-hour week. We may get sick, get summoned for jury duty, or…
Paternity Leave and the Options for Dads
The birth of a child is a major event in a couple’s life. It’s only natural that the arrival of a child often leads parents to reevaluate their priorities—there’s a brand-new individual on the block they need to worry about. Understandably, many parents prefer to spend some quality time with thei…
Signs of Ageism
Older workers can offer a wealth of skills and knowledge to the contemporary workplace. In general, they’re more experienced and more emotionally mature than their younger counterparts. They’ve been through a lot over the years, and they’re often quite adept at avoiding or resolving interpersonal…
The History of Women & Equality in the Workplace
Contrary to widespread belief, women have been employed outside the home well before the advent of modern times. It is true, however, that the scope of their employment has been subject to dramatic changes over the centuries. Often, the progress made by one generation was scaled back in the next,…
Millennial Employees More Likely to Recognize Discrimination in the Workplace
It seems as though every generation spends time fretting about their successors—that is, the people who will one day replace them as society’s movers and shakers. The so-called “Greatest Generation” of World War II gave way to “Baby Boomers” who shaped the ’60s culture. The Boomers in turn handed…
Politics in the Workplace
Considering the highly contentious and unusually colorful nature of the 2016 presidential election, it’s likely that political discussions in the workplace occupied an unprecedented number of man-hours. It’s equally likely that political gossip and arguments among coworkers can rightly be blamed …