United States: No End In Sight For Wave Of Paid Family And Sick Leave Laws

Employers have been scrambling to keep up with the multitude of paid sick leave laws that were passed in the last several years. These laws vary by jurisdiction and often can’t be easily reconciled into a uniform policy — an issue for multi-state employers. As reported in today’s New York Times, President Obama is asking Congress to pass the Healthy Families Act, under which employees could earn one hour of paid sick time for […]

By | January 16th, 2015 ||

United States: ConAgra Foods Defeats Challenge To Its Executive Exemption Classification In FLSA Class Action

A federal judge in Arkansas granted summary judgment for ConAgra Foods in a collective action brought by a group of departmental Team Leaders who alleged ConAgra misclassified them as exempt and denied them overtime pay in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. In Garrison v. ConAgra Foods, the court determined that the Team Leaders’ job duties satisfied the four-part test for the FLSA’s “executive exemption,” including the requirement that the employer gave […]

By | January 15th, 2015 ||

Beyond U.S. Citizens And Lawful Permanent Residents: Are Other Classes Of Individuals Legally Authorized To Work Protected From Employment Discrimination?

In a novel case, a New York federal court judge recently denied an employer’s motion to dismiss a Section 1981 alienage discrimination class action lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company violated that Act by implementing a policy of hiring only U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents.

Background

In Juarez v. Northwestern Mut. Life Ins. Co., the plaintiff, Ruben Juarez, a Mexican national living in New York City was a Deferred Action for […]

By | January 15th, 2015 ||