Year: 2018

Employees are required to present original documents that demonstrate their identity and employment authorization within three business days of the date the employee begins employment. Copies of the identifying documents is insufficient for compliance. Upon presentation, an employer is required to examine the original documents to determine if they reasonably appear to be genuine and […]

On April 12, 2018, in an effort to provide meaningful compliance assistance to employers, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued three opinion letters and a fact sheet. An opinion letter is an official, written opinion that represents the DOL policy and describes how a particular law applies in specific circumstances presented by the person or […]

At the trial of an EEOC-initiated Title VII sex discrimination lawsuit, a jury awarded damages after finding that the employer had discriminated against the intervenor-plaintiff Contrice Travis when it denied her a promotion in favor of a male employee. In EEOC v. Exel, Inc., the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the district court’s denial of the employer’s […]

On March 7, 2108, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals (which covers Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee) granted summary judgment to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on its claim that a former employee of a funeral home was fired from her job because of her transgender status in violation of Title VII of the […]

On March 6, 2018, the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor has announced that it will soon launch a new pilot program called the Payroll Audit Independent Determination (PAID) program. PAID provides a framework for employers to proactively resolve potential overtime and minimum wage violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act […]

On February 26, 2018, the en banc Second Circuit in Zarda v. Altitude Express joined the Seventh Circuit in concluding that sexual orientation discrimination is a subset of sex discrimination entitled to the protections afforded under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The majority of federal courts have held that Title VII […]

Since 2005, Florida’s minimum wage has been calculated based upon a calculation by the Department of Economic Opportunity (“DEO”) to increase the state minimum wage by the rate of inflation for the prior year. In Florida, the minimum wage does not decrease due to deflation.  The adjusted minimum wage is published each November 15th for […]

On February 15, 2018, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the ADA Education and Reform Act (HB 620). The legislation would require that plaintiffs provide a business the opportunity to comply with the ADA before a lawsuit can be filed. Places of public accommodations, including websites and apps, would have 6 months to bring their […]

Internships can be hugely beneficial to both the businesses who offer them and the students who accept them.  The student gains access to a workplace in a field of interest, valuable work experience in that field, mentoring from experienced professionals and sometimes even academic credit, while the business gets weeks or months of work performed […]