On August 19, 2020, in a 2-1 decision, the 9th Circuit affirmed a Washington District Court’s decision rejecting Amazon.com Inc.’s plea to arbitrate wage claims brought by a class action of Amazon drivers alleging they were misclassified as independent contractors as opposed to employees. The 9th Circuit found that the Amazon drivers were in fact […]
On August 17, 2020, a New York federal court granted a preliminary injunction blocking the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) from rolling back anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ patients. On June 12, 2020, HHS issued new rules governing health programs administered by federal agencies or with the help of federal financial assistance. Specifically, […]
On August 13, 2020, Senate Democrats announced the framework for a College Athletes’ Bill of Rights seeking to “guarantee fair and equitable compensation, enforceable safety standards, and improved educational opportunities for all college athletes.” This landmark proposal confronts unjust policies enacted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”) restricting college athletes from receiving compensation for […]
On July 16th, 2020, at approximately 4:20 p.m. one construction worker died and three others were hurt when a section of a 12-story building’s parapet – located on East 36th Street near Lexington Avenue in Murray Hill – fell from the top of the building on workers below. Specifically, two workers were on a movable […]
On July 14, 2020, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed the Healthy Families and Workplaces Act (“Act”), guaranteeing paid sick leave to Colorado workers. Colorado joins 12 other states, including New York, and Washington, D.C. in enacting legislation that requires businesses to provide job-protected paid leave to its employees. As of January 1, 2021, businesses (with […]
On July 1, 2020, workers in many cities and states across the country are obtaining stronger wage protections. The hourly minimum wage rate that employers must pay their employees is set to increase in several states including Illinois, Nevada, and Oregon, as well as in various cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, San Francisco, […]
While non-essential businesses across the United States are now beginning to re-open, workers at grocery stores, department stores, pharmacies, parcel delivery services, and other essential businesses have been reporting to work for months, forced onto the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic and constantly putting their health at risk. In some cases, these essential workers have […]
On June 15, 2020, in a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects gay, lesbian, and transgender employees from discrimination based on sex in the workplace. The historic decision is a blow to the Trump administration, which sided with the employers in the three consolidated […]
On June 11, 2020, Justice Kalish of the New York Supreme Court, New York County, approved a $462,500 settlement for a class of restaurant workers asserting minimum wage and tip credit violations. The settlement provides for a complete 100% recovery of all economic damages claimed by class members. See Reeves, et al. v. La Pecora […]
As citizens across the United States continue to shelter in place to slow the spread of the novel Coronavirus, workers at grocery stores, department stores, pharmacies, parcel delivery services, and other essential businesses have been forced onto the frontlines, constantly putting their health at risk. In some cases, these essential workers do so without adequate […]
On May 27, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (“EEOC”) office in New York, headed by Deputy Director Judy Keenan, revealed that the most prevalent employment claims relating to the COVID-19 pandemic concern employees’ rights for reasonable accommodations under the Americans with Discriminations Act (“ADA”). Foreseeably, many of these claims are brought by workers […]
On May 7, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) updated its guidelines allowing employers to bar workers with underlying medical conditions from the workplace during the COVID-19 if, after a rigid “individualized assessment,” the employer concludes the employee’s condition poses a “direct threat” to his or her own health if they contract the […]
Don’t face workplace injustice alone. Our team is ready to listen, advise, and fight for your rights. Contact us today for a confidential, no-obligation consultation.