Retail Labor and Employment Law

Retail Labor and Employment Law

News, Updates, and Insights for Retail Employers

Category Archives: Employment Litigation

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Posted on by Epstein Becker & Green, P.C.

New York City Raises the Bar for Employers to Show ‘Undue Hardship’ in Addressing Employees’ Religious Accommodation

by Susan Gross Sholinsky, Dean L. Silverberg, Steven M. Swirsky, and Jennifer A. Goldman

New York City employers take note: under the New York City Human Rights Law (“NYCHRL”), it is now considerably more difficult for employers to establish “undue hardship” in the context of denying an employee’s request for a reasonable accommodation due to his or her religious observance or practice. While previously silent on the issue, the NYCHRL now includes a definition of the term “undue hardship,” as follows: “an accommodation requiring significant expense or difficulty (including a significant interference with the safe or efficient … Continue Reading

Posted on by Epstein Becker & Green, P.C.

Law Moving in Right Direction for “Half-Time” Method of Calculating Damages in FLSA Overtime Cases

By: John F. Fullerton III and Douglas Weiner

The current prevalence of lawsuits for unpaid overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) by employees who claim they were misclassified by their current or former employer as “exempt” from overtime has been well-documented.  These lawsuits continue to present challenges to employers, not just in terms of the burdens and costs of defending the cases, but in the uncertainty of the potential financial exposure. As our colleagues have previously reported (here and here), there are two methods in which the employees can be compensated for the allegedly unpaid … Continue Reading

Posted on by Epstein Becker & Green, P.C.

New Regulations Make ADA Claims More Accessible

by Teiko Shigezumi and Carrie Corcoran

The EEOC recently published its long-awaited final regulations (the “Regulations”) and interpretive guidance for the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (the “ADAAA”), which became effective on January 1, 2009.  The Regulations significantly alter the analysis of “disability” under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“the “ADA”) and reflect Congress’ intention to expand the ADA’s coverage.  The ADAAA retained the ADA’s definition of “disability” as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; a record (or past history) of such an impairment; or being regarded as having a disability. … Continue Reading

Posted on by Peter M. Panken

Why Doesn’t the Supreme Court Provide a Pathway Through the Morass of Retaliation Law?

The EEOC has reported that it receives more charges of retaliation than any other type of employment discrimination charge, and that there are thousands of cases involving allegations of illegal retaliation filed every year.  Retaliation is often prohibited by statute, but the Supreme Court has expanded the scope of actionable retaliation lately, holding that there was a cause of action for retaliation even though the statute in question did not expressly cover the situation at issue.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) prohibits discrimination against an employee “because such employee has filed any complaint” under the Act.  In Kasten v.… Continue Reading

Posted on by Peter M. Panken

Be Prepared for New EEOC Enforcement Efforts

At the recent ALI-ABA program on Advanced Employment Law and Litigation, two high level officials of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission spoke on the major issues that will face employers at their agency this year.

One emphasis will be in the field of disability discrimination. The EEOC has issued new regulations which auger an increase in claims and cases in this area.  The definition of disability is now so broad that there may be few employees who do not reach that threshold, whether the disability is temporary, or the employee has recovered or is “regarded as” having the disability.  The … Continue Reading

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