A lot of times, determining whether a worker is an independent contractor or an employee is tough. Different laws have different standards, and government agencies and the courts often apply different tests in addressing this question. Under any test, the analysis is highly fact intensive, and the consequences of misclassification can be steep.
Luckily, the…
As the summer begins to wind down, the first whispers of fall rippling through cool evening breezes are a welcome reminder that school is back in session. That means it’s an opportune time for Pennsylvania’s 500 public school districts and many charter schools to examine their policies governing employee reporting of arrests and convictions and…
In a key decision for many franchisors and franchisees, and others who rely on independent contractors, the National Labor Relations Board recently reinstated its test for examining contractor status. In 2014, the Obama-era NLRB, in a case involving Fed Ex delivery drivers, “refined” its test for examining contractor status. The refinement was really a fundamental…
At the end of 2018, the Superior Court of Delaware held that a terminated employee could proceed with his lawsuit, alleging that his employer terminated him for being a medical marijuana cardholder. Chance v. Kraft Heinz Foods Co. In allowing the suit to move forward, the Delaware Court found that the anti-discrimination language in the…
As explained in Part 1 of this four-part series, we are exploring some of the more recent state law developments addressing sexual harassment in the workplace. Since the #MeToo movement began over a year ago, there have been various reactions from employees, employers and state legislatures. Employees have reacted by filing more internal and external…
While most Americans prepared for the Thanksgiving holiday, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued an opinion that establishes new precedent in the ever-developing area of cybersecurity law, and also limits a longstanding tort doctrine that had previously barred a large subset of negligence claims where the plaintiff claimed only economic loss (not bodily injury or property…
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) has been a fertile area for lawsuits against employers. Recently, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals provided yet another warning for employers regarding compliance with the FCRA. In Long v. SEPTA, the court held that an employer violates the FCRA when it fails to provide a copy of…
There have been a variety of responses to the #MeToo movement since it began a little over a year ago. Employees have responded by filing more internal and external complaints. In fact, in early October the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released its fiscal year 2018 statistics regarding workplace harassment. Among other things, the data…
In March 2016, OSHA published its standards for respirable crystalline silica in general industry/maritime (29 C.F.R. § 1910.1053) and in construction (§ 1926.1153), both of which have been phased in. OSHA has been enforcing the construction standard for about a year (since September 23, 2017), and this summer the standard for general…
If you have followed our blog over the past year, you are aware of the long and tortured history of the National Labor Relations Board’s joint employer standard. The recent history starts with the Obama Board’s decision to overturn decades of case law. But the saga continued.
Just last month, we reported on the…
