The Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers for May show the national unemployment rate reaching a 26 year high to 9.4% up from 8.9% in April. The number of unemployed persons increased by 787,000 to 14.5 million. Since the start of the recession in December 2007, the number of unemployed persons has risen by
Employment Law implications of Obesity and BMI after the ADA Amendments Act
The ADA Amendments Act re-wrote the definition of disability so that it will likely include obesity-related health conditions and perhaps obesity itself as a protected disability. Before the ADA Amendments, being overweight and even obese was not generally considered a "disability". For example in EEOC v. Watkins Motor Lines, Inc., a court determined that
Jon & Kate Plus 8 Reality TV Show faces Child Labor Investigation
The Gosselin Family, which has been the center of a media attention in recent weeks, is reportedly under investigation by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry for child labor law violations stemming from their children’s appearance on the reality TV show "Jon & Kate Plus 8". Much of the reality show is
President Obama selects Sonia Sotomayor as Supreme Court Nominee
Judge Sotomayor’s resume is summarized by CNN and her most notable opinions are compiled by the New York Times. Judge Sotomayor’s most significant employment-related decision came in Ricci v. DeStefano which is now before the United States Supreme Court. Ricci is a discrimination case brought by white firefighters after the city threw out results of a
Lessons Learned from the almost Pandemic: 2009 Novel Influenza A H1N1 a/k/a Swine Flu
The swine flu is thankfully less severe than anticipated and certainly not the "pandemic" that was feared and even predicted. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports at least 5,469 cases of swine flu in the United States with Pennsylvania accounting for 55 cases. Six deaths are linked to the outbreak. The CDC continues
Healthy Families Act: Proposed Legislation Mandates Seven Days of Paid Time Off
Representative DeLauro introduced the Healthy Families Act (H.R. 2460) which would require businesses with 15 or more employees to provide up to seven days of annual paid sick leave. The paid leave could be taken to attend to an employee’s own or a family member’s illness, or used for preventative care such as
April Unemployment up to 8.9%
The Department of Labor released unemployment data on April’s unemployment rates. The unemployment rate rose to 8.9 percent, and the number of unemployed persons increased by 563,000 to 13.7 million in April. Over the past 12 months, the number of unemployed persons has risen by 6.0 million, and the unemployment rate has grown by 3.9 percentage points. The
Business Preparedness: Pennsylvania Employer’s Guide to Pandemic Resources
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reports that as of April 28, 2009, there are no reported cases of swine influenza A (H1N1) virus infection in Pennsylvania. However, the Center for Control reports 91 laboratory confirmed cases in the United States and tragically the first U.S. fatality.
Best practices for Human Resources should involve planning for business
EFCA Resurrected: Pennsylvania Senator Specter switches Political Parties
Veteran Republican Senator Arlen Specter disclosed plans Tuesday to switch parties, a defection that will move Democrats closer to total control of the U.S. Senate. The switch may also revive EFCA in its original form despite Senator Specter’s withdraw of support for the pro-union legislation last month. Senator Specter faces a difficult primary in Pennsylvania.
Senator
E-Verify Federal Contractor Rule Delayed until June 30, 2009
The applicability date of the final rule requiring federal contractors and subcontractors to begin using U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) E-Verify system has been pushed back by six weeks to June 30, 2009, with hint that it may be abandoned or revised. The USCIS website contains the following notice:
The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council