Employment Law Blog Posts
Fired Over Facebook Posts? Check Your Rights
May 13, 2013
by Michele Sumara
Employees often get into trouble with their employers for posts on social media sites, and sometimes employees are even fired over Facebook or Twitter posts. While some social media comments can create legal grounds for termination, some social media communications are actually protected by federal labor law. Not all postings on social media sites are treated the same. The substance of the ... more->>
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THE WISCONSIN FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT AND THE FEDERAL FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT - WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE?
February 18, 2013
by Jeffrey Sweetland
This month we observe the 20th anniversary of the enactment of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). That law extended, to employees throughout the United States, FMLA leave rights that Wisconsin employees had already enjoyed for five years under the Wisconsin FMLA.A Wisconsin employee can choose to utilize the Wisconsin FMLA whenever it provides him or her with greater FMLA benefits ... more->>
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I’M DISABLED. WHAT ACCOMMODATIONS CAN I ASK FOR FROM MY EMPLOYER?
December 06, 2012
by Lynn Novotnak
1. What constitutes a “disability”? Under federal law, a disability is a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities (or being regarded as or having a history of being disabled). Under state law, a disability is defined as having a physical or mental impairment that makes achievement unusually difficult or limits the capacity to work (and, like ... more->>
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RETALIATION CLAIMS: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
November 27, 2012
by Colin Good
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for enforcing federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or an employee because of the person's race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information. The EEOC also enforces laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a ... more->>
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I’VE BEEN FIRED AND MY EX-EMPLOYER CLAIMS THAT I COMMITTED FMLA FRAUD. WHAT ARE MY RIGHTS?
November 20, 2012
by Nicholas Fairweather
A recent federal appeals court decision emphasizes the need for employees to be forthright and honest when exercising their rights to leave under the federal Family & Medical Leave Act. In a much-discussed decision – Jaszczyszyn v. Advantage Health Physician Network - the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed an employee’s claim for interference and retaliation under the FMLA. The employee, ... more->>
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PAY VERY CLOSE ATTENTION TO TIME LIMITS….THEY MAY DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT YOUR CLAIM CAN GO FORWARD IN COURT
November 08, 2012
by Katherine Charlton
Time limits matter, and can be determinative of whether or not a claim is heard by a court. The District IV Court of Appeals recently considered when a 60-day period for filing an action in circuit court began to run. Hoague v. Kraft Foods Global, Inc., Cir. Ct. No. 2011CV3641, was decided by the Court of Appeals on October 25 2012.Hoague was a former employee of Kraft Foods Global (Kraft). ... more->>
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SCHRODER RECEIVES FELLOWSHIP FROM THE AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION
November 02, 2012
Hawks Quindel is pleased to announce that the American Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Law Section selected Attorney Danielle Schroder to participate in the Young Lawyer’s Division Fellowship Program. Ms. Schroder will serve as a member of the Equal Employment Opportunity Committee for a two-year term, and she will attend the 2013 National Conference on Equal Employment Opportunity Law in ... more->>
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WHAT IS THE LILLY LEDBETTER FAIR PAY ACT & WHY MIGHT IT MATTER TO YOU?
October 22, 2012
by Richard Saks
If you watched or read about the Presidential debates, you heard President Obama tout the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 as an important step toward pay fairness for women. What is the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and why might it help women achieve equal pay in the workplace?Six months before her retirement, Lilly Ledbetter sued her employer, Goodyear Tire and Rubber for gender ... more->>
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CAN I BE FIRED FOR COMPLAINING ABOUT MY BOSS TO OTHER EMPLOYEES?
October 17, 2012
by Barbara Zack Quindel
Under the National Labor Relations Act, employees have the right to engage in protected “concerted activity” – whether or not they are in a union. This includes bringing group complaints to the attention of management. If an employee is disciplined or terminated for engaging in such activity, a claim can be made with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).In a case decided this year by an NLRB... more->>
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CLASS CERTIFICATION IN EMPLOYMENT CASES AFTER DUKES IN THE 7TH CIRCUIT
October 03, 2012
by David Zoeller
The United States Supreme Court recently denied Defendants’ request for review of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals’ grant of class certification in McReynolds v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc., 672 F.3d 482 (7th Cir. 2012). This leaves in place the Seventh Circuit’s interpretation of the Supreme Court’s decision in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes, 131 S. Ct. 2541 (2011), and ... more->>
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