Site Map - Legal Issues

11/13/2007 - New EEOC guidelines for the food-services industry, federal legislation proposed on homeland security and identity theft, and noteworthy judicial decisions

11/13/2007 - A jury in a federal district court has awarded a former Federal Express employee $1.57 million in a workplace discrimination case. The jury found Federal Express liable for retaliation against and termination of Ted Maines, a company manager. Maines, who is white, attempted to promote an African-American employee and a Hispanic employee--both longtime Federal Express workers. Senior managers not only rejected Maines' suggestions, they promoted another person--a white female--instead. When Maines complained that he felt the move to be discriminatory, he was demoted five pay grades and was warned that he faced immediate termination for any other "mistake." (EEOC v. Federal Express, Federal District Court for the Middle District of Florida, No. 6:02-CV-1112-ORL-28DAB, 2004)

11/13/2007 - The California Court of Appeal has ruled that it is illegal for an employer to fire an employee on suspicion that the worker might report safety violations to state agencies. In the case, another employee had already been fired after reporting such violations. During the plaintiff's termination, the employer said "I am afraid that you will be the next one to report me." The plaintiff filed suit and won. The court noted that taking action against an employee in anticipation of a complaint is no less retaliatory than action taken after the complaint has been made. (Lujan v. Minagar, California Court of Appeal, No. B170438, 2004)

11/13/2007 - Lawmakers in Maine have enacted a new law (formerly H.B. 735) governing investigators from other states. The new law will allow investigators from other states to act legally in Maine without obtaining a Maine license, but only in certain circumstances.

11/13/2007 - Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) has announced plans to reintroduce identity theft legislation. Feinstein, who serves on the Judiciary Committee, introduced similar legislation in the previous Congress which was approved by the Senate but was not taken up by the House. The legislation would prohibit the sale or display of Social Security numbers to the general public, set national standards for database security, and establish guidelines for companies that send customer information overseas for processing.

11/13/2007 - The New York high court has ruled that an employer who has provided adequate safety devices cannot be sued by an employee who failed to make use of these devices. (Cahill v. The Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, New York Court of Appeals, No. 174, 2004)

11/13/2007 - Case law on workers' compensation and drug testing; congress considers bills on cybercrime, gangs, and infant abduction; and new security laws in Michigan and Ohio.

11/09/2007 - A landlord is responsible for injuries incurred by a third party doing work on his property. In this case, a landlord authorized the tenant to prune the branches on a tree in his yard. A limb fell on the tenant’s daughter causing severe internal injuries. The court found that the landlord is liable for the daughter’s injuries because he should have taken more care in choosing his contractor.

11/09/2007 - A bill (H.B. 1012) that would have allowed certain employers access to expunged criminal records has been defeated in the Arkansas General Assembly. The bill would have allowed companies to access the expunged criminal records of employees and volunteers having direct, unsupervised contact with children. The checks would have been repeated every two years.

11/09/2007 - A bill (H.R. 2015) introduced by Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) would prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity by employers, employment agencies, or labor organizations. The bill would not be applicable to religious groups or the armed forces. If passed, the bill would not preempt or alter existing state laws on the issue.

11/09/2007 - A bill (H.R. 3068) introduced by Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) would prohibit a company owned, controlled, or operated by anyone convicted of a felony from providing contract security guard services for federal government buildings.

11/09/2007 - Two bills (S. 1615 and H.R. 2882) introduced by Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-CT) and Rep. Michael Arcuri (D-NY), respectively, currently pending in Congress would require that all nursing homes install automatic fire sprinkler systems.

11/09/2007 - A federal appeals court has ruled that a pharmacy did not discriminate against a pharmacist when it required him to refer patients and doctors requesting contraceptives to another pharmacist. The court ruled that the pharmacy had already accommodated the employee and that further accommodation would constitute an undue hardship.