The U.S. Department of Labor announced its final rule setting a new salary threshold for the “white collar” (executive, administrative, and professional) overtime exemptions. As of January 1, 2020, employees in these categories will have to earn at least $35,468 annually ($684 per week) to be exempt from overtime requirements. No changes were made to…
Last week, Uber announced the firing of at least 20 employees, resulting from an investigation of 215 harassment complaints at the company. Then, on June 13, its chief executive, Travis Kalanick, announced he would be taking a leave of absence. Not long ago, Fox News fired its now-deceased CEO, Roger Ailes, after he and other…
We are pleased to announce that Pullman & Comley will be hosting our annual Labor & Employment Law seminar this April in Trumbull, offering our perspective on developments over the past year and what the Trump Administration, and the 2017 session of the Connecticut General Assembly, may mean for Connecticut employers. The seminar is open to…
Judge Amos Mazzant, the President Obama-appointed federal judge sitting in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, issued a decision on November 22, 2016, granting an emergency injunction against the United States Labor Department’s overtime rule. The rule, previously set to take effect Dec. 1, doubles (to $47,476) the salary threshold for…
We are pleased to announce that Pullman & Comley will be hosting our annual Labor & Employment Law seminar this December in Hartford, offering our perspective on developments over the past year and what to expect in 2017. Up to five CPE credits are available to seminar attendees who complete all sessions. Thursday, December 8,…
Now that Massachusetts has barred its employers from asking job applicants about salary information (https://malegislature.gov/Bills/189/House/H4509 ), and Connecticut has joined the “Ban the Box” trend (prohibiting employers from asking applicants about arrests and convictions in an initial job application), and since many businesses still do not understand either the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act’s requirements…
We are pleased to announce the addition of Melinda B. Kaufmann to the firm’s Labor, Employment Law & Employee Benefits Department. Ms. Kaufmann practices in the areas of labor and employment and education law. She advises boards of education on all aspects of their operations, including special education, bullying whistleblowing claims, Freedom of Information Act…
Connecticut may have one more legislative restriction on noncompetition agreements to join the prohibitions of noncompetes on security guards and radio and TV personalities (and lawyers, but that is not a legislative prohibition). On May 4, 2016, the Connecticut General Assembly passed a bill restricting noncompetition covenants for physicians to one year and fifteen miles…
Pullman & Comley is pleased to continue its annual seminar on labor and employment law with a program that offers Connecticut businesses practical, real world tactics to address the many labor and employment and employee benefits issues they face today. Topics that will be covered include: Responding to a Retaliation, Discrimination or Harassment Claim The…
Pullman & Comley is pleased to announce that it is once again holding its annual, comprehensive labor and employment and employee benefits seminar on December 11 at The Hartford Club. Connecticut Business and Industry Association Chief Economist Pete Gioia will be the keynote speaker for the event at 8:35 a.m. Topics this year will include…
The travesty of the latest workplace violence – a shooting on September 23, 2014 at UPS’s Birmingham Alabama facility and the beheading at a Vaughan Foods plant in Oklahoma – is a reminder that all employers must be vigilant to protect their employees, customers and vendors from potential workplace violence, whether from an employee or…
Clients often call with questions regarding their need to provide accommodations to pregnant women. In fact, I received such a call last week and was working through a particularly complicated issue when the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued new guidelines yesterday attempting to clarify how employers must accommodate employees with pregnancy-related disabilities. While pregnancy accommodation…
Important amendments to the Connecticut Paid Sick Leave Act were included in this year’s legislation passed by the Legislature and expected to be signed by Governor Malloy. It is now illegal for an employer to “terminate” or “dismiss” (the law does not explain the difference) any employee or “transfer any employee from one work site…
Unfortunately, the usual answer is no. After being sued by an employee for discrimination without a scintilla of evidence to support the claim, clients often ask “Can we countersue the employee for attorney’s fees?” The majority of the time, the answer is “No.” That said, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does…
We are pleased to announce that Paul Lambert of 360 Corporate Benefit Advisors, an independent employee benefits consulting agency with specific expertise in health and welfare consulting, will be the lunchtime speaker at our upcoming seminar on March 14. His topic is The Affordable Care Act—A View from Ground Zero. Paul will cover how the…
