Discipline & Termination

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As employment lawyers based in California are well aware that post-employment non-compete agreements are generally void as a matter of law in this state. Further, there is precedent for awarding punitive damages and disgorgement of profits where employers have knowingly required employees to enter into invalid agreements. Also, the DOL has actively pursued California-based companies engaging in anti-competitive practices when it comes to talent.

Against that backdrop, however, employers need not “throw in the towel” completely when it comes to post-termination restrictive covenants as there are a few narrow scenarios that allow for enforceable post-termination non-competes in California in the right circumstances, and a potential new take on an old strategy to consider.Continue Reading Can Employers Use The California Labor Code To Protect Company Assets?

New York state just released draft guidance and models for employers to comply with the state’s new sexual harassment prevention policy and training requirements, which go into effect on October 9, 2018. The state is encouraging comments from the public, employers and employees through September 12, 2018, which can be submitted through the state’s website.Continue Reading New York State Releases Proposed Sexual Harassment Prevention Guidance

A recent decision by the National Labor Relations Board left experienced labor practitioners scratching their heads. In Tschiggfrie Properties Ltd. v. NLRB, a three-member panel of the Eighth Circuit did more.

The panel vacated the NLRB’s decision in a case involving an employee who was fired for abusing his employer’s Wi-Fi and for sleeping

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Recent guidance issued by the NLRB General Counsel Peter Robb, the NLRB’s chief prosecutor, is a continuing testament to the NLRB’s impact on the changing legal landscape regarding workplace rules. On June 6, 2018, Peter Robb issued a 20-page Memorandum to the NLRB Regional Offices titled “Guidance on Handbook Rules Post-Boeing.”Continue Reading The NLRB Issues Useful Guidance Providing Additional Clarity On Work Rules

Embracing mediation as a way to avoid litigation is not a sure-fire solution as one employer recently learned. See Unite Here Local 30 v. Volume Services, Inc., No. 16-55528 (9th Cir. January 26, 2018). Mediation is often employed as an alternative method of dispute resolution for its perceived advantages over traditional lawsuits (e.g. it can be quicker, less expensive and less formal than a court-driven process). For these reasons and others, many labor unions and employers frequently choose mediation as an alternative to arbitration.
Continue Reading Mediation Agreement In CBA Leads To Litigation

Our Baker McKenzie colleagues in our London office just shared their January 2018 Employment Law Update. Find it HERE.

Highlights include:

  • Increases to statutory payments for time off work
  • Tribunal claims: volume of claims increasing following abolition of tribunal fees
  • Brexit: proposed technical changes to employment laws published
  • Gender pay gap reporting: pressure

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The Fifth Circuit held Monday, August 8, 2016, that employers who prohibit workers from storing guns in locked vehicles may be subject to wrongful discharge claims.  The decision was based on the Mississippi Supreme Court’s interpretation of a Mississippi statute, but Texas employers should take note—Texas has the same statute, potentially resulting in the same holding.
Continue Reading Shots Fired By 5th Circuit – Prohibiting Guns in Parking Lots Could Lead to Wrongful Discharge Claims

Catch ’em all!  Pokémon Go is a mobile game that uses “augmented” reality to create a virtual scavenger hunt.  In the quest to catch ’em all, over 15 million people have downloaded the Pokémon Go game since its recent release.  Employers have grappled with employees’ personal use of electronic devices during work hours since gaming…

President Obama signed the Defend Trade Secrets Act into law on Wednesday, adding another layer of protection for companies’ trade secrets and garnering near-unanimous support in Congress.  So what’s in this legislation that managed to bring the parties together, and more importantly, what does it mean for employers?  Here are 5 key takeaways from the DTSA.
Continue Reading The Defend Trade Secrets Act – Making a Federal Case of It