A 7-Eleven convenience store logo in the Westfield Annapolis Mall in Annapolis, Maryland, Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/NewsBase)

Mass. Wage-Hour Debates To Intensify In Courts, On Ballots

Massachusetts is a hot spot for wage and hour issues, with state courts approaching decisions in gig worker battles and voters potentially weighing in this fall on proposed statewide measures regarding app-based drivers and the tipped minimum wage. Here, Law360 explores three key issues to watch.

An amicus brief filed in the 10th Circuit by the EEOC contends that the Supreme Court's ruling in Muldrow v. St. Louis bolsters the Title VII case of a worker who was fired after refusing to submit to employer-sponsored mental health treatment. (iStock.com/Wirestock)

EEOC 'Up For A Fight' As High Court Title VII Test Takes Shape

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission told an appeals court that a new U.S. Supreme Court ruling strengthens a worker's disability bias case in an emphatic brief that experts say foreshadows the agency's aggressive push to use the high court decision to tip the scales in employees' favor.

SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California, US, on Tuesday, April 19, 2022. Brimming with SpaceX engineers, Hawthorne, California, has become an unlikely focal point for a new era of manufacturing. Photographer: Alisha Jucevic/Bloomberg via Getty Images

5th Circ. Pauses NLRB Suit Against SpaceX Amid New Appeal

A Fifth Circuit panel on Thursday paused an ongoing National Labor Relations Board suit against SpaceX to consider the company's challenge to what it calls the "effective" denial of its bid to block a suit by an agency it claims is unconstitutional.

Expert Analysis

6th Circ. Bias Ruling Shows Job Evaluations Are Key Defense

Michael Luchsinger

In Wehrly v. Allstate, the Sixth Circuit recently declined to revive a terminated employee’s federal and state rel... (more story)

Navigating Harassment Complaints From Trans Employees

Patricia Konopka and Ann Thomas

The Eleventh Circuit's recent decision in Copeland v. Georgia Department of Corrections, concerning the harassment... (more story)

What To Expect From The DOL's Final Overtime Rule

Leslie Selig Byrd and Deryck Van Alstyne

The U.S. Department of Labor's final overtime rule dramatically increases the salary threshold for white collar wo... (more story)

Labor More

Biden Vetoes Joint Employer Rule Disapproval

President Joe Biden on Friday vetoed a congressional resolution to block an enjoined National Labor Relations Board rule treating more employers as joint employers, following through on an earlier threat to sh... (more story)

Social Media Policy Lawful Under Old Test, NLRB Judge Says

A National Labor Relations Board judge said a home remodeler's social media policy violated federal labor law under the board's revised standards, but nonetheless tossed a worker's challenge to the policy beca... (more story)

The National Labor Relations Board found Starbucks in violation of federal labor law through its delay in responding to Workers United's information requests related to temporary closures of a New Jersey cafe. (Photo by Jimin Kim/SOPA Images/Sip via AP Images)
NLRB Says Starbucks Withheld Info About NJ Store Closures

Starbucks violated federal labor law by delaying its response to Workers United's request for information about temporary closures of a New Jersey store, the National Labor Relations Board ruled Thursday.

Walkout Played Role In NYC Server's Firing, NLRB Judge Says

A New York City waiter's participation in a staff walkout partially motivated his managers' decision to fire him about three months later, a National Labor Relations Board judge has ruled, deeming the firing i... (more story)

Calif. Forecast: Justices To Hear PAGA Intervenor Args

In the coming week, attorneys should watch for oral arguments before the California Supreme Court on the issue of the right of workers bringing a case under the state's Private Attorneys General Act to interve... (more story)

Waste Co.'s Raise Memo Tainted Union Vote, Split NLRB Says

A split National Labor Relations Board has upheld an agency judge's decision to greenlight a redo of a union representation election at a New Jersey waste management company, finding the company tainted the fi... (more story)

Union Abandoned Suspended Members, Musicians Say

Two orchestra musicians represented by an American Federation of Musicians local accused their union in New York federal court of breaching its duty of fair representation by not enforcing an arbitration award... (more story)

Discrimination More

Texas Agency Fired Worker Over Headscarf, DOJ Says

The Texas Department of Criminal Justice effectively fired an employee who wore a headscarf to work in accordance with her religious beliefs after questioning the sincerity of her faith, the federal government... (more story)

Judge Calls Foul On Tigers' Bid To Block Age Bias Testimony

A Michigan federal judge called out the Detroit Tigers for failing to indicate whether it had reached out to opposing counsel before filing its recent motion to exclude testimony in a former clubhouse manager'... (more story)

The California Court of Appeal reversed demurrers that were granted to companies being sued in a wage action by a worker, reviving his claims that the companies were his joint employers. (iStockPhoto/Baris-Ozer)
Calif. Appeals Court Revives Joint Employment Claims

A California state appeals court in a rehearing declined to sustain demurrers a lower court had granted to several companies that argued they could not be sued as joint employers in a worker's wage and hour la... (more story)

California Judge Ousted For 'Willful,' 'Prejudicial' Misconduct

 A California state judge has been removed from the bench after an investigation found that he conducted a campaign of retaliation against court employees he suspected of being "moles" in a probe against him a... (more story)

Ex-Defender Can't Make Feds Release Harassment Reports

A North Carolina federal court rejected a former assistant federal defender's bid to have the federal government release certain #MeToo evidence following a trial over her claims of a botched sexual harassment... (more story)

Aetna To Pay $2M To End LGBTQ Fertility Coverage Suit

A group of Aetna policyholders said Friday that the insurance giant has agreed to pay $2 million and revise certain health insurance guidelines to settle a proposed class action alleging its definition of infe... (more story)

Officer Tells 10th Circ. High Court Ruling Backs His Bias Case

A Utah corrections officer urged the Tenth Circuit to reconsider tanking his bias and retaliation claims alleging he was fired after asking to use a different gun to accommodate his hand disability, arguing th... (more story)

Wage & Hour More

Arbitration Exemption Doesn't Cover Cos., Conn. Judge Rules

Two food distributors who created corporate entities while working for a food service business must arbitrate claims they were misclassified as independent contractors because a Federal Arbitration Act carveou... (more story)

Group Home Co. To Pay $191K Deal To End DOL Wage Suit

An operator of group homes for people with disabilities will shell out approximately $191,000 to end a U.S. Department of Labor suit claiming it failed to pay workers minimum wage and overtime, as a Michigan f... (more story)

Broad legislation that would bolster employee protections in the workplace in North Carolina has been proposed by Democrats in the state House of Representatives. (iStock.com/pabradyphoto)
NC Dems Propose Axing At-Will Work In Workers Rights Bill

North Carolina Democrats have proposed broad legislation to bolster protections for employees in the Tar Heel State — from abolishing at-will employment to repealing the ban on collective bargaining for public... (more story)

Workers Seek to Block Bimbo Bakeries' Quick Appeal

Delivery drivers asked a Vermont federal judge not to grant Bimbo Bakeries' bid to appeal a decision that their collective can span three states, saying it's too early to get the Second Circuit's opinion becau... (more story)

Sysco Unit To Provide Back Pay To End DOL Hiring Bias Probe

A subsidiary of restaurant food distributor Sysco Corp. will pay over $133,000 in back pay to resolve the U.S. Department of Labor's allegations that it discriminated against women by failing to hire qualified... (more story)

DaVita Says Nurses Trying Go Around Wage Rulings

Nationwide kidney care service provider DaVita Inc. has urged a Colorado federal judge to reject a bid by nurses and technicians to merge their wage class action with another suit, arguing Wednesday the plaint... (more story)

Poultry Cos. To Pay $5.1M Settling OT, Child Labor Violations

A network of California poultry processors will pay over $5 million to settle a U.S. Department of Labor lawsuit in federal court after an agency investigation found the processors employed children to debone ... (more story)