By Linda H. Evans, Senior Associate. The Big Texan Steak Ranch restaurant (home of the 72-ounce steak dinner) recently paid $800,000 to settle a labor department dispute in which it was alleged that the restaurant took too much of a bite out of tips to workers. A 2011 audit […]
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By Kelline R. Linton, Junior Associate. Last week, the NLRB ordered the reinstatement of an employee who was fired for cussing out his employer, ruling that the employer unlawfully discharged him because he did not lose the protection of the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) during the profanity-laced outburst. […]
By Kelline R. Linton, Junior Associate. In the last two years, intern class actions have exploded across the country. Generally, these class actions claim that employers violate the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) when they fail to pay their interns. As of May 2014, only one court has […]
By Kelline R. Linton, Junior Associate. The NLRB has announced it will decide whether employers must permit employees to use workplace email for union purposes. This week, the Board issued a notice and invitation to file briefs in Purple Communications, Inc. (Bogas, Oct. 24, 2013), a case in […]
By Linda H. Evans, Senior Associate. Houston is the last major city without its own local anti-discrimination law. But that may soon change. Next week Mayor Anise Parker is going to place before the City Council a proposed ordinance that would ban discrimination based on sex, race, color, ethnicity, […]
By Kelline R. Linton, Junior Associate. In a recent decision, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) ruled that a “no gossip” work policy violated federal labor law (Hill and Dales General Hospital, 360 NLRB No. 70 (April 1, 2014)). Specifically, the policy provided: • Employees would not make […]
By Linda H. Evans, Senior Associate. Those tricky Texas non-competes pop up again! Earlier this month two Houston surgical assistants, who were sued by their former employer for launching their own business, were cleared by a Harris County jury. The former employer was seeking over a million dollars in […]
By Linda H. Evans, Senior Associate. On April 8, 2014, the President signed a memo that would require government contractors to submit extensive reporting on their salary practices. Additionally, he signed an executive order applicable to government contractors that prohibits any retaliation against individuals when there has been a […]
By Kelline R. Linton, Junior Associate. The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) recently issued Final Rules that changed regulations under both the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (“VEVRAA”) and Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act (“Section 503”). These Final Rules became effective on March 24, 2014. […]
By Kelline R. Linton, Junior Associate. While a basic contracting principle is that a commercial buyer has an implied duty of good faith and fair dealing, the Precision Pine rule limited the application of this duty in the federal contract context. However, a recent 2014 Federal Circuit court decision […]