On November 15, 2018, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment to an employer who had terminated an employee following her unauthorized review and disclosure of confidential personnel files. In Netter v. Barnes, the Fourth Circuit held that Title VII does not protect a terminated employee who violated a valid state law. You…
Today, in Mount Lemmon Fire District v. Guido, 586 U.S. ____ (2018), which is the first decision of the new term, the Supreme Court of the United States unanimously upheld the Ninth Circuit’s decision to reopen a lawsuit by two firefighter captains who claimed that they were illegally terminated by the Tucson Fire District because of their age. The Fire District argued that because it employed…
The United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania recently granted conditional certification for a collective action for two female employees of Five Guys who claim violations of the Equal Pay Act, a federal law which prohibits discrimination in the payment of wages to employees performing jobs that require “equal skill, effort, and responsibility.” 29 U.S.C. § 206(d). The…
The United States Supreme Court will decide soon whether to review a case from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals regarding whether sexual orientation is a protected trait under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. What makes this case interesting is that the Department of Labor and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission have taken the opposite sides, echoing the deep split of authority among…
In the last two weeks, Governor Earl Ray Tomblin signed three employment-related bills that will significantly improve the climate for employers to do business in West Virginia. All three align West Virginia law with corresponding law in most other jurisdictions.
First, and SB318 amend the Wage Payment and Collection Act. With the passage of SB12, gone is the…
Workplace bullying is becoming a hot topic for news stories and human resource departments. Clients frequently call and ask “Should I really be concerned about bullying in our workplace?” Workplace bullying is the deliberate, hurtful mistreatment or humiliation of one or more employees driven by a desire to intimidate and control. Some of the forms it takes are constant and unfair…
Employers who have defended employment discrimination and wrongful discharge suits in West Virginia courts know that the damages a plaintiff can obtain under state law are greater than those available in virtually any other jurisdiction. In fact, an employee who is fired from a West Virginia workplace can obtain more damages in court than an employee who is seriously injured in a West…
