Call Us 919-240-4054The federal Department of Labor issued some important guidance regarding the coverage of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) as it applies to all sorts of unconventional families. The DOL made clear that FMLA rights to get time off to care for children do not require a biological relationship with the child. Rather, anyone […]
In the News
Supreme Court rules on arbitration issues for unions and employees in two cases
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued two decisions concerning whether particular issues had to be decided by an arbitrator or in federal court. One care arose in the traditional area of labor arbitration between companies and unions; the second arose in the ever-growing area of employer-imposed arbitration agreements on regular employees. In the first, Granite […]
NC Court of Appeals upholds jury verdict for employee to collect earned bonuses
Earlier this month, the North Carolina Court of Appeals issued Kornegay v. Aspen Asset Group LLC, an interesting case that raises and decides some key issues under the North Carolina Wage and Hour Act (NCWHA). At issue was whether the employee-plaintiff had a contract that included bonus payments, and if so, whether those had to be […]
Government enforcing child labor and wage laws for farmworkers in North Carolina
The New York Times has this article about the Obama Administration’s effort to enforce the child labor and wage and hour laws on farms, and describes the effort in North Carolina in particular. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) contains several exceptions for farmworkers, but sometimes-ignored restrictions of child labor are apparently now being more vigorously […]
Republicans continue to hold up unemployment extension in Senate
In a vote Thursday night, Senate Democrats were unable to overcome the Republic filibuster of the bill that contains the much-needed extension of unemployment benefits. Even though the cost of the bill had been reduced to alleviate the (misguided) concerns of increasing the federal deficit, all Republicans and two Democrats maintained their opposition. This bill would not […]
Supreme Court rules on workplace privacy and two-member labor board
Two labor and employment decisions were released by the U.S. Supreme Court this past week. In the first, City of Ontario v. Quon, the Court unanimously held (with Scalia concurring separately) that the government employer’s search of employee text messages was reasonable under the Fourth Amendment. Unlike private employers, public employers are constrained (somewhat) by […]