Author Archives: Jay Butchko
Administration Argues Against Workers’ Rights in Court
On October 2nd the U.S. Supreme Court will be deciding on major issues that affect worker rights to file litigation against employers; specifically, it will be deciding on the consolidated cases Epic Systems Corp v. Lewis, National Labor Relations Board v. Murphy Oil USA Inc., and Ernst & Young LLP v. Morris. Although, during… Read More »
EEOC Files Parental Leave Discrimination Suit against Estee Lauder
This fall, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed a lawsuit against Estee Lauder, accusing the company of discriminating against a male employee in denying him the same federal parental leave as other employees. The company’s leave policy explicitly offered parental leave to caregivers (typically mothers), and two weeks to non-primary caregivers, which… Read More »
Non-Compete Clauses in Florida & Worker Protection
When employers and employees talk about employment being “at will,” it generally means that the employment relationship can be terminated by either party at any time, for any reason. However, that termination can become more complicated if there is a “non-compete clause” involved. Very broadly, non-compete clauses bar you from going to work for… Read More »
Justice Department Departs From EEOC on Sexual Orientation Discrimination in the Workplace
On July 27th, the Justice Department took a step backwards by arguing—in filing an amicus brief—that the federal civil rights law (Title VII) does not protect employees from discrimination based on sexual orientation, strangely inserting its opinion into a New York federal case that was otherwise a private dispute between one worker and his… Read More »
New Study Demonstrates Startling Levels of Sexism in University Departments
A new thesis released on the impact of gender discrimination in the field of economics has led to an important conversation about a workplace culture that is characterized as exhibiting outright hostility towards women in the economics profession. While the underrepresentation of women in top university departments like economics has already been well-documented, until… Read More »
Heat Illness: What Are Workers’ Rights?
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently brought back its heat illness prevention campaign and stressed the importance of workers who are out in the heat each day obtaining rest, shade, and water on a regular basis. Many workers in Florida are exposed to heat–related illness every day, whether they work in construction,… Read More »
August 2017 Labor Law Update
Below, we discuss some important litigation, legislation, and workers’ rights that you should be aware of: Companies Accused Of Violating State Wages and Labor Laws A new lawsuit filed against Starbucks and Evolution Fresh accuses the companies of violating state wage and labor laws by requiring that employees be on-call without pay, as well… Read More »
Legal Industry Leads In Transgender Policies: Is Your Workplace In Compliance?
According to the Human Rights Campaign, which publishes a national survey titled the ”Corporate Equality Index,” law firms are amongst the highest rated workplaces for LGBT equality. While the percentage of LGBT lawyers is currently highest at large law firms, experts estimate that it will also likely increase in moving forward. Arguably because they… Read More »
Justice Department Departs From EEOC on Sexual Orientation Discrimination in the Workplace
On July 27th, the Justice Department took a step backwards by arguing—in filing an amicus brief—that the federal civil rights law (Title VII) does not protect employees from discrimination based on sexual orientation, strangely inserting its opinion into a New York federal case that was otherwise a private dispute between one worker and his… Read More »
Why Does Human Resources Blatantly Violate The Law When It Comes To Protecting Employees In The Workplace?
The Society for Human Resource Management featured an interesting article recently discussing why and how human resources (HR) lets employees down when it comes to abiding by labor law, and presented various case studies in their article. While today’s HR professionals are perhaps better trained and equipped than ever to protect employees, fundamentally, there… Read More »
Robert S. Norell, Esq. became a member of the Florida Bar in 1994 and has represented hundreds of clients in all types of employment law cases for the past 20+ years.