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Employees can be the first line of defense against workplace violence but only if they know what to look for and what to do about it.

On February 15 an employee at an Aurora, Illinois manufacturing plant walked into work believing he was going to be fired that day.  Those of us in the Chicagoland area know what happened after that–he …

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Early indicators say yes.

Yesterday afternoon I had the pleasure of serving as a moderator at the American Bar Association’s 2019 National Symposium of Technology in Labor and Employment Law.  I moderated a panel of three brilliant lawyers talking about Artificial Intelligence in the workplace.  And, as those of us in attendance learned, it’s a brave new world out there.

A picture …

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Perhaps you saw the news this weekend that on the eve of launching her new book, Omarosa Manigault Newman (former White House political aide and reality-TV alum) has produced what she contends is a secret workplace recording of White House Chief of Staff, John Kelly, firing her.  Just this morning Omarosa released another tape which appears to be President Trump …

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The ADA turns 28 today.  

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law 28 years ago today by President George H.W. Bush.  (Remember when we used to have presidents who believed people with disabilities were worthy of respect and protection rather than ridicule?)

Since 1990 the Act has provided people with disabilities protections from discrimination at work and access …

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The recent arbitration decision could backfire on employers.

The Supreme Court really stuck it to employees in their recent Epic Systems decision.  We’ve written about arbitration provisions in general here and why they can be bad for employees.   As if giving up your right to a jury trial wasn’t bad enough, arbitration agreements also sometimes contain class action waivers.  Employers …

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Employees are often wrong about the FMLA.  

As employment lawyers we often talk with people (clients, friends and family alike) that think the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) does things for them that it doesn’t.  Employment lawyers on both sides of bar agree that the Act can be one of the most nuanced and confusing employment statutes out there.  …

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After years of disappointing LGBT rights employment decisions things are looking up!

It’s been a good couple of weeks for LGBT rights in the workplace.

First, on February 26 the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals joined our own Seventh Circuit in holding that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits sexual orientation discrimination in the workplace.  We’ve been watching this case for …

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Manager mistakes account for the majority of employee dissatisfaction yet most managers never consider how their behavior affects their team.

I am not an expert in managing employees.  But I do have a unique perspective because employees come to me when they are at their wit’s end with their jobs. We are generally an employee’s last resort.  Not all the clients …

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Employees may unknowingly commit data theft in gathering evidence to support their claims.

Many clients come to us with a stack of documents to support their claims.  This is almost always worrisome because those documents likely came from their employers’ computer systems.   These well-meaning clients may have unknowingly undermined their own claims and subjected themselves to potential liability for data theft.

As …

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Those of us who represent employees know that Weinstein-esque sexual harassment happens all the time.

While Hollywood is wringing its hands over the more than 63 women who have alleged Harvey Weinstein raped, sexually assaulted or sexually harassed them those of us who practice employment civil rights were not surprised at all.  (also, as an aside, can we stop calling it …

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