Christina Berti, Director and Associate General Counsel for Deutsche Bank, is here with some advice on best practices for an effective whistleblower retaliation investigation.

This is a "Tip of the Week" segment from Employment Law This Week® (Episode 77: Week of June 26th, 2017), an online series by Epstein Becker Green. youtu.be/TikkNuylWXI

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These materials have been provided for informational purposes only and are not intended and should not be construed to constitute legal advice. The “Tip of the Week” offers one perspective on possible human resource ideas or business practices. It presents the perspective of an individual not affiliated with Epstein Becker Green and should not be considered legal advice. The content of these materials is copyrighted to Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. EMPLOYMENT LAW THIS WEEK® is a registered trademark of Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. ATTORNEY ADVERTISING.

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(1) Nation's First Website Accessibility Trial

Our top story - The verdict is in: Winn-Dixie must make its website accessible. A visually-impaired individual sued the grocery chain because his screen reader could not process the store locator and coupon sections of the chain’s website. In what is believed to be the first federal decision on website accessibility, a Florida district judge found that Winn-Dixie violated Title III of the ADA by not providing a fully accessible public website. He ordered the grocery chain to make the entire website accessible, even sections that may be run by a third party. Joshua Stein, from Epstein Becker Green, has more.

Click here for more: http://bit.ly/2tXJlAz

(2) DOJ Reverses Position on Class Waiver Agreements

The Justice Department reverses its position on whether mandatory class action waivers violate the NLRA - The DOJ has filed a brief arguing that mandatory class-action waivers are enforceable in employment arbitration agreements. The brief was filed in a consolidated set of cases to be argued before the Supreme Court. The DOJ took the opposite position last year while representing the NLRB in these same cases. The Department acknowledged as much in its brief, but stated that, after the change in administration, it had reached the opposite conclusion.

(3) Sixth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Sexual Harassment Claims

The Sixth Circuit affirms the dismissal of sexual harassment claims after decisive remedial action by the employer. In the suit brought by the EEOC, three female employees claimed they were sexually harassed by a store manager. The Circuit court affirmed the dismissal of the action, finding that the employer established an affirmative defense by promptly investigating and then terminating the manager’s employment. The Court also held that the manager was not a “supervisor” under the law, because he did not have authority to take tangible employment actions against the employees, which would have held the employer to a higher standard.

(4) Several Employment Laws Take Effect July 1

A number of new state and local labor laws and regulations are set to go into effect July 1st. Paid sick leave laws in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, Chicago and Cook County, Illinois, and the state of Arizona will take effect. In Seattle, an ordinance requiring employers to post schedules at least fourteen days before a work shift will go into effect. And California's new regulations limiting the ability of employers to consider criminal history in employment decisions will also take effect. Coming soon: Delaware will become the first state to prohibit employers from asking applicants about compensation history when its statute takes effect in December of this year.

(5) Tip of the Week

Christina Berti, Director and Associate General Counsel for Deutsche Bank, is here with some advice on best practices for an effective whistleblower retaliation investigation.

"Whistleblower retaliation investigations are becoming all the more frequent lately, given our increased regulatory environment. You want to create a dialogue with the whistleblower to explain the process of the investigation, give status reports on its progress, and ultimately deliver the outcome. You always want to be responsive to the whistleblower's requests to provide you additional information after your initial intake meeting. In this way, you'll be apprised of any new developments which may impact your findings. And lastly, as a final closing tip, it's really important to coordinate with your HR and legal advisory teams, in terms of any new developments that might occur during the course of the investigation that may impact the whistleblower and other relevant witnesses who are active employees."

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These materials have been provided for informational purposes only and are not intended and should not be construed to constitute legal advice. The “Tip of the Week” offers one perspective on possible human resource ideas or business practices. It presents the perspective of an individual not affiliated with Epstein Becker Green and should not be considered legal advice. The content of these materials is copyrighted to Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. EMPLOYMENT LAW THIS WEEK® is a registered trademark of Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. ATTORNEY ADVERTISING.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) says, “Hand over the telephone numbers!” The NLRB’s 2015 “quickie election” rules require employers to give a union “available” home and cell phone numbers and personal email addresses for all employees eligible to vote. In this case, an employer did not provide the union with employee phone numbers because the employer did not maintain them in any formal database or system. The union filed objections after the vote, noting that some supervisors at the company did have phone numbers of certain employees stored in their cell phones. The NLRB ruled that the company had failed to comply with the new election rules. This interpretation shows that employers must provide any and all phone numbers, even if they are not actually maintained in the company’s records. Kat Paterno, from Epstein Becker Green, has more:

This is a segment from Employment Law This Week® (Episode 76: Week of June 19th, 2017), an online series by Epstein Becker Green. youtube.com/watch?v=rYsbPNs7zAc

Visit EmploymentLawThisWeek.com.

These materials have been provided for informational purposes only and are not intended and should not be construed to constitute legal advice. The content of these materials is copyrighted to Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. EMPLOYMENT LAW THIS WEEK® is a registered trademark of Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. ATTORNEY ADVERTISING.

David Prince, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Stephens Investment Management Group, shares some advice for in-house counsel on staying ahead of regulations:

This is a "Tip of the Week" segment from Employment Law This Week® (Episode 76: Week of June 19th, 2017), an online series by Epstein Becker Green. youtube.com/watch?v=rYsbPNs7zAc

Visit EmploymentLawThisWeek.com.

These materials have been provided for informational purposes only and are not intended and should not be construed to constitute legal advice. The “Tip of the Week” offers one perspective on possible human resource ideas or business practices. It presents the perspective of an individual not affiliated with Epstein Becker Green and should not be considered legal advice. The content of these materials is copyrighted to Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. EMPLOYMENT LAW THIS WEEK® is a registered trademark of Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. ATTORNEY ADVERTISING.

Welcome to Employment Law This Week®! Subscribe to our channel for new episodes every Monday!

(1) NLRB Clarifies That Employers Must Share All Employee Phone Numbers

Our top story: The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) says, “Hand over the telephone numbers!” The NLRB’s 2015 “quickie election” rules require employers to give a union “available” home and cell phone numbers and personal email addresses for all employees eligible to vote. In this case, an employer did not provide the union with employee phone numbers because the employer did not maintain them in any formal database or system. The union filed objections after the vote, noting that some supervisors at the company did have phone numbers of certain employees stored in their cell phones. The NLRB ruled that the company had failed to comply with the new election rules. This interpretation shows that employers must provide any and all phone numbers, even if they are not actually maintained in the company’s records. Kat Paterno, from Epstein Becker Green, has more:

(2) Fourth Circuit: Layoff Following Medical Leave Doesn’t Violate FMLA

A layoff occurring six weeks after medical leave was not a violation of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has found. After returning from medical leave, an employee was assigned to manage a new project in a different division with the same salary and work location. Less than six weeks later, the employee and others in his department were laid off. The employee argued that he should have been restored to the exact position that he held before going on leave, and that the termination was retaliatory. The Fourth Circuit held that the FMLA does not require restoring an employee to his or her original position over an equivalent one and that the employee likely would have been laid off even if he had returned to his original position due to the employer’s financial circumstances.

(3) Plans Maintained by Church-Affiliated Entities Are Exempt from ERISA

The Supreme Court of the United States has ruled that pension plans established and maintained by some church-affiliated entities remain exempt from the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). ERISA establishes certain requirements for employee benefit plans. So-called “church plans” are exempt from these requirements. At issue in this case was whether the exemption applies to church-affiliated entities that fund or manage a benefit plan for the employees of churches or church affiliates. The Supreme Court reversed the lower court, finding that church-affiliated entities are indeed eligible for the exemption.

(4) DOL Takes Next Step to Rescind Amended “Persuader Rule”

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is asking for public feedback on the proposal to rescind its so-called “Persuader Rule.” The revised rule would have required employers and consultants, including lawyers, to report activity taken in response to union organizing campaigns, such as “indirect” persuader activity. A federal judge in Texas issued a permanent injunction halting the Persuader Rule’s implementation last year. The DOL is seeking to rescind the amended rule in order to further analyze whether it will have a chilling effect on employers’ rights to seek representation by an attorney.

(5) Tip of the Week

David Prince, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Stephens Investment Management Group, shares some advice for in-house counsel on staying ahead of regulations:

Visit EmploymentLawThisWeek.com.

These materials have been provided for informational purposes only and are not intended and should not be construed to constitute legal advice. The “Tip of the Week” offers one perspective on possible human resource ideas or business practices. It presents the perspective of an individual not affiliated with Epstein Becker Green and should not be considered legal advice. The content of these materials is copyrighted to Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. EMPLOYMENT LAW THIS WEEK® is a registered trademark of Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. ATTORNEY ADVERTISING.