HR Connection: FLSA overtime rule is déjà vu all over again
As I have each March for more than a decade, I again attended the annual Employment Law and Legislative Conference (ELLC) organized by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), in Washington, DC. I’ve long equated it to summer camp for employment law geeks like me. It’s a chance to leave behind the daily responsibilities […]
HR Connection: The correct answer first requires asking the right question
Apparently, my ability to identify potential issues or problems in situations that most people wouldn’t recognize is one reason for my wife and daughter’s repeated use of a “SMH” (shaking my head) emoji when they text me. While they may find this skill irritating, it’s an extremely useful occupational hazard. Recently, while reviewing a client’s […]
HR Connection: Can Faragher-Ellerth survive the #MeToo movement?
After a brief absence from this column to launch a new HR consulting firm, I find myself once again wading into the potentially dangerous waters of the #MeToo movement. Dangerous for me because: 1) I’m a middle-aged man, and 2) even more damning, I’m a middle-aged man. While I’ve researched the topic extensively, investigated several […]
HR Connection: Changing employee behavior regarding sexual harassment
My father was known for his colorful sayings (many of which would be inappropriate to repeat today), so I can’t help but think of him when a situation needs a little extra emphasis. Based on the number of calls and email I’ve received recently, a “Sammyism” is needed. On Aug. 23, 2018, New York State […]
HR Connection: A must-read book…part 2
Let’s think about what’s happened since my last article, “A must-read book with sex, drugs and some unexpected twists.” Summer has officially started, the school year is over and you may have even gone on vacation. If you’ve found your employee handbook, blowing the dust off the cover, and started reviewing it, awesome! If not, […]
HR Connection: A must-read book with sex, drugs, and some unexpected twists
To celebrate the arrival of summer (are you as perplexed as I am when we somehow all but skip the entire season of spring?), I’m going to recommend a great book for your summer reading list. It’s been around for a while, but there have been some changes so make sure you get the most […]
HR Connection: Sexual harassment prevention training among new requirements for NY employers
#WeinsteinEffect. #MeToo. #TIMESUP. For many of us, these have become part of our daily lexicon: modern identifiers for a primordial problem. They are beacons used to focus attention on the scourge of sexual harassment and misconduct that, in various forms, have been part of society since its inception. It’s said that the first step to […]
HR Connection: Important updates from employment law summer camp
Do you have fond childhood memories of summer camp? Leaving home for a few days and going to a place where you always had an exciting time? You didn’t have to take the trash out, mow the lawn, or eat vegetables like brussels sprouts and spinach. You stayed up late, ate junk food from the […]
HR Connection: Employers can’t avoid sexual harassment claims by practicing gender discrimination
I recently had the opportunity to spend a few hours with a good friend, who also happens to be an outstanding labor and employment attorney. Because he lives several hours away, we don’t get together as often as we’d like, so when we do connect, we run through the gamut of topics: spouses, children, father/son […]
HR Connection: A paradigm shift needed on sexual misconduct
Human behavior is fascinating at the beginning of each new year. Examples abound at every local gym and fitness facility. For the “regulars,” January is a nightmare of crowded parking lots, long waits to use equipment and blindingly colorful new workout clothes. By mid-February most resolutions are long-forgotten, and all is back to normal. To […]
HR Connection: Sunlight and sexual harassment
The late Supreme Court associate justice Louis Brandeis wrote in an article for Harper’s Weekly, “Publicity is justly commended as a remedy for social and industrial diseases. Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman.” Describing one of the cornerstones of his legal philosophy, Brandeis could never have […]
HR Connection: A 21st-century idea out of Washington, D.C.?
When I sat down to write this article, I had intended to write about the exciting New York State Paid Family Leave Act (PFL). I’ve spent so much time reading, talking and answering questions about it that it has taken over my brain. In fact, my wife said I recently woke her up in the […]
Case Digests
- Fourth Department – Breach of contract: Hausrath Landscape Maintenance Inc. v. Caravan Facilities Management LLC
- Second Circuit – New York Child Victim’s Act: Kane v. Mount Pleasant CSD; Coe v. Eastport Union Free School
- NYS Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics – Appointing law clerk: Opinion 22-149
- Fourth Department – Bill of particulars: Harris v. Rome Memorial Hospital, et al.
- NYS Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics – Accusations against co-judge: Opinion 22-148
- Fourth Department – Medicaid: Washington Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing Home v. NYS Dept. of Health
- Fourth Department – Criminal possession of a firearm: People v. Wilson
- Fourth Department – Promoting prostitution: People v. Watts
- Second Circuit – Class certification: Arkansas Teachers Retirement System V. Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
- Fourth Department – Show-up identification: People v. Waggoner
- Fourth Department – Association: Victory Village Tenants Assoc. v. Evergreen Communities, et al.
- Second Circuit – In personam jurisdiction: Kaplan v. Bank Saderat PLC
Law News
- Greenlight Networks selects Buffalo-based attorney as general counsel
- Barclay Damon hires attorney Matt Smith
- Rochester man sues Geneseo police, alleging false arrest, assault
- The Daily Record’s Power List for Intellectual Property 2023
- NY ethics panel says judges can join NRA
- Harter Secrest & Emery LLP names partner-in-charge of Buffalo office
- Banned professor sues SUNY Fredonia leaders
- Hochul signs law requiring unemployment insurance information from employers