Secretary of Labor R. Alexander Acosta

Meet Secretary Acosta

The Department of Labor welcomes Alexander Acosta, who was sworn in as the twenty-seventh U.S. Labor Secretary on April 28, 2017.

Secretary Acosta is the son of Cuban refugees, a native of Miami, and first-generation college graduate. He earned his undergraduate and law degrees from Harvard University.

Following law school, he worked as a law clerk for Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr., at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He then worked at the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis and went on to teach at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia School of Law.

Secretary Acosta has served in three presidentially appointed, Senate-confirmed positions. In 2002, he was appointed to serve as a member of the National Labor Relations Board, where he participated in or authored more than 125 opinions. In 2003, he was appointed Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, and from 2005 to 2009 he served as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

Most recently, Secretary Acosta served as the dean of the FIU College of Law.

Secretary Acosta has twice been named one of the nation’s 50 most influential Hispanics by Hispanic Business magazine. He was also named to the list of 100 most influential individuals in business ethics in 2008. In 2013, the South Florida Hispanic Chamber of Commerce presented him with the Chairman’s Higher Education Award in recognition of his “outstanding achievements, leadership and determination throughout a lifetime of caring and giving back to the community.”

Secretary Acosta and his wife enjoy spending time together as a family, raising their two daughters.

Source: Department of Labor Website

Establishing Paid Sick Leave for Federal Contractors

A Proposed Rule by the Labor Department on 3/14/2016

Published in the Federal Register on 3/14/2016, this document extends the period for filing written comments until April 12, 2016 on the proposed rulemaking:  Establishing Paid Sick Leave for Federal Contractors. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) was published in the Federal Register on February 25, 2016. The Department of Labor (Department) is taking this action in order to provide interested parties additional time to submit comments.

A Proposed Rule by the Labor Department on 2/25/2016

This rule proposes regulations to implement Executive Order 13706, Establishing Paid Sick Leave for Federal Contractors, signed by President Barack Obama on September 7, 2015, which requires certain parties that contract with the Federal Government to provide their employees with up to 7 days of paid sick leave annually, including paid leave allowing for family care. Executive Order 13706 explains that providing access to paid sick leave will improve the health and performance of employees of Federal contractors and bring their benefits packages in line with model employers, ensuring that Federal contractors remain competitive employers and generating savings and quality improvements that will lead to improved economy and efficiency in Government procurement.

The Executive Order directs the Secretary of Labor to issue regulations by September 30, 2016, to implement the Order's requirements. This proposed rule therefore defines terms used in the regulatory text, describes the categories of contracts and employees the Order covers and excludes from coverage, sets forth requirements and restrictions governing the accrual and use of paid sick leave, and prohibits interference with or discrimination for the exercise of rights under the Executive Order. It also describes the obligations of contracting agencies, the Department of Labor, and contractors under the Executive Order, and it establishes the standards and procedures for complaints, investigations, remedies, and administrative enforcement proceedings related to alleged violations of the Order. As required by the Order and to the extent practicable, the proposed rule incorporates existing definitions, procedures, remedies, and enforcement processes under the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Service Contract Act, the Davis-Bacon Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Violence Against Women Act, and Executive Order 13658, Establishing a Minimum Wage for Contractors.

The comment period for the proposed rule ends on 3/28/2016.

View the article... 

Diversify Your Workforce

by Chris Lu

At the Labor Department, we strive to ensure that the federal workforce reflects the diversity of America. After all, that is who we serve.

This diversity includes more than 50 million Americans with disabilities. As the federal government, we must take steps to ensure that our recruitment, hiring, and retention practices are welcoming of their skills and talents. One of our key tools is the Workforce Recruitment Program.

The WRP is a recruitment and referral program that connects federal employers — not just in Washington D.C., but nationwide — with highly motivated college students and recent graduates with disabilities who are seeking summer internships or permanent jobs. Our Office of Disability Employment Policy, in cooperation with the Department of Defense, manages the WRP to ensure that it helps agencies across the government meet their disability inclusion goals. Secretary of Labor Tom Perez and Secretary of Defense Ash Carter recently wrote a joint memo encouraging all heads of federal agencies to take advantage of the program.

Their advice is sound. Since the program was launched government-wide in 1995, more than 7,000 people have obtained positions through it, and many have gone on to become full-time federal employees. The WRP is helping agencies achieve their goals under President Obama’s 2010 executive order, “Increasing Federal Employment of Individuals with Disabilities.”

This year marks the program’s 20th anniversary. And the 2016 WRP database, which was released today, includes more than 1,500 students and recent graduates who have been pre-screened through personal interviews with trained recruiters from across the federal government. The students and graduates run the gamut in terms of majors and career interests and include everyone from freshmen to graduate and law students. They represent some of the best and brightest from campuses across the country.

More importantly, the WRP helps federal agencies better serve their stakeholders – the American people. Throughout my career, I’ve had the privilege of working in a variety of capacities across the federal government.  While each new position brought different responsibilities, the overall goal remained the same: to serve our citizens as effectively as possible. And to accomplish this mission, we need the talents of all workers. In other words, a strong federal workforce is a diverse federal workforce.

Excerpt from the U.S. Department of Labor Blog - Chris Lu is the deputy secretary of labor.

DOL’s Final Overtime Rule Expected in Latter Half of 2016

The Obama administration has indicated the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) highly controversial rule that will expand the number of workers who are eligible for overtime pay - by changing many currently exempt workers’ status to nonexempt - will not be issued before July 2016.

According to the Fall 2015 Unified Agenda and Regulatory Plan, published on Nov. 20 by the Office of Management and Budget, the earliest the final rule could be released would be in July, but DOL officials have indicated that the rule is likely to be issued sometime closer to the end of the year while still leaving time for the rule to take effect before the president leaves office.

The proposed rule was released on June 30 of this year and received more than 250,000 comments during the comment period this summer.

Dates Are Aspirational

The Unified Agenda, published twice yearly in spring and fall, identifies regulatory priorities and contains additional details about the most significant regulatory actions that federal agencies expect to take in the coming year. However, the information it provides is collected well in advance of its publication, and the dates it gives for upcoming rules and regulations is best viewed as the earliest possible time frame, rather than as the likely issuance date, explained Nancy Hammer, senior government affairs policy counsel at the Society for Human Resource Management.

“The important thing to know about these dates is that they are estimates and rarely accurate,” Hammer said. “The agency has no legal obligation to meet that published deadline. Some rules have been on the regulatory agenda for years and they just change the date with the new agenda comes out.”

While SHRM anticipates that the rule will, in fact, become final in 2016, “I would not put too much emphasis on the July date” in the Unified Agenda, Hammer added. “DOL officials have said ‘late 2016.’ The bottom line is that HR needs to be ready to comply in 2016—that means looking now at how the rule could impact their organization,” she advised.

As SHRM Online recently reported, and Hammer noted, Solicitor of Labor Patricia Smith told attendees at an American Bar Association conference Nov. 5 that the DOL will not release its final rule on overtime until late 2016. That suggests that the time between publication of the final rule and its effective date will be short, and that the effective date of the new regulations likely will not exceed 30 to 60 days after the final regulations are published.

“The later the final rule is published, the smaller the window of time the department can allow before the new regulations become effective,” said Paul DeCamp, an attorney with Jackson Lewis in the firm’s Washington, D.C., office and a former administrator of the Wage and Hour Division.

Article re-published from SHRM's Newsletter by Stephen Miller, CEBS, is an online editor/manager for SHRM
Allen Smith, J.D., manager of workplace law content for SHRM, contributed to this article

New Class Member Locator

On September 25, 2015, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) launched the Class Member Locator (CML). The purpose of the CML is to identify applicants and/or workers who have been impacted by OFCCP’s compliance evaluations and complaint investigations and who may be entitled to a portion of monetary relief and/or consideration for job placement.

If you applied for a job or worked at one of the facilities listed between the dates shown and believe you may be part of an affected class, contact us immediately. Upon your timely submission of additional documentation verifying that you are part of the class, you may be entitled to a portion of monetary relief and/or consideration for job placement.

See the FAQ for more information and a list of facilities and dates.

Protecting Wages and Benefits

Building an America that works:  The Houston Labor Leaders Breakfast brought together members of the Texas congressional delegation, Houston-area elected officials, union leaders and members on Oct. 15 — an annual gathering hosted by Rep. Al Green of Texas. In keynote remarks, U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez said he wakes up every morning asking, “What can we do to build an America that works for everybody, that builds shared prosperity?” Perez said that much progress has been made, pointing to 67 consecutive months of private-sector job growth. But, he noted, economic progress “that helps only a few at the expense of the many is not the America we know.” The breakfast came on the heels of a summit on worker voice hosted by President Obama, which provided examples of how America succeeds when workers speak up in the workplace. The secretary said the department would continue with initiatives that support and protect workers, such as championing a minimum wage increase and enforcing wage laws. Since 2009, the department has helped 1.5 million workers recover $1.3 billion in back wages, Perez said. “Nobody who works a full-time job should have to live in poverty.”

Source: US Department of Labor Blog

Beyond the Model Minority Myth: Investing in the well-being of the Asian American and Pacific Islander community

Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) are now the fastest growing racial group in the country, expected to more than double from 20 million to 47 million by 2060. With this tremendous growth comes the need to better understand and address issues of social equity and overall community well-being within this diverse community.

We have made great strides over the years in public and private commitments that are beginning to address the critical issues faced by low-income AAPI communities. Earlier last year, President Obama signed Executive Order 13658, “Establishing a Minimum Wage for Contractors,” which will raise the minimum wage for all workers on federal construction and service contracts beginning January 2016. This is an important step toward fulfilling the belief that all Americans, including AAPIs, who work full-time jobs should not live in poverty. And the third and final round of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Promise Zones competition recently opened, where federal, state, and local agencies will partner with leaders in vulnerable communities to increase economic activity, improve educational opportunities, leverage private investment, reduce violent crime, and enhance public health, among other priorities. A current Promise Zone in Los Angeles, CA prioritizes communities in Hollywood, East Hollywood, Koreatown, Pico Union, and Westlake, which have high AAPI populations. To read more about these commitments, the White House Initiative on AAPIs has released a fact sheet.

Read the complete post here.

Source: US Department of Labor Blog

Encouraging Progress on Paid Leave

by Secretary Tom Perez

All around the country this morning, working parents made some heart-wrenching decisions. When his little boy woke up with the sniffles, a father had to choose between taking him to the doctor and losing a day’s pay. When she got the phone call that her father fell down the stairs in his home, a daughter had to risk getting fired so she could be with him in the hospital.

Too many Americans have to weigh all these decisions at once, with nearly seven million Americans providing care for both their children and elderly loved ones. Of all the tough decisions in life, choosing between the job you need and the family you love should not be one of them.

The United States is one of the few nations on the planet where paid family and medical leave or earned sick time is not the law of the land. In fact, only 12 percent of private-sector workers have access to paid family leave through their employers. Access to paid leave is particularly low among Hispanics, African Americans, and low-wage workers.

Fortunately, however, we have seen remarkable progress outside of Washington, where innovative state and local officials are working hard to design paid leave policies for their own people. As I travel around the country, I am inspired by leaders who know that offering paid leave – whether sick time or family leave –isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s essential to building an economy that works for everyone.


That’s why I am proud to announce that the Department of Labor Women’s Bureau is awarding $1.55 million in grants to research and analyze how paid family and medical leave programs can be developed and implemented across the country. The grant funding, triple what we invested in 2014, will support eight grantees at the state and municipal level – where forward-thinking leaders have recognized that working people shouldn’t have to win the “boss lottery” to have access to paid leave. These funds will help further our understanding of the issue and inform the design of programs that work for our families and the economy.

I believe the passage of a national paid family and medical leave law is not a question of if, but when. But as is so often the case on important public policy issues, we need states and localities to be the incubators of innovation. It’s their efforts, which we’re funding today, that will pave the way for national reform. These grants will get us closer to a future where working moms and dads can focus on what really matters: time with their families.


Source: US Department of Labor Blog

OFCCP at 50: A Progress Report

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs was established fifty years ago on September 24th, during a critical period that challenged our country to ensure that the promise of justice and freedom extended to all Americans − regardless of their race, color, creed, or national origin.

OFCCP enforces, for the benefit of job seekers and workers, the contractual promise of affirmative action and equal employment opportunity required of those who do business with the federal government. Our jurisdiction has expanded over the past 50 years, first in 1967 with the addition of sex as a protected class under Executive Order 11246. In 1973, OFCCP began enforcing Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. One year later it assumed authority for enforcing the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974. The president recently amended Executive Order 11246 to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as discrimination based on inquiring about, discussing or disclosing employee compensation.

We protect the civil rights of the nearly one quarter of American workers who are employed by – or seek jobs with – companies that do business with the federal government. That’s about 200,000 business establishments that receive nearly $500 billion in government contracts every year to provide a broad array of services and products.

Since President Obama took office, our senior leadership team, front-line managers, compliance officers and support staff have worked hard to improve OFCCP. I am proud to report some highlights:

• Since 2009, OFCCP has resolved over 500 cases remedying discrimination and obtained over $65 million in back pay and more than 11,000 job offers on behalf of nearly 116,000 workers.
• We undertook an ambitious regulatory agenda at the Department of Labor. Our updated regulations for Section 503 and VEVRAA require specific, aspirational metrics for the employment of qualified individuals with disabilities and protected groups of veterans. Also, we amended our regulations under Executive Order 11246 to implement new protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender workers. And under the president’s leadership, we have placed a priority on helping close the gender pay gap by, for example, adopting a final rule implementing the new pay transparency requirements of the amended executive order, and issuing new investigative guidance to address systemic pay discrimination.

• In 2011, we launched a new program to prioritize worker education and community outreach. Since then, we have hosted more than 3,000 events that were attended by more than 229,000 individuals.

• We established the Indian and Native American Employment Rights Program to strengthen workplace protections and expand employment opportunities for qualified Native American workers.

• We made nearly all of our online materials section 508 compliant and therefore accessible to individuals with disabilities.

• We strengthened collaborative and productive working relationships with our sister agencies at the Labor Department and across the federal government to promote our collective efforts.

• We worked closely with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice to develop a unified civil rights agenda that enhances worker protection and ensures compliance with the law by employers.

• We modeled success for the federal contractor community by investing in our infrastructure, training our staff, developing strong managers, building capacity, reinvigorating OFCCP’s quality assurance program, improving operations and ensuring diversity in our own workforce.

Although we have made great advancements, we recognize that there is much more work that remains to be done. I hold my staff and myself to the standard of excellence in everything we do. And with this ethic, we will continue to enforce the legally mandated promise of federal contractors that all workers will get a fair shot and a fair shake.

Patricia A. Shiu is the director of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.

Source: OFCCP Blog

Supreme Court Upholds Rule Requiring Overtime for Loan Officers

The Supreme Court today upheld a Department of Labor rule that required
banks to pay mortgage loan officers overtime, finding in a unanimous decision that the Administrative Procedures Act does not require federal agencies to employ notice-and-comment rulemaking when it issues a rule interpreting an existing regulation.

In the case of Perez v. Mortgage Bankers Association, the court overturned a lower court ruling that the department could not change its determination of exemption under the Fair Labor Standards Act without going through a formal rulemaking process. The Supreme Court rejected the precedent relied on by the lower court, arguing that it would impose obligations on federal agencies not envisioned by the text of the APA.

The Labor Department had ruled in 2006 that mortgage loan officers were exempt employees under the FLSA, but it reversed itself in 2010. The Mortgage Bankers Association sued DOL, arguing that the government could not “significantly revise” its “definitive interpretation” without conducting an official rulemaking with notice and comment.

Source: ABA

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

Justice Department Files Lawsuit Alleging Violations of Federal Law and Executive Order by Federal Contractor

The Justice Department announced the filing of a lawsuit today against Entergy Corporation for violating Executive Order 11246, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974. The lawsuit alleges that the defendant violated these laws and the executive order when it refused to comply with federal contractor requirements to submit proof of required affirmative action programs to the Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). Because Entergy has refused to supply documentation and cooperate with auditing attempts, OFCCP has been unable to determine if Entergy is in compliance with its affirmative action obligations.

“Government contractors that choose to accept federal funds also agree to abide by laws and regulations aimed at preventing employment discrimination,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “When a government contractor, like Entergy, refuses to adhere to the obligations it accepted as a federal contractor, that refusal undermines the public trust that taxpayers expect in ensuring that public funding is used in a manner that complies with both federal law and agency regulations.”

 

“This issue has been litigated and re-litigated many times, and the courts have been clear: companies that profit from federal contracts must comply with our requests for proof that they are meeting their obligations,” said OFCCP Director Patricia A. Shiu. “Entergy already earns more than $1 billion in taxpayer-funded contracts to provide services to the government. We shouldn’t have to spend more of those dollars taking them to court because they refuse to abide by the law. So, I urge Entergy Chairman and CEO Leo Denault to respect our nation’s hard-won civil rights laws.”

 

Entergy, as a federal contractor, is prohibited from discriminating against employees and job applicants because of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability or protected veteran status. The company is also required to take affirmative action to employ qualified women, minorities, people with disabilities and protected veterans. To determine compliance with those affirmative action and non-discrimination requirements, government contractors, including Entergy, are required to develop and maintain written affirmative action programs, retain personnel and employment records, and provide OFCCP access to those documents during compliance reviews or investigations. The lawsuit seeks a permanent injunction requiring Entergy to comply with its obligations, including its obligation to produce documents requested by OFCCP within 30 days of the request.

 

The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, alleges that since May 2012, Entergy has refused OFCCP’s repeated requests to turn over its written affirmative action programs and other records requested as part of the routine compliance review of 11 Entergy locations in Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana.

 

The Department of Labor referred this matter to the Department of Justice when Entergy refused to submit the documents requested by OFCCP even after receiving notices to show cause why enforcement proceedings should not be initiated.

 

Source: DOJ

 

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

New Section 503 and VEVRAA FAQs

As part of its on-going effort to provide guidance to the contractor community, OFCCP has posted additional Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) responding to questions received from contractors. The FAQs address requirements of the revised regulations implementing the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) and Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act (Section 503).  These new FAQs have been added to the many FAQs already published on the OFCCP Web site.    

The VEVRAA FAQs are available at http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/vevraa.htm.

The Section 503 FAQs are available at http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/section503.htm. 

Source: DOL

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

Minimum wage increase could help 22% of Florida workers

Increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour, as has been proposed by President Barack Obama, would help 22.4 percent of Florida workers, according to a study by Oxfam America.

The nonprofit organization that advocates for the poor found that Florida had the seventh-highest percentage of workers who would benefit from a higher minimum wage, mostly because the state has many workers in low-wage service sector and hospitality jobs. Florida’s current minimum wage of $7.93 per hour is adjusted annually based on inflation.

The federal minimum wage is $7.25. Oxfam said increasing it to $10.10 would help 25 million people nationally and boost their income by about $32.6 billion.
"This additional income will lift more than five million Americans out of poverty—and it will go right back into and strengthen local economies,” Oxfam President Raymond Offenheiser said in a news release.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is among the business groups that oppose a higher minimum wage because it would increase costs to employers, especially small business owners. Analysts also estimate it could lead to price increases for consumers.

Arkansas ranked first at 25.2 percent of workers benefiting from the wage hike, while Alaska was last at 13.2 percent. Florida was the only state in the top 10 here that voted for Obama in 2012.

Source: South Florida Business Journal

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

Lincoln Rehabilitation Center pays nearly $67,000 in unpaid wages to 138 workers

Lincoln Rehabilitation Center has paid 138 employees $66,983 in unpaid wages because of an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. The investigation found that the company violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by failing to compensate employees for all hours worked, including pre- and post-shift work, and improperly exempted some employees from overtime requirements. Lincoln Rehabilitation Center is a 140-bed nursing home in Decatur, Ill., managed by Skokie-based YAM Management LLC, which also manages 19 other Illinois nursing home facilities.

“Professionals in the health care industry provide vital services and must be paid as required by law. Receipt of these back wages and current payment in compliance with labor law has a great impact on these workers and their families,” said Norma Cervi, the division’s district director in St. Louis.
“Employers that violate labor laws harm not only workers, but competitors who abide by the law. The Wage and Hour Division is committed to ensuring that employees’ rights are protected, and employers are working on a level playing field.”

Investigators from the division’s St. Louis District Office found that Lincoln Rehabilitation Center failed to calculate time worked by employees properly, resulting in overtime violations. Additionally, salaried positions, such as activity directors and social service directors, were improperly classified as exempt from overtime.

The FLSA requires that covered, nonexempt employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour for all hours worked, plus time and one-half their regular rates, including commissions, bonuses and incentive pay, for hours worked beyond 40 per week. Employers are required to maintain accurate time and payroll records.

Source: DOL

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

EEOC Sues Nick's Restaurant for Disability Discrimination, Sexual Harassment, Retaliation

Restaurant/Sports Bar Revoked a Reasonable Accommodation for a Disabled Server and Fired Her After She Complained, Federal Agency Charges

 

PNS Investments, Inc. operating as Nick's Restaurant and Sports Bar, unlawfully discriminated against a server because of a disability, subjected her to sexual harassment and finally fired her in retaliation for complaining, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it filed today. Nick's is a sports bar and restaurant in the Houston area.

According to the EEOC's suit, Laura Kercheval has congenital achondroplasia dwarfism. When she was hired as a server for Nick's, she was allowed a reasonable accommodation of a modified work station to retrieve her drink tray from a lower shelf behind the bar. Subsequently, a new general manager disallowed the accommodation and told Kercheval to retrieve her drink tray from the bar counter, the main wait station. The new general manager refused to reconsider this order when he was told of the physical risks associated with Kercheval's use of the main wait station, and he made no effort to find an alternative accommodation. Because Kercheval complained and made repeated requests for a reasonable accommodation, the new general manager reduced her work hours and then fired her. Also, according to the suit, Nick's owner sexually harassed Kercheval by repeatedly making unwelcome sexual comments and physical contact.

Such alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which requires employers to provide a reasonable accommodation for an employee's disability. Nick's also engaged in unlawful employment practices in violation of the ADA when it retaliated against Kercheval by reducing her hours and discharging her. Additionally, Nick's violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by subjecting the server to sexual harassment by its owner. The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division after attempting to reach a voluntary pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

The EEOC is seeking a permanent injunction prohibiting Nick's from engaging in any further discrimination on the basis of disability, sex, or retaliation. The EEOC is also seeking back pay on behalf of Kercheval, as well as compensatory damages, punitive damages, and other relief on her behalf.

"An employer can't lawfully revoke an accommodation which allows an employee with a disability to perform her job and then refuse to make efforts to find a reasonable alternative," said EEOC's Houston District Director R.J. Ruff, Jr. "Nick's had apparently solved a challenging situation, but a new manager inexplicably decided to un-solve it, so the EEOC must now step in."

EEOC Regional Attorney Jim Sacher added, "As bad as the disability discrimination was, this restaurant made an unsavory situation even worse by adding retaliation and sexual harassment to the menu. Nick's subjected this woman to three kinds of unlawful discrimination, when one is bad enough. This situation clearly calls for the EEOC to take forceful action, which we are doing with this suit."

Source: EEOC

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

Airmen and soldiers from Joint Base Lewis-McChord to receive more than $5.5M in funding

The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a $5,586,385 National Emergency Grant to assist approximately 900 transitioning military personnel from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, the largest military base on the West Coast, located in Fort Lewis, Washington.

"The Department of Labor, industry partners, educators and workforce professionals at the local level have made it our common mission to help our veterans transition successfully from military service to civilian life," said Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. "This federal grant will provide military personnel from Joint Base Lewis-McChord with the employment services, support and training they need at this crucial time."

Awarded to the Pacific Mountain Workforce Consortium, this grant will be operated by the Pacific Mountain Workforce Development Council. It will provide these transitioning military personnel with case management, supportive services and training in order to help them apply the sought-after skills they acquired through military service in the civilian workforce.

Of the $5,586,385 announced today, $2,888,266 will be released initially. Additional funding up to the amount approved will be made available as the state demonstrates a continued need for assistance.

National Emergency Grants are part of the secretary of labor's discretionary fund and are awarded based on a state's ability to meet specific guidelines. For more information, visit www.doleta.gov/NEG/.

Editor's Note: Acting Assistant Secretary of Employment and Training Eric M. Seleznow's radio actuality on National Emergency Grants is available for public use.

Source: DOL

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

Rules to improve employment of people with disabilities and veterans published today

The U.S. Department of Labor today announced that the Federal Register published two final rules to improve hiring and employment of veterans and for people with disabilities. The rules were first announced Aug. 27, 2013, and more information is available at http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/ofccp/OFCCP20131578.htm.

The rules will become effective March 24, 2014, and federal contractors will be required to comply with most of the final rule's requirements by that date. However, some contractors may have additional time to comply with the requirements in subpart C, which relates to affirmative action plans. Contractors with affirmative action plans in place on March 24 may maintain them until the end of their plan year and delay their compliance with the final rule's affirmative action plan requirements until the start of their next plan cycle.
The final rules in the Federal Register can be found at

• https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2013/09/24/2013-21228/affirmative-action-and-nondiscrimination-obligations-of-contractors-and-subcontractors-regarding
• https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2013/09/24/2013-21227/affirmative-action-and-nondiscrimination-obligations-of-contractors-and-subcontractors-regarding

Source: DOL

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

EEOC Lawsuit Challenges Sexual Harassment at Davis Typewriter Company

Agency Says Office Manager Used Security Cameras to Ogle Female Subordinate's Breasts

 

A Worthington, Minn., office furniture and office supply company violated federal civil rights laws by permitting its operations manager to create a sexually hostile working environment against one of its female employees, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed.

According to the EEOC's lawsuit, between March and July 2010, Davis Typewriter Company's operations manager commandeered the company's security camera system to stream hours of footage of former employee Tracey Kelley's breasts and body onto his office computer. The EEOC's investigation indicated that when Kelley learned of her manager's surreptitious surveillance, and notified another manager and Davis Typewriter's owner, the company failed to take sufficient steps to correct such behavior, or prevent it from occurring again in the future. As a result of the company's failure to take reasonable measures to correct the harassment or prevent it from happening again, Kelley was forced to quit.

Sexual harassment violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC filed suit today in U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Davis Typewriter Company; Civil Action No. 0:13-cv-2345 DSD/AJB) after first attempting to reach a voluntary settlement out of court through its conciliation process. The EEOC is seeking injunctive relief that will require Davis Typewriter to adopt an effective sexual harassment prevention policy that complies with federal law and will seek back pay, compensatory and punitive damages on behalf of Kelley.

John Rowe, director of the EEOC's Chicago District, which includes Minnesota, said that the EEOC's administrative investigation which preceded the lawsuit, revealed a particularly egregious case of sexual harassment.
 
"Security cameras in the workplace are almost as common as computers," said Rowe. "No one should ever have to worry that this constant monitoring is being used to satisfy their boss's sexual fantasy."

John Hendrickson, the EEOC regional attorney in Chicago, said, "It appears from our investigation -- and we intend to prove it in court -- that Davis Typewriter learned about this man's unlawful behavior, but refused to take the steps necessary to assure Ms. Kelley that this behavior would not ever happen again, or that they would provide a safe, harassment-free workplace going forward. Employers who fail to take reasonable, simple measures to protect victims from further sexual harassment do so at their peril."

The EEOC's legal team in its Minneapolis Area Office will conduct the litigation under the management of the agency's Chicago District Office. That office is responsible for processing charges of discrimination, administrative enforcement, and the conduct of agency litigation in North Dakota, Minnesota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa, with Area Offices in Milwaukee and Minneapolis.

Source: EEOC

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

US Labor Department sues Manistee County-based Grossnickle Farms for alleged wage, safety and health standards violations

The U.S. Department of Labor is taking legal action to protect migrant workers at Grossnickle Farms in Manistee County following an investigation conducted by its Wage and Hour Division. A complaint has been filed in federal court against the farming operation and its two owners, Allen and Corinne Grossnickle, alleging violations of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act and the Fair Labor Standards Act’s minimum wage and record-keeping provisions.

Wage and Hour Division investigators determined that, since at least May 1, 2012, Grossnickle Farms has failed to maintain its migrant agricultural housing facilities, Camp in the Pines, in accordance with the MSPA. Inspections of the housing facilities disclosed evidence of several safety and health standards violations, including failing to maintain toilets in a sanitary condition and to clean them daily, not providing an adequate supply of hot water for bathing and laundry, failing to ensure all camp shelters provided protection from the elements and that all exterior openings were effectively screened with mesh material. Additionally, floors in the laundry and shower facilities were not constructed of nonslip material, and leaking water caused rotting wood and a slipping hazard.

“Allowing migrant workers to live in unsanitary facilities without sufficient hot water for bathing and laundry signals a lack of regard for the workers and puts their health and safety at risk,” said Mary O’Rourke, district director for the department’s Wage and Hour Office in Grand Rapids. “The department will use every enforcement tool available to ensure compliance with safety and health standards.”

Grossnickle Farms also allegedly violated the FLSA by paying many employees’ wages at rates less than $7.25 per hour. The violations were the result, in part, of defendants misclassifying employees as independent contractors and paying employees on a piece rate basis which, in some workweeks, was less than the minimum wage per hour. Investigators also found that the employers failed to maintain required records of employees’ names, wages and work hours, as required by the FLSA.

Grossnickle Farms is a strawberry, asparagus and cucumber farm. The company utilized 49 migrant and seasonal farm workers during the 2012 cucumber harvest. The migrant agricultural workers were mainly from Texas and Florida. The department’s lawsuit seeks to recover unpaid minimum wages owed to the affected employees and requests the court to permanently enjoin the defendants from violating the FLSA and MSPA in the future.

The Wage and Hour Division enforces the MSPA, which protects migrant and seasonal agricultural workers by establishing employment standards related to wages, housing, transportation, disclosures and record keeping. The division also enforces the FLSA, which requires covered employers to pay nonexempt farm workers at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked.

The misclassification of workers as something other than employees, such as independent contractors, presents a serious problem for affected employees, employers, and to the economy. Misclassified employees are often denied access to critical benefits and protections, such as family and medical leave, overtime, minimum wage and unemployment insurance. Employee misclassification also generates substantial losses to state and federal Treasuries, and to the Social Security and Medicare funds, as well as to state unemployment insurance and workers compensation funds. More information is available on the department’s misclassification Web page at http://www.dol.gov/misclassification.

Under the FLSA, employers must distinguish employees from bona fide independent contractors. An employee, as distinguished from a person who is engaged in a business of his own, is one who, as a matter of economic reality, follows the usual path of an employee and is dependent on the business that he serves. For more information, visit http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs13.htm.

Source: DOL

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

US Labor Department recovers nearly $125,000 in back wages for 59 employees of C & B Electrical Contractors in Orlando

C&B Electrical Contractors of Florida Inc. has agreed to pay $124,638 in back wages to 59 workers after an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime and record-keeping provisions.

Investigators from the Jacksonville District Office determined that C&B Electrical Contractors failed to pay overtime to employees working more than 40 hours in a workweek. The firm paid employees on a piece rate, which is permissible under the FLSA, but one and one-half times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 is still required. Additionally, the employer failed to maintain accurate records of hours worked and payments made to its employees.

“Employers are legally obligated to maintain accurate records and to pay employees for all hours worked, including proper overtime compensation when hours exceed 40 in a workweek,” said Michael Young, director of the Wage and Hour Division’s Jacksonville District Office. “Employers should take this investigation as an opportunity to evaluate their own payroll practices and ensure they are paying their employees in compliance with the law. All employees deserve to be paid all the wages to which they are legally entitled. Our vigorous enforcement of these laws also helps to ensure a level playing field for all employers.”

In addition to paying the back wages, C& B Electrical Contractors, which provides residential, new construction, warranty and service electrical work throughout Central Florida, agreed to comply with the overtime requirements, and to keep accurate time and payroll records. The company has also decided to simplify its pay practices by setting an hourly rate for all employees.

The FLSA requires that covered, nonexempt employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour for all hours worked, plus time and one-half their regular rates, including commissions, bonuses and incentive pay, for hours worked beyond 40 per workweek. Simply paying employees a salary, a piece rate or a day rate does not exempt them from overtime protections. In general, hours worked includes all time an employee must be on duty, or on the employer’s premises or at any other prescribed place of work, from the beginning of the first principal work activity to the end of the last principal activity of the workday. Additionally, the law requires that accurate records of employees’ wages, hours and other conditions of employment be maintained.

Source: DOL

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.