WIRTW #475 (the “girls rock” edition)
I’m not sure why, but when I pictured having a daughter I always imagined that she’d be into and frilly things, Barbies, and ballet. I gue...
Baring it all on social media and hiring
By Jon Hyman
I’ve never written about the time I stripped naked in front of my entire law school … until now. Well, here we go.
Dads are parents, too — baby bonding and sex discrimination
By Jon Hyman
Should new dad’s receive the same amount of time off from work to bond with their newly born child as do women? That is the question at th...
Is the DOL’s white-collar salary test DOA?
By Jon Hyman
Late last week , a federal judge in Texas struck down the Department of Labor’s attempt to raise the salary test for the Fair Labor Standa...
WIRTW #474 (the “I’m from” edition)
By Jon Hyman
My 11 year old daughter is a unique soul. She’s always been older and wiser than her years suggest, but I don’t think I’ve ever appreciate...
BREAKING: federal judge strikes down FLSA white-collar exemption salary test
By Jon Hyman
Ding, dong, the DOL’s salary test for white collar exemptions is dead (sort of). A Texas federal judge has held that the Department of L...
That time Justin Bieber’s “L’il Biebers” caused a sex discrimination lawsuit
By Jon Hyman
File this one under the category of I can’t make this stuff up . Apparently, Justin Bieber’s testicles are at the center of a recently fil...
The 17th nominee for the “worst employer of 2017” is … the square non-sparer
By Jon Hyman
A female public relations exec is suing her former employer for sex discrimination. Her claim—that her male bosses limited her access to t...
An attendance love story
By Jon Hyman
14 years ago today, my wife and I married. The ceremony started at 11 am, and by 10:55 I was nervous. Not your normal, “I’m about to g...
Letter to employees during EEOC investigation may violate discrimination laws
By Jon Hyman
Suppose an employee files an EEOC charge of discrimination against you. And, further suppose that during the investigation, you receive a...
WIRTW #473 (the “sweet children” edition)
By Jon Hyman
Last week I offered by eight-word meaning of life : Be kind to others and do good things. Today, I further offer “Corollary One” to said...
The 16th nominee for the “worst employer of 2017” is … the rapid retaliator
By Jon Hyman
The EEOC has sued an Atlanta cemetery company for firing an employee the day after the agency interviewed her as part of an on-going inves...
NLRB offers rare win for employer confidentiality policy
By Jon Hyman
It’s been a rough few years for workplace policies at the NLRB . From communication policies, to social media policies, to conduct poli...
The 15th nominee for the “worst employer of 2017” is … the one-day leave denier
By Jon Hyman
According to a lawsuit the EEOC recently filed against Macy’s, Inc., the retailer allegedly violated the ADA by firing an employee instead...
A deep dive on social media, employee privacy, and the workplace
By Jon Hyman
When history closes its book on 21st century America, Charlottesville may go down as one of its most significant chapters. If justice has ...
WIRTW #472 (the “back to school” edition)
By Jon Hyman
Happy back to school @lakeridgeacademy for Norah (6th) and Donovan (3rd). A post shared by Jon Hyman (@jonhyman) on Aug 16, 2017 at...
The meaning of life (in eight words)
By Jon Hyman
A few months back, while riding in the car (we do a lot of riding in the car, mostly to and from music lessons, rehearsals, and gigs), I f...
How much wasted work-time is too much?
By Jon Hyman
According to a recent survey conducted by OfficeTeam , on average, employees spend 8 hours per workweek on non-work activities. What doe...
Does a LinkedIn request violate a non-solicitation agreement?
By Jon Hyman
In Bankers Life and Casualty Company v. American Senior Benefits (Ill. Ct. App. 8/7/17) , Bankers Life sued a former sales manager, Grego...
When you discover that you employ a Nazi
By Jon Hyman
In the wake of Friday and Saturday’s horrific, evil events in Charlottesville, the twitter account YesYoureRacist posted many riot photos ...
WIRTW #471 (the “free press … sort of” edition)
By Jon Hyman
Hey look, it’s me, in Crain’s Cleveland Business, discussing the employee handbooks : Here’s what I read this week:
Apparently the labor rights of strikers trump the non-harassment rights of employees
By Jon Hyman
There exists only one workplace environment in which a white employee can keep his job after yelling the following at a group of African-A...
Diversity is not an ideology
By Jon Hyman
By now, you’ve likely heard about the male Google employee ( James Damore ) who circulated within the company a 10-page memo entitled, “Go...
Avoid “FLSA roshambo” to win off-the-clock overtime claims
By Jon Hyman
Defending claims for off-the-clock work is one of the most difficult tasks employers face under the Fair Labor Standards Act. An employee ...
Listen to me on the Talent10x podcast discuss the current state of LGBTQ discrimination
By Jon Hyman
I have enjoyed a long and fruitful relationship with Workforce Magazine . I’ve been blogging at workforce.com for the past five-plus years....
WIRTW #470 (the “lot was rocked" edition)
By Jon Hyman
’Nuff said. Here’s what I read this week:
Would you let your employer microchip you?
By Jon Hyman
Our family dog, Loula, is microchipped. Our vet offered it to us as a service when Loula first joined our family. It provides some peace of ...
Is joint employment the issue that unites our divided government?
By Jon Hyman
I cannot recall a time when our government has been more divided across ideological and party lines. (I don’t count the early 1860s, becau...
NBC reignites privacy debate by requiring social-media passwords of job applicants
By Jon Hyman
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” ( George Santayana ) It’s been eight long years since Bozeman, Monta...
Justice Department takes a stand in favor of LGBTQ discrimination
By Jon Hyman
LGBTQ prohibitions continue to make headway in the courts. While Congress has remained silent on the issue, more and more state and federa...
WIRTW #469 (the “rock the lot” edition)
By Jon Hyman
Do you like beautiful Ohio summer sunshine, delicious food-truck cuisine, and sweet rock ‘n’ roll music? If you answer “who doesn’t,” ...
Treat harassment by non-employees no differently than harassment by employees
By Jon Hyman
Consider the following lawsuit the EEOC filed against a California senior-care provider: The civil rights agency found that Rashon Stu...
The 14th nominee for the “worst employer of 2017” is … the horny head of HR
By Jon Hyman
The 14th nominee for the worst employer of 2017, on which you'll be voting at year's end, is perhaps the worst HR exec ever. If sh...
OSHA, what say you about Michael Phelps vs. Shark?
By Jon Hyman
This week is S hark Week on the Discovery Channel. And the marquee event of this year's Shark Week was Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps ...
Court rules that religious accommodation request is not protected activity for retaliation claim
By Jon Hyman
A Minnesota federal court has ruled that an employee’s request for a religious accommodation did not qualify as protected activity to supp...
WIRTW #468 (the “big in Japan” edition)
By Jon Hyman
True story. While trekking between San Francisco’s Coit Tower and Lombard Street, we passed a group of Japanese tourists exiting their bus. ...
This is what the interactive process is supposed to look like
By Jon Hyman
Last week, Donovan turned 9. Since we were in California during his birthday, we’ve had a bit of a delayed celebration back home. Since D-ma...
The (high) times they are a changin’: medical marijuana and disability discrimination
By Jon Hyman
In what is believed to be the first decision of its kind, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has allowed an employee to pursue a dis...
A reminder that any employee can sue you at any time
By Jon Hyman
Another obvious lesson Today’s lesson may seem obvious, but it is one worth repeating: any employee, no matter the on-the-job misconduc...
What I learned on my summer vacation
By Jon Hyman
Saturday evening my family and I returned from our two-week California vacation. Five nights in Los Angeles, two in Paso Robles (if you ever...
WIRTW #467 (the “here we are now, entertain us” edition)
By Jon Hyman
Last Saturday, Norah’s band, the Major Minors, played to a packed courtyard outside the legendary Grog Shop . And boy did the crowd have a ...
Ohio looks to put enforcement muscle behind workplace concealed carry law
By Jon Hyman
It’s been six months since Ohio made it illegal for employers to prohibit employees (or anyone else for that matter) from storing a firea...
More on why holding lawyers liable for retaliation to a client's employee is the worst idea
By Jon Hyman
Yesterday’s post discussing Arias v. Raimondo as the worst employment-law decision of 2017 was way more controversial than I imagined....
Is this the worst employment law decision of 2017?
By Jon Hyman
I’ll be vacationing in California with my family the first two week of July. After reading the 9th Circuit’s decision in Arias v. Raimond...
The 13th nominee for the “worst employer of 2017” is … the racist boss
By Jon Hyman
I couldn’t describe the 13th nominee for the worst employer of 2017 any better than CNN did in its story about this (alleged) peach of a ...
WIRTW #466 (the “solo” edition)
By Jon Hyman
I gotta give my girl credit. She’s got cohones (especially at the age of 11). Through a casual exam-chair conversation with her orthodontist...
Reporting harassment down is no trigger for employer action, says 6th Circuit
By Jon Hyman
Employers have a legal obligation to investigate known sexual and other unlawful harassment, and exercise reasonable care to prevent and ...
6th Circuit grants EEOC broad subpoena powers
By Jon Hyman
The Witch: I’m not a witch! I’m not a witch! Sir Bedevere: But you are dressed as one The Witch: *They* dressed me up like this! Cro...
The 12th nominee for the “worst employer of 2017” is … the parental stereotyper
By Jon Hyman
Last week, Derek Rotondo, a dad of two young children, filed a sex discrimination charge with the EEOC against his employer of seven year...
The 11th nominee for the “worst employer of 2017” is … the pregnant pause
By Jon Hyman
The EEOC has taken a judgment of $118,483 against a New jersey debt collection firm in a pregnancy discrimination case. Why? Because the f...
WIRTW #465 (the “gimme a break” edition)
By Jon Hyman
Next week, I am taking a much needed break, as I will be out of the office. I’ll see everyone back on June 19. Of course, now that I’ve co...
DOL pulls Obama-era guidance on joint employment and independent contractors
By Jon Hyman
The past two years have been busy for the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. One can directly track a large part of its busy wo...
Next up on the EEOC’s radar: age discrimination
By Jon Hyman
This year, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act turns 50. Which means the law itself has been protected from age discrimination for a ...
R-E-S-P-E-C-T (just a little bit)
By Jon Hyman
I ain’t gonna do you wrong while you’re gone Ain’t gonna do you wrong ‘cause I don’t wanna All I’m askin’ Is for a little respect – Ar...
A contrary (and common sense) appellate view on rude employees and the NLRA
By Jon Hyman
It’s been six weeks since I reported on NLRB v. Pier Sixty , in which the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals held that the National Labor Relat...
WIRTW #464 (the “school’s out…” edition)
By Jon Hyman
One of the elements of my kids’ school that I like most is that the curriculum provides many opportunities for public speaking at every grad...
The importance of an anti-harassment culture
By Jon Hyman
I came across an interesting article at the Harvard Business Review— The Omissions That Make So Many Sexual Harassment Policies Ineffectiv...
When is a settlement not a settlement? FLSA
By Jon Hyman
When you settle a lawsuit with an employee, you are bargaining for finality. You are paying that employee to resolve all disputes between...
6th Circuit joins the battle over class-action waivers
By Jon Hyman
There has been much judicial and administrative ink spilled over the past few years over whether the National Labor Relations Act permits...
WIRTW #463 (the “so special” edition)
By Jon Hyman
This weekend is a big one for Norah. Today, she graduates from 5th grade and walks across the quad to become a middle schooler. And tomorrow...
When equal pay is not “equal” pay
By Jon Hyman
The Equal Pay Act requires that an employer pay its male and female employees equal pay for equal work. The jobs need not be identical, bu...
Federal court breaks new ground with transgender disability discrimination claim
By Jon Hyman
The ADA expressly excludes from its coverage “transvestism, transsexualism, … [and] gender identity disorders not resulting from physical...