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Boys of Summer Bring Wage and Hour Lawsuit: Marks Beginning of Ideological Spring

Posted on December 9, 2015 by

Much ink has been spilled by those writing about the attention-grabbing, nationwide, consolidated wage and hour lawsuit brought by current and former minor-league professional baseball players.   The case is Senne v. Office of the Commissioner of Baseball, Case No. 3:14-00608-JCS, venued within the federal U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.   As a […]

Private-Sector Unions Show No Meaningful Gain Despite Implementation of Quickie Election Rules

Posted on December 9, 2015 by

The “quickie election” rules promulgated by the National Labor Relations Board have been in effect since April 14, 2015.  Thus far, predictions have come true as the time it takes to file a union petition to the time of the election has been dramatically shortened.  On the other hand, the number of petitions filed for […]

Chicken Little Syndrome No More – NLRB Regional Director’s Recent Joint Employment Decision Proves the Sky Is Not Falling [Yet, Anyway]

Posted on December 7, 2015 by

In the aftermath of the National Labor Relations Board’s recent, controversial Browning-Ferris Industries “joint employment” decision [362 NLRB No. 186], many within the management-side legal community [myself included] issued portentous predictions about the future –including Trojan Horse organizing tactics and the adverse impact on pervasive contingent workforce arrangements.  However, one of the Board’s Regional Directors […]

Worker’s Compensation Light Duty Programs for Occupationally Injured Employees and the ADA

Posted on November 23, 2015 by

Employers often establish a light-duty program that is reserved for employees who have work-related injuries or conditions during their healing periods.  The hallmarks of these programs is that temporary light-duty work is reserved for those employees receiving temporary benefits under worker’s compensation.  The rationale for this program is to help the employer comply with the […]

Employers Get Break For Now

Posted on November 19, 2015 by

In a surprise announcement, the Solicitor of Labor, Patricia Smith, has indicated the final rule on overtime eligibility being considered by the Department of Labor will likely not be declared final and implemented until late 2016.  During a panel discussion at the American Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Law Conference, Solicitor Smith indicated there were […]

Five Ruder Ware Attorneys Selected for Wisconsin Super Lawyers

Posted on November 18, 2015

Attorneys Mark Bradley, Melissa Kampmann, Mark Munson, Randi Osberg, and Bryan Symes have been selected as Wisconsin Super Lawyers.  Each year, no more than 2.5 percent of the lawyers in the state are selected by the research team at Super Lawyers to receive this honor. Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service […]

Court of Appeals Supports Handbook Rule Urging, But Not Requiring, Employees to Take Their Complaints Directly to Their Supervisor

Posted on November 16, 2015 by

A recent decision by the D.C. Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals reversed in part the National Labor Relations Board’s order against a private-sector employer regarding its employee handbook employee-complaint provision finding that the handbook rule was lawful and did not implicate employees’ Section 7 rights under the National Labor Relations Act or otherwise prohibit employees […]

NOTICE! – He’s Back! Almost 50 Bills Signed into Law Recently by Governor Walker

Posted on November 16, 2015 by

Last week, Governor Walker signed into law almost fifty new bills, many of which affect local government units, schools, and private employers’ human resource departments. My intent over coming days and weeks is to provide a summary of some of the important new laws. As the title of this blog not so subtly hints, the […]

Court of Appeals Gives Protection to Employee “Like” of Negative Comments

Posted on November 10, 2015 by

A recent decision by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the decision by the National Labor Relations Board that action taken by two employees on a Facebook page should be considered protected speech and therefore the employees should not have been terminated from employment.  In this decision involving the Triple Play Sports Bar […]

Federal Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Regarding Tattoos

Posted on November 6, 2015 by

A recent decision by a federal judge in Chicago has upheld the right of the City of Chicago to require police officers to cover visible tattoos while on duty.  The Chicago Police Department implemented a Department policy that banned the display of tattoos while on duty.  The City said this policy was necessary to insure […]