EmploymentRSS

  • December 30, 2008

    Most Of Wayne Farms FLSA Suit Thrown Out

    A federal judge has tossed out the majority of the claims in a Fair Labor Standards Act suit against chicken processing company Wayne Farms LLC, finding that nearly all the plaintiffs had reached a settlement with the company in an earlier FLSA suit.

  • December 30, 2008

    2nd Circ. Revives ERISA Suit Against JPMorgan

    A federal appeals court has revived a proposed class action alleging JPMorgan Chase & Co. and several of its officers improperly invested employees' retirements funds in company stock while hiding the bank's involvement in the Enron Corp. fraud.

  • December 30, 2008

    DOL Fines ConocoPhillips For Work Safety Breaches

    Energy giant ConocoPhillips Co. has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labor for multiple health and safety violations and faces a $116,500 fine.

  • December 30, 2008

    Ex-United Pilots Sue Airline, Union For Age Bias

    A group of United Airlines pilots who were terminated when they turned 60 years old have sued the airline and the Air Line Pilots Association, saying they should have been grandfathered in under the new Age 65 Rule, which extends a pilot's permissible flying age in the U.S. by five years.

  • December 30, 2008

    2nd Circ. Overturns Ruling In ERISA Suit V. First Unum

    Citing the U.S. Supreme Court's new standard of review for challenges to an ERISA plan administrator's denial of benefits, a federal appeals court has reversed a lower court's dismissal of a suit by a policyholder against First Unum Life Insurance Co. for denying his claim for long-term disability benefits, finding the insurer was conflicted as both claims administrator and payer of benefits.

  • December 29, 2008

    Gay Rights Group Praises New Federal Pension Law

    A new federal law easing pension plan rules for businesses and senior citizens has not only won the approval of business groups but has also been lauded by gay rights group the Human Rights Campaign, which says the law benefits same-sex couples.

  • December 29, 2008

    RIM Hits Back Over Motorola Nondisclosure Suit

    Three months after Motorola Inc. sued BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd. for allegedly trying to poach its employees and steal Motorola trade secrets, RIM has fired back, claiming that Motorola's suit constitutes unfair competition and is based on a misinterpretation of an agreement between the two companies.

  • December 29, 2008

    Wal-Mart To Pay Up To $640M Over Wage Disputes

    Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has agreed to pay up to $640 million to settle 63 wage-and-hour class actions, some of which have been pending against the retail giant for more than eight years.

  • December 29, 2008

    NFL Appeals Injunction In Players' Suit Over Diet Pills

    The National Football League has appealed a federal court's decision to extend a preliminary injunction barring the league from suspending five players, in a suit brought by the NFL union that claims the NFL failed to warn its athletes about a harmful diuretic in recently recalled diet pills.

  • December 29, 2008

    Ford Must Face Workers' Improper Investment Claims

    In a blow to Ford Motor Co., a federal judge has shot down the automaker's bid to throw out a lawsuit filed on behalf of employees who claim the company mismanaged its retirement plans by continuing to invest them entirely in Ford stock even as the company fell into dire financial straits.

  • December 29, 2008

    Massey Unit To Pay $4.2M In WVa Mine Deaths

    A Massey Energy Co. subsidiary has agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges and pay $4.2 million in criminal fines and civil penalties for safety violations that led to the deaths of two miners trapped by fire in 2006.

  • December 29, 2008

    Starbucks Mistreated Pro-Union Workers: NLRB Judge

    An administrative law judge has ruled that Starbucks Corp. engaged in unfair labor practices in a lawsuit brought by union organizers alleging the coffee chain retaliated against workers at four Manhattan stores who wanted to unionize.

  • December 29, 2008

    Pfizer Ordered To Pay $39M In Trade Secrets Dispute

    A California jury has issued a verdict against Pfizer Inc., ordering the drug company to pay $38.7 million for allegedly stealing trade secrets from a California-based research group.

  • December 29, 2008

    Lockheed Martin Hit With Sex Bias Class Action

    A female engineer has filed a putative class action suit against Lockheed Martin Corp., accusing the defense contractor of discriminating against certain female employees by systematically passing them over for upper-level management positions.

  • December 30, 2008

    No Contract, No Suit Against Bronfman: NY Court

    Reversing a lower court decision, a New York state appeals court has dismissed a lawsuit alleging that Edgar Bronfman Jr. of Warner Music Group owes the former head of Simon & Schuster Inc. more than $100 million for his work on the $2.6 billion acquisition of the music unit in 2003.

  • December 29, 2008

    5th Circ. Mulls 'Mooting' Issue In Cingular FLSA Case

    An appeals court has asked a district court to consider whether a former Cingular Wireless LLC worker timely filed a certification bid in a case that centers on the question of when an employer can moot a purported collective action by paying an employee’s claim in full.

  • December 29, 2008

    UnitedHealth Strikes Deal With SEC Over Backdating

    After reaching a massive deal with shareholders, UnitedHealth Group Inc. has agreed to settle an action by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over an alleged scam to backdate more than $1 billion in stock option grants to senior executives.

  • December 18, 2008

    Secret Service Slammed With Sanctions In Race Case

    A federal magistrate judge overseeing a putative class action brought by black U.S. Secret Service agents over alleged racial discrimination has sanctioned the government for the fourth time since the case was filed in 2000, drastically curtailing the agency's ability to mount a defense.

  • December 18, 2008

    Despite Statute, Rite Aid Worker Can Sue: Judge

    A former Rite Aid Corp. employee in Philadelphia who was accused of theft can sue the company for defamation even though he first learned of the alleged defamatory statements outside the statute of limitations period, a federal judge has ruled, carving an exception to Pennsylvania's traditional “single publication rule.”

  • December 18, 2008

    Guitar Center Can Talk To Workers In Wage Suit: Judge

    In a putative class action alleging Guitar Center Inc. improperly deducted wages for employee meal breaks, a judge has overruled the plaintiffs’ request to bar the retailer from interviewing workers about the allegations, but has also agreed to ensure the company releases information about employees it has contacted.