WELA Alert
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires employers who conduct background checks to provide the applicant with a copy of his/her credit report before the employer takes any adverse action. Here the employer conducted a background check and obtained the applicant?s credit report. The employer disqualified the applicant for further consideration based on...
WASHINGTON COURT OF APPEALS Plaintiff worked for QFC. He filed a class action claiming the employer?s policy of rounding employees? clock-in time to nearest quarter hour unlawfully deprived them of wages due under Washington law. QFC claimed that the claims were subject to arbitration under the relevant collective bargaining agreement (?CBA?), even though there was no mention of the rounding...
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit On January 4, 2012, Janelle Perez was hired by Chief Daniel Hahn to serve as a police officer in the Roseville Police Department. A few months into her probationary term, Perez and a fellow officer, Officer Shad Begley ("Begley") began a romantic relationship. Both Perez and Begley were separated from, although still...
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Plaintiff worked as the executive director for a public radio station and related foundation, both affiliated with a state university. He reported to the university president. The university president became concerned with how the foundation was spending its money. An audit determined that there was an inherent conflict of interest in having...
US Sct. Will decide if the ADEA Employee Minimum applies to Public Employers
Does the ADEA 20 Employee Minimum Apply to Public Employers? Court Will Tell Us The Court granted review of whether, under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the same 20-employee minimum that applies to private employers also applies to political subdivisions of a state, as the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 6th, 7th, 8th and 10th Circuits have held,...
U.S. Department of Labor Investigation Results in a Washington Orchard Paying $19,297 in Fines for Providing Illegal Housing for Migrant Workers SEATTLE, WA ? After a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation, Rivera Orchards Inc. has paid $19,297 in penalties to resolve Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA) violations that posed a direct and imminent...
Attorney Did Not Engage in Protected First Amendment Activity; Jury Verdict Reversed
WELA ALERT: NINTH CIRCUIT Attorney Did Not Engage in Protected First Amendment Activity; Jury Verdict Reversed The plaintiff worked for many years as a civil litigation attorney for the Maricopa County Attorney?s Office (MCAO), and later (briefly) as a direct employee of Maricopa County, defending the county and related entities in civil lawsuits, before again returning to her previous employment at...
Unwanted Hugging Can Constitute Illegal Sexual Harassment
WELA ALERT: NINTH CIRCUIT Unwanted Hugging Can Constitute Illegal Sexual Harassment Plaintiff was a correctional officer. She claimed the sheriff created a sexually hostile work environment by greeting her with 100 unwanted hugs and one unwelcome kiss over a 12-year period. She claimed he pressed his chest into her breasts. She complained but her employer did not investigate. She also claimed...
WELA ALERT: WASHINGTON SUPREME COURT Court Will Decide Whether Applicants Can Bring Retaliation Claims Based on Opposition With Respect to a Different Employer The district court certified the following question to the Washington Supreme Court:? ?Does RCW 49.60.201(1) create a cause of action for job applicants who claim a prospective employer refused to hire them in retaliation for prior opposition to...
State Prosecutor was Not an ?Original Source? for Qui Tam Suit
WELA ALERT: NINTH CIRCUIT State Prosecutor was Not an ?Original Source? for Qui Tam Suit Prather, the relator in this qui tam action, served as a state prosecutor for over thirty years and supervised hundreds of wiretaps.? In 1994 Congress passed the Communications Assistance to Law Enforcement Agencies Act (?CALEA?), which authorized the payment of $500 million to telecom companies for...