Google Execs Convicted of Violating Italian Privacy Law
On February 24, 2010, a Milan court convicted Google's Chief Legal Officer, Global Privacy Counsel, and a former member of Google Italy's board of directors for violating Italian privacy law and imposed a six-month, suspended jail sentence. The case stemmed from a posting on Google Video® - a YouTube® predecessor - of a video depicting several teenagers bullying a classmate with Down's Syndrome. Although the Google executives had no involvement in either the posting or in the decision whether and when to remove it, Italian law imposes criminal liability on senior executives for the actions of the corporation. Prosecutors alleged that Google should be held responsible not only for permitting the video to be posted in the first instance, but also for allegedly not having acted quickly enough to remove the video after receiving a complaint.
For more information on this case and its implications for employers, continue reading What Does the Criminal Conviction for Privacy Law Violations of Three Google Executives in Italy Mean for Multi-National Employers in the U.S.? by Phillip L. Gordon at Littler's Workplace Privacy Blog.
U.S. Appellate Court Permits Practice of Tip-Pooling
In a decision that will be well-received by hospitality and tourism employers, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has held that employers that do not take a tip credit against the federal minimum wage when paying their employees can lawfully implement tip-pooling arrangements. In Cumbie v. Woody Woo, Inc. (pdf), No. 08-25718 (Feb. 23, 2010), the appellate court rejected the argument that a restaurant's use of a tip pool that redistributed a portion of its wait staffs' tips to kitchen employees violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The FLSA requires an employer to pay its employees a certain minimum wage, but recognizes in its definition of "wage" that under certain circumstances, employers of "tipped employees" may include part of such employees' tips as wage payments. An employer must pay a tipped employee a cash wage of at least $2.13 per hour, but if the cash wage is less than the federal minimum wage (currently $7.25), the employer can make up the difference with the amount an employee receives as tips, often referred to as the "tip credit."
Legislative Update for the Week of March 1
House Advances Jobs Bill
The House of Representatives voted 217 to 201 in favor of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act, the $15 billion jobs bill introduced by Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) as an amendment (S. Amt. 3310) to H.R. 2847, the more expansive jobs bill that the House passed in December. Read the full post here. (March 4)
Obama Makes Final Push for Health Care Reform; Endorses Reconciliation
Telling Congress to "finish its work," President Obama urged both chambers to schedule a vote on final health care overhaul legislation in the coming weeks. While Obama did not outline a specific roadmap for reform, it is widely believed that the plan for going forward involves first having the House of Representatives vote on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (H.R. 3590), the bill that the Senate approved in December, and then passing via budget reconciliation a package of changes to that bill reflected in the estimated $950 billion proposal Obama unveiled on February 22. Read the full post here. (March 3)
Legislative Update for the Week of February 22
Bill Would Strengthen Worker Benefits, Limit Executive Pay in the Event of Bankruptcy
Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Representative John Conyers (D-MI) introduced the Protecting Employees and Retirees in Business Bankruptcies Act (S. 3033, H.R. 4677), legislation that would strengthen employees' ability to recover wages and benefits and restrict the awarding of bonuses in the event of their employer's bankruptcy. Read the full post here. (February 26)
White House Health Care Summit Fails to Resolve Differences
The White House bipartisan health care summit produced no final legislation or agreement about how to proceed with health care reform. Democrats took the position that they would not start from scratch, and Republicans claimed they would not support the proposals that have already been put forth. Read the full post here. (February 26)
Supreme Court Clarifies Where Multi-State Employers Can Be Sued
In what could be hailed as a victory for employers, the U.S. Supreme Court has made it less likely that a company can be sued in state court just because it conducts business in that state. Under federal statute, a corporation is to be considered a citizen of any state in which it has been incorporated and the state where it has its principal place of business. If sued in state court, a corporation can seek to have the case moved to federal court - a move often deemed advantageous for employers - if the parties are from different states.
Continue Reading...Legislative Update for the Week of February 15
Check Your Mail - Is an IRS Audit Next?
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will begin mailing questionnaires to 401(k) plan sponsors to gather information about compliance with applicable tax rules. The questionnaire is in response to past IRS audits that have shown significant 401(k) plan noncompliance stemming from a lack of internal controls at the plan sponsor level. Read the full post here. (February 19)
EEOC Addresses Scope of Reasonable Factors Other than Age Defense Under the ADEA
In response to recent U.S. Supreme Court opinions, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) will issue a notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register defining the meaning of the "reasonable factors other than age" defense under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). Read the full post here. (February 17)
Cynthia Attwood Confirmed to be a Member of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission
The Senate confirmed the nomination of Cynthia Attwood to be a member of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, the independent federal agency responsible for adjudicating contests of citations or penalties resulting from an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) workplace inspection. Read the full post here. (February 16)
English Courts Broadly Interpret the Territorial Reach of U.K. Employment Legislation
Legislative Update for the Week of February 8
Article Paints Grim Picture for Labor Agenda
Coming one day after the Senate rejected advancing the nomination of Craig Becker to the National Labor Relations Board, an op-ed piece by columnist Harold Meyerson in The Washington Post proclaims that the Obama administration has been "close to an unmitigated disaster" for organized labor. Read the full post here. (February 10)
Draft Senate Jobs Bill Contains Employer Hiring Incentives, COBRA and Unemployment Extensions, Pension Funding Relief
A draft of the 362-page Senate jobs bill, which has been circulating among members of Congress, includes language providing for, among other things: unemployment benefits and COBRA health insurance premium extensions; tax incentives to promote hiring; spending programs on transportation initiatives; pension funding relief; and a tax proposal designed to raise revenue from foreign-held assets and trusts. Read the full post here. (February 10)
Senate Fails to Pass Cloture Vote on Becker's Nomination
The Senate rejected advancing the nomination of Craig Becker to serve as a member of the National Labor Relations Board. Read the full post here. (February 9)
Increase in Private-Sector Discrimination Charges Indicates Emerging Trend
The record number of certain employment-related discrimination claims filed in 2009 indicates the emergence of a trend for which employers should be prepared. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC) newly-released enforcement and litigation statistics show that 93,277 workplace discrimination charges were filed during fiscal year 2009, the second-highest annual total for the agency. Private sector charges alleging disability, religion and/or national origin discrimination reached record highs, while the most frequent charges filed in 2009 alleged discrimination based on race (36%), retaliation (36%), and discrimination based on sex (30%). This year-end data also indicates that claimants received $376 million in total monetary relief through litigation, administrative enforcement and mediation.
Continue Reading...Legislative Update for the Week of February 1
OFCCP Releases FAQs on the Impact of the Supreme Court's Ricci Decision
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has posted on its website a set of frequently asked questions about the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Ricci v. DeStefano, the reverse discrimination case involving New Haven firefighters. Read the full post here. (February 5)
Senator Reid Files Cloture on Craig Becker's Nomination to the National Labor Relations Board
Senator Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has filed cloture on the nomination of Craig Becker to be a member of the National Labor Relations Board. Read the full post here. (February 5)