Author Archives: Lori Costanzo
Retaliation At Work Is Illegal And You Can Sue If It Happens To You
If you are being sexually harassed at work, the effect can be demoralizing and crushing. If your complaints are ignored, or your employer refuses to act on your valid complaints of harassment, that can be even more demoralizing. But at the height of soul crushing and devastating events, must be complaining about sexual harassment… Read More »
‘Tis The Season For Workplace Sexual Harassment
The holiday season generally means more social gatherings. Many companies will have holiday happy hours and holiday parties, which often feature alcohol and can create an atmosphere that tolerates and even encourages behavior that would otherwise fall outside of what is usually appropriate in the workplace. The relaxed environment and introduction of alcohol and… Read More »
New Law Gives Employees Rights In An Emergency
Thanks to some new employment laws, California employees now have some additional rights in the workplace—especially when it comes to emergencies, and how your employer handles and deals with you during emergencies. Law Deals With Emergency Situations The law says that should an employee ever have a reasonable belief that the workplace may be… Read More »
Can Your Employer Pull Your Credit?
If you apply for a job, there is a chance that your employer may ask you to fill out paperwork that gives them permission to pull your credit report. Regardless of your credit, this can be intrusive, invasive, and seemingly totally irrelevant. But can your prospective employer do this? And can your prospective employer… Read More »
Twitter Terminations And Layoffs
Elon Musk finally concluded the acquisition of Twitter late last week. His first actions were to terminate many of the C level executives. These executives unlike most employees at Twitter, had employment agreements with a pre-defined severance payout upon terminate. As with most employment agreements, there is usually a carve out for termination with… Read More »
Can You be Fired For Using Medical Marijuana At Work?
In 1996, California led the nation by becoming the very first state to make medical marijuana usage legal. But don’t be fooled–that doesn’t mean that an employee has a legal right to use marijuana in the workplace, if the employer otherwise forbids its usage. Marijuana is Still Illegal This is because of the interplay… Read More »
Things You Didn’t Know About How The ADA Protects Your Employment
Many people are aware that the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) protects you from being fired, or from suffering any adverse consequences at work, because of a disability, illness or disease. But what many people don’t know is how broad or how many different things the ADA protects. Here are things that most employees… Read More »
Why Do Employers Like Arbitration So Much?
In more and more employment agreements you are seeing what are known as arbitration clauses. These clauses are not unique to employment law; everything from injury cases to business lawsuits to consumer lawsuits often involves the use of arbitration. But what is it about arbitration that big companies, and particularly any kind of employer,… Read More »
Who Does The FMLA And California FMLA Cover?
The Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and California’s version of the law is a powerful law that requires that employees be given time off to care for sick loved ones. It is so unique, because you, as the worker, do not have to be sick or ill at all—you only need to have a… Read More »
Is Fibromyalgia Covered Or Protected Under The ADA?
The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) requires that employers make accommodations for employees who have certain kinds of illnesses, diseases or disabilities. One illness that an employee may end up with is what is known as Fibromyalgia. Does an employer have to make accommodations for you if you suffer from Fibromyalgia? What is Fibromyalgia?… Read More »
