Today the Supreme Court said that a 401(k) participant can sue for losses when a plan fiduciary fails to follow investment directions. A copy of the opinion is here. In the case, James LaRue of Southlake,Texas, contends that his stock market holdings plunged $150,000 because administrators of his 401(k) retirement plan failed to follow his… Read More
Posts Categorized In: Current Affairs
Workplace Bullying Legislation Introduced in 13 States, Including Washington
Legislation has been introduced in 13 states, including Washington, to allow employee lawsuits against employers for bullying or offensive behavior even when the conduct is not illegal harassment under discrimination laws. For an interesting article on these bills see "No Putting Up With Putdowns". No state has enacted one of these so-called workplace bullying laws. … Read More
Overtime and Misclassification Class Action Goes Forward Against FedEx
A federal district court judge in California has certified a class action of former managers suing for overtime pay. The managers argue that they were improperly classified from overtime because most of their time was spent doing manual labor rather than managerial tasks. The case is Wiegele v. Fedex Ground Package System Inc. A copy… Read More
Employee Use of Cell Phone Leads to $5.2 Million Verdict
Here is an expensive lesson for an employer, in this case International Paper. One of its employees rear-ended another car while talking on a company cell phone causing severe injuries to the driver of the other car. A jury hit International Paper with a $5.2 million dollar verdict as explained in this article. The case… Read More
Sexual Harassment and Disability Accommodation Claims Dismissed
The Washington Court of Appeals recently affirmed the dismissal of an interesting case involving allegations of sexual harassment, retaliation, and disability discrimination. Briefly, the plaintiff, Moon, was allegedly asked for sex and sexually assaulted by a supervisor at her home after a party with other coworkers. She complained about the incident 8 months later. The… Read More
Who Won the Writers' Strike?
During the Vietnam War era, the late Sen. George Aiken, R-Vt., famously told both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard M. Nixon that they should “declare victory and get the hell out.” It appears that is what both sides have done in the writers’ strike. For an analysis, see this article in Slate and this… Read More
Washington Supreme Court: Commuting in Company Vehicle Counts as Time Worked for Overtime Pay
The Washington Supreme Court ruled on October 18, 2007, that time spent driving to and from work in a company vehicle should be considered as hours worked and included in calculations of overtime pay. The case, Stevens v. Brink’s Home Security, Inc., No. 79815-0 (Oct. 18, 2007), is an important ruling under wage and hour… Read More
Washington Court Dismisses Medical Marijuana Lawsuit
Superior Court Judge Sally F. Olsen dismissed a lawsuit filed in Kitsap County Superior Court alleging that an employee was wrongfully discharged for using marijuana. An article about the case can be found here. The employee alleged a claim for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy arguing she was using legally using medicinal marijuana… Read More