By Brandon Sipherd

Senator Charles Schumer plans on introducing new legislation that would increase employment restrictions for registered sex offenders.  Under the proposed legislation, registered sex offenders will have difficulty finding jobs as superintendents and building managers.  Senator Schumer will likely introduce this new change to employment law in the United States Senate on Monday.

The new employment law will prohibit registered sex offenders from obtaining keys to apartment units without first disclosing their prior criminal history.  Only after informed tenants give their consent, will sex offenders be able to obtain the keys to the approved units.

The proposed legislation comes three weeks after a convicted child molester, William Barnason, was reported to be working as a superintendent at Upper West Side apartments in Manhattan.  In 1987, Barnason, who was already serving a prison sentence for sexually abusing a 5-year-old girl, was sentenced to 10 to 20 years after pleading guilt to rape, sodomy and sexual-abuse charges for an attack on three girls from Suffolk County, ranging between the ages of 5 to 7.

Barnason’s sex offender status designates that he is at a high risk of re-offending and committing future sexually related crimes.  Since 2007, there have been multiple reports filed by women claiming Barnason pressured them to have sexual relations with him so he would “look the other way” over late rent or to secure a larger apartment.

The proposed change to existing employment law will guarantee that tenants will have the choice of whether they want a registered sex offender having access to their apartments.  Most likely this will prevent sex offenders from being hired as superintendents or building managers.

Critics of the proposed legislation claim that it is flawed and one-sided because it focuses on the unusual, atypical situations rather than on the existing programs to reform sex offenders.  Instead, it is argued, the bill should focus on the typical and usual case where sex offenders cannot get jobs and are, therefore, unstable and a risk to the community.

The proposed law follows a very similar state legislation introduced by New York Assemblyman Micah Kellner.  Senator Schumer has yet to find a co-sponsor for the bill, but he will continue his efforts to ensure the bill’s success.

Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC is a nationally recognized leader in the area of employment law.   Our firm has had considerable success in matters of employment discrimination throughout Long Island and the New York City area.  We take great pride not only in providing quality legal service and representation, but also in being there for clients when they need it most.

For more information, contact Leeds, Morelli and Brown, PC at 1-800-585-4658 for a free consultation.

By Brandon Sipherd

Rhode Island’s Central Falls School Board of Trustees, in a 5-2 vote, fired every teacher at Central Falls High School.  In total, 93 employees were fired and each one stood as their name was read aloud in the auditorium after the decision was made.  The firings included 74 classroom teachers, as well as the principal, all three assistant principals, guidance counselors, reading specialists, physical education teachers, and the school psychologist.

Hordes of labor organizations gathered in Central Falls Tuesday to support the teachers and criticize the city’s education officials.  Even the American Federation of Teachers rallied support for the teachers of Central Falls.

Meanwhile, state and local education officials praised the city’s education officials for taking a stance and firing the teachers.  Arne Duncan, the United States Education Secretary, applauded officials for having the courage to do the right thing for the students.

Even teachers from across Rhode Island showed up to voice their own opinions.  Many are concerned these efforts taken by federal and state education officials only undermine their employment contracts and the collective bargaining agreements between teachers’ unions and school employers.

Central Falls is Rhode Island’s smallest and poorest city; yet, it is taking drastic measures to reform its schools.  Central Falls High School is among one of the lowest-performing schools in the country.

Education Secretary Duncan is requiring states to identify their lowest 5 percent of schools and fix them.  Schools who have chronic poor performance and low graduation rates must reform by using one of four methods: school closure; takeover by a charter or school-management organization; transformation which requires a longer school day; or turnaround which requires the entire teaching staff be fired and no more than 50 percent rehired in the fall.

Rhode Island’s Education Commissioner, Deborah Gist, quickly implemented Duncan’s new requirement.  On January 11, Education Commissioner Gist identified six of the persistently lowest-performing schools—Central Falls High School, which has rock bottom test scores and a graduation rate of only 48 percent, and five other schools in Providence.  Gist told these school districts they had until March 17 to decide which of Duncan’s four models they would implement.  As a result, Rhode Island is one of the first states to publicly implement the new dramatic federal education reform.

Central Falls High School’s education officials and teachers originally agreed on implementing the transformation model in order to protect the teachers’ employment.  However, neither side could agree on what transformation would entail and talks between the two sides fell apart.

Education officials suggested six conditions to improve the school.  Under these suggestions, teachers would be have to spend more time with students in and out of the classroom and attend after school training sessions with other teachers.  However, teachers would only be paid for some of the proposed additional duties.  Union leaders fought back by demanding the teachers be paid for the extra work and even receive higher wages for doing so—$90 per hour instead of $30 per hour.

Shortly after the negotiations broke down, education officials lost confidence that the school could be transformed and, therefore, proposed the turnaround model.  Eventually the school’s Board of Trustees voted in favor of the turnaround model, resulting in the dismissal of all the teachers.

Chronically failing schools are not limited to Rhode Island; rather this is a nation-wide crisis experienced in nearly every state.  One question remains unanswered: Whether this is a workers’ rights issue or a children’s rights issue?

Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC is a nationally recognized leader in the area of employment law.  Our firm has had considerable success in matters of employment discrimination throughout Long Island and the New York City area.  We take great pride not only in providing quality legal service and representation, but also in being there for clients when they need it most.

For more information, contact Leeds, Morelli and Brown, PC at 1-800-585-4658 for a free consultation.

By Brandon Sipherd

Google, the company bent on making the world’s information more accessible to all, believes that the race and gender makeup of its workforce is a trade secret that must remain private.  Google and four other companies argue that because they are less mature companies in a highly competitive market and the structure of their business operations—race and gender makeup—allows them to compete with more established companies.

Two years ago, San Jose’s Mercury News attempted to gain data from 15 large commercial companies located in Silicon Valley, California.  Mercury News tried convincing federal regulators to release date concerning the companies’ racial and gender makeup.  Google, Apple, Yahoo, Oracle and Applied Materials fought and won an 18-month Freedom of Information battle with Mercury News over the release of this data.  These five companies convinced the United States Department of Labor that releasing the race and gender data would be commercially damaging by revealing the companies’ business strategy to competitors.  However, a sixth company, Hewlett-Packard, fought the release and lost, forcing it to turn over the race and gender data of its workers to federal regulators.

Among the 15 companies asked to provide race and gender data, nine—including Intel, Cisco Systems, eBay, AMD, Sanmina and Sun Microsystems—agreed to allow the Department of Labor to release the data.  According to these companies’ head officers, there was nothing in the data that needed to be kept hidden from the public.  In fact, many of these companies were proud of their diversity programs and their efforts to create an equal workforce.

Many employment law experts refute the idea that public disclosure of race and gender data would really allow competitors to discern a company’s business strategy, especially a large technology company.  Instead, they argue the social cost of releasing potentially damaging race and gender data is very real and large, and these companies are only trying to prevent the public from obtaining this information.

A company’s race and gender data is important in determining the existence of discrimination in today’s workforce.  The data provided in these releases help determine how society is fairing in racial and gender equality.  These companies are especially important because they are fairly new and did not exist when race and gender discrimination were accepted and pervasive in the United States.  The data from these companies would give a fresh look at how the workforce has really changed since discrimination based on a person’s race and gender became illegal.

The data obtained by Mercury News shows that while the collective workforce of the 10 companies grew by 16 percent from 1999 to 2005, the population of black workers decreased by 16 percent and Hispanic workers decreased by 11 percent.  In 2005, only 2,200 of the 30,000 workers in Silicon Valley were black or Hispanic.  Among the 5,900 managers during the same time period, about 300 were black or Hispanic—a decrease of 20 percent from 1999.  Woman in managerial positions dropped 20 percent during that time—a 28 percent decrease.

Recently, Google donated $8 million to help underrepresented minorities pursue careers in technology.  Yet, Google continues to decline making public the race and gender makeup of its 20,000 workers for competitive reasons.

Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC is a nationally recognized leader in the area of employment law.  We believe that discrimination based on a person’s race and gender has no place in a democratic society.  Our firm has had considerable success in matters of employment discrimination throughout Long Island and the New York City area.  We take great pride not only in providing quality legal service and representation, but also in being there for clients when they need it most.

For more information, contact Leeds, Morelli and Brown, PC at 1-800-585-4658 for a free consultation.

By Brandon Sipherd

The YMCA of the United States has been accused of systemic discrimination against black employees in compensation, promotions, and other employment practices.  Black employees are unrepresented in mid- and upper-level positions at the YMCA, and are paid less and receive fewer promotions than their coworkers.

Since about 2003, black employees have consistently earned less than non-blacks holding similar job positions, received promotions less frequently than non-blacks, and were assigned lower-earning positions at disproportionately lower rates than non-blacks.  This resulted in a higher turnover rate of black employees than white employees.

Last week, present and former employees filed a lawsuit against the YMCA in federal court in Chicago.  The plaintiffs allege that there exists a culture of discrimination at the YMCA that resulted in denying black employees equal employment opportunities.

In August 2005, the YMCA ordered a salary review study of its various employees.  The results of the study showed an existing need to make adjustments in salary, including salary equity adjustments for black employees who were underpaid as compared to their coworkers.  The YMCA allegedly knew of the results but failed to take any corrective measures.   Instead, organization executives chose to ignore the studies’ results and continued with the status quo.

Representatives of the YMCA vigorously deny the allegations stating that such behaviors and actions are inconsistent with the core values of the organization.

It appears that this lawsuit will continue to move forward since neither side has yet to agree to any settlement offer.

At Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC, we believe that discrimination has no place in a democratic and free society.  Our employment law attorneys are dedicated to resolving issues of discrimination based on race in the workplace and elsewhere.  Our firm has had considerable success in handling matters such as these throughout Long Island and the New York City area.  We take great pride not only in providing quality legal service and representation, but also in being there for clients when they need it most.

For more information, contact Leeds, Morelli and Brown, PC at 1-800-585-4658.

By Brandon Sipherd

Facebook, the most visited Internet site on the web, may pose problems for both employers and employees.  A recent national study found that employers were impressed by potential employees’ personality, creativity, and communication skills found on the Internet.  But employers have also rejected job applicants for inappropriate photos, content relating to drinking and drugs, and misrepresentation of skills found on Facebook.  By doing this, employers may be violating anti-discrimination laws that have protected employees for decades.

Currently, there is no established case law restricting an employers’ use of Facebook in making its employment decisions.  However, as employers continue to use Facebook to make their decisions, litigation will simultaneously increase with regards to this issue.

Since there is very little legal guidance on the issue of using Facebook or other social medial sites to screen potential employees, many employers have begun to craft company policies in order to protect themselves.  Because social media sites are aimed at friends and family, employers must be careful that the information obtained from the site does not result in discrimination of a protected class—namely race, gender, religion, disability or sexual orientation.  If an employer, for example, screened out applicants, even before interviewing them, based on racial or religious details obtained from social media sites, the employer would be guilty of discrimination.  Using such information to form the basis of an employment decision is against the law.

The same goes for employers who reject an applicant who discloses union organizing, smoking or drinking on a site such as Facebook because all these activities are lawful.

In 2008, a New Jersey employer was sued for the improper use of information obtained from a social media site.  Employees of a local restaurant created a password-protected blog to complain about customers and management.  One manager learned of the blog and persuaded one of the employees to allow him to read the blog.  This resulted in two employees being fired for their written comments posted on the blog.  The two employees then sued the employer and won a $17,000 judgment.

Employers use social media sites like Facebook because there is a need and pressure to hire carefully, especially in an economy where applicants are plenty and jobs are few.  Sites like Facebook also make it easy for employers to discover information that is usually difficult to obtain because of privacy restrictions.

Prudent employers should disclose to potential employees that the applicant process will include reference checking from information found in the public domain, such as Facebook.

Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC is a nationally recognized leader in the area of employment law.  We believe that discrimination based on a person’s race, religion, gender, ethnicity or disability has no place in a democratic society.  Our firm has had considerable success in matters of employment discrimination throughout Long Island and the New York City area.  We take great pride not only in providing quality legal service and representation, but also in being there for clients when they need it most.

For more information, contact Leeds, Morelli and Brown, PC at 1-800-585-4658 for a free consultation.

By GetLegal.com

A former Nashville schools Payroll Coordinator was awarded about $1.5 million dollars by a Federal jury on Monday, January 25, 2010 based on a claim that she was wrongfully terminated in 2003 when she cooperated in a sexual harassment investigation of a school official.  The former employee, Vicky Crawford, who worked for the district for thirty years, sought lost wages, future wages and pension benefits.

Court documents indicate that Crawford told investigators that a co-worker would ask to see her breasts, grab his crotch saying, ”You know what’s up,” and on one occasion even pulled her head to his crotch.  Human resources officer Veronica Frazier asked Crawford to cooperate in an investigation and assured her that she would be protected from retaliation.  However, Frazier testified that no action was taken against the co-worker because there were no witnesses to his behavior.  Attorneys for the city claimed that Crawford was once a good employee, but was fired for poor job performance since her work had become subpar.  Crawford has been unable to get a job since 2003, has lost her house, car, and her professional reputation since an article in The Tennessean quoted Metro officials stating that she might have embezzled from the district’s payroll department.  New York Times Article

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act is the main federal law that protects employees from discrimination based on sex and sexual harassment.  States and cities may also have their own statutes that prevent sexual harassment provided they do not conflict with the federal law.

Sexual harassment can occur in one of two ways:
I.    Quid pro quo harassment which can constitute a one-time occurrence or involve repeated behavior requiring a person to tolerate some form of sexual harassment in order to get a job, keep a job, get a raise or promotion, or to receive some other benefit. This harassment can come from a prospective employer, a current employer, a manager or supervisor, or a co-worker. The sex and sexual orientation of your harasser does not matter.
II.    Hostile work environment which involves repeated behavior that is abusive or offensive, or that interferes or alters the victims’ ability to perform their job.

Employers that foster or allow these conditions to continue can be found liable for the conduct of the offending employees. Please see http://www.lmblaw.com/new-york/sexual-harassment.php for more information.

The lawyers at Leeds Morelli & Brown P.C. strive to secure successful judgments for their clients, including any former employees or recently fired workers who have been sexually harassed in the workplace.  If you or someone you know has been faced with sexual discrimination or sexual harassment, please contact the offices of Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC, 1-888-5-JOBLAW, One Old Country Road, Suite 347, Carle Place, NY, 11514-1851.

By Brandon Sipherd

As the Democrats and Republicans in the Senate continue the battle over healthcare reform, many employers are taking the initiative to lower the costs of healthcare offered to employees.  Companies are now encouraging employees to participate in wellness programs.  However, these programs interfere with a recent federal law that prevents discrimination based on a person’s genetics.

Employers offer employees incentives, such as cash or insurance-premium reductions, to fill out health surveys.  Some employers use the information gathered from the surveys to offer health advise or direct at-risk employees to disease-management programs.  However, last year the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) limited and restricted the ability of employers and health insurers to gather and disclose genetic information, including family medical history.

GINA prohibits employers and insurers from using genetic information for coverage and employment decisions, including hiring, firing, and promoting.  Employers complain this law prevents them from promoting employee wellness plans because employers can no longer use financial incentives to encourage employees to fill out health surveys asking about their family’s medical histories.  Without these financial incentives, employers cannot increase participating in wellness programs, which may increase overall healthcare costs for employers.

According to a 2009 survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers, about 70% of employers offer wellness programs and 64% of those offer their employees incentives to complete health surveys.  Many employer wellness programs include stop smoking, weight-loss, and disease-prevention programs as well as programs for diabetes and cardiac ailments based on family medical history.  While employers argue that employee participation in wellness programs decreases total healthcare costs, GINA supporters contend that using financial incentives is an improper method of encouraging employees to disclose their family medical histories and genetic information.

Wellness programs can decrease the number of employee visits to the doctors; yet, employers argue that GINA prevents them from directing employees to wellness programs.   Many employers are attempting to get around GINA by offering reduced premiums to employees who are screened for their health.

On the other hand, over 250 medical and advocacy groups, such as the American Medical Association and American Heart Association, support GINA and continue to urge government regulators not to excuse wellness programs from the legal restrictions on collecting information such as family medical history.

This is not a small issue in the ongoing healthcare debate on Capital Hill.  The outcome of the impending healthcare reform bill may have costly consequences for employers as well as employees.

Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC is a nationally recognized leader in the area of employment law. We believe that discrimination based on a person’s genetic makeup or family medical history has no place in a democratic society.  Our firm has had considerable success in matters of employment discrimination throughout Long Island and the New York City area.  We take great pride not only in providing quality legal service and representation, but also in being there for clients when they need it most.

For more information, contact Leeds, Morelli and Brown, PC at 1-800-585-4658 for a free consultation.

By Lee Hagy

HOLLYWOOD, CA — Last Friday, a $70 million settlement was reached between 17 major networks and production studios, along with seven large talent agencies, and a class of plaintiffs representing writers over the age of forty in Hollywood, sending a bold message that age discrimination in hiring will not be tolerated.  The decade long battle to change the industry bias toward only hiring younger writers to work on popular television and movie projects ended in a landmark victory that will positively affect future generations of older Americans and writers.

According to the LA Times, approximately $2.5 million of the settlement will be used to establish a “Fund for the Future” that will issue grants and loans to older writers to aid their careers and study ways to supplement pension plans.  The case was helped out by the Writers Guild of America, which provided critical statistical information showing the age-hiring bias in Hollywood for the past few decades.

Although knowing about age discrimination in Hollywood for years, The LA Times reported that many writers were afraid to file a lawsuit for fear of losing their jobs.  Decisions like these will encourage more Americans who suspect age discrimination as the reason for their not being hired or for being let go to stand up and proclaim their rights as well.

At Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC, we believe that age discrimination at work, or anywhere else, has no place in a free and democratic society. The law agrees. More employers might agree too — if only they could feel the same kind of personal devastation, loss of self-esteem, desperation and depression that their victims do. If you have been discriminated against by an employer, talk to us.  Contact Leeds, Morelli and Brown, PC at 1-800-585-4658 for a free consultation.

By Brandon Sipherd

2010 was supposed to be the year New York’s farm workers and field hands were to receive rights and protections enjoyed by all other workers.  However, this year it seems some animals will have more protections than tens of thousands of farm workers and field hands.

These workers want to have the right to overtime pay, the right to have minimal time off, and the right to organize and collectively bargain.  Yet, the state of New York continues to deny farm workers a guaranteed unpaid day off from work each week while carriage horses receive five weeks of vacation per year and there is a daily limit on the hours they can work.

The New York Assembly has passed such measures in the past and currently a majority of Democrats and Republicans support the proposed legislation granting farm workers these rights.  Last week, the proposed bill passed through the appropriate committees in order to bring the bill into legislation.

The Labor Committee, which has jurisdiction over changes in labor law, approved the bill.   The bill then should have passed to the Codes Committee, which oversees laws that impose fines.  However, last week state Senator John Sampson, who promised to deliver basic labor rights to farm and dairy workers, sent the bill to the Agriculture Committee.  This is a violation of New York Senate rules, which allow only committees that are directly related to proposed legislation make amendments before passing it along to the entire Senate for a vote.  The Agriculture Committee only oversees changes to specific agricultural laws (not labor laws) and, therefore, has no business amending the bill.

However, Senator Darrel Aubertine, overseer of the Agriculture Committee, is under much political pressure because of this bill.  Samson is afraid that this pressure will cause Aubertine to lose his critical Democratic seat to a Republican in the upcoming election this fall.  Although the bill does not belong in the Agriculture Committee, Sampson is giving Aubertine and his committee an opportunity to kill the bill in order to improve his chances for reelection.

Hopefully, things will be put back on track in the Senate.  If not, the farm workers and field hands who desperately need protection will continue to go unprotected in New York.

By Brandon Sipherd

Conan O’Brien is quitting as host of the “Tonight Show” after NBC pushed O’Brien from the 11:35 p.m. time slot to after midnight to accommodate Jay Leno.  O’Brien refused to comply with NBC’s order, contending the move violated his employment contract.

O’Brien is a member of various entertainment industry unions like the Writers Guild of America and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.  However, the terms of the unions’ collective bargaining agreements are not at issue here.  Instead, O’Brien’s employment relationship with NBC is governed by the terms and agreements of his employment contract, which is common for high-level executives and celebrities.   Therefore, the situation’s outcome will be based on the language of O’Brien’s employment contract.

O’Brien’s employment contract guarantying him the late night slot of 11:35 p.m. is the original question posed.  O’Brien’s contract did not contain an expressed guarantee with regards to his show’s time slot.  He was only guaranteed the “Tonight Show” which he argues is not 12:05 a.m.  If the contract had clearly expressed the show’s time, he would be in a much better position.  Both David Letterman and Jay Leno have contracts that guarantee a specific time-sport.

However, now that O’Brien has decided to relinquish hosting the “Tonight Show”, the issues are focused on how long he will have to wait before taking a new job with a rival network and the amount of money the network will have to pay.

Resolving these employment issues will be costly for NBC.  O’Brien currently earns around $12 million annually and there are two and a half years remaining on his contract.  It is estimated that O’Brien’s severance package will range somewhere from $25 million to $35 million.  The total amount that NBC will have to pay ultimately depends on several issues, including how long O’Brien will have to stay of the air.

Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC is a nationally recognized leader in the area of employment law. Our employment law attorneys are dedicated to resolving issues of employment and contract law.  Our firm has had considerable success in handling matters such as these throughout Long Island and the New York City area.  We take great pride not only in providing quality legal service and representation, but also in being there for clients when they need it most.

For more information, contact Leeds, Morelli and Brown, PC at 1-800-585-4658 for a free consultation.