Tag Archives: wrongful termination
Another Case Confirms the Employer’s “Heavy Burden” in FMLA Cases
Another employee who claimed she was fired for taking FMLA leave has survived summary judgment. A federal district court in Ohio confirmed that an employee’s burden of providing notice of the need for leave “is not heavy” and that an employer has the burden of clarifying any uncertainty on whether the employee intends to… Read More »
Supreme Court Affirms Whistleblower Protections
This morning, the Supreme Court released its opinion in Department of Homeland Security v. MacLean (Case No. 13-894). The facts of the case were quite simple: Robert J. MacLean was an air marshall with the TSA. In July 2003, the TSA briefed all federal air marshals—including MacLean—about a potential plot to hijack passenger flights…. Read More »
No “Magic Words” Needed to Trigger FMLA
When an employee requests leave, the employer’s responsibilities under the Family & Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) are triggered if it has “knowledge that an employee’s leave may be for an FMLA-qualifying reason.” 29 CFR 825.300(b)(1). Once it has that information, it must provide the employee with an FMLA Eligibility Notice within five business days…. Read More »
When are Your Coworkers “Similarly Situated” to You?
Employees commonly rest their discrimination cases on a showing that “similarly situated” coworkers were treated more favorably. For example: an employee with an age discrimination claim might argue that he was disciplined for being late, while his younger coworkers were not. That fact doesn’t matter in court, however, unless he can show that the… Read More »
San Francisco 49ers Sued for Age Discrimination
Former 49ers managers Anthony Lozano and Keith Yanagi were fired when they were both in their late 50s. According to the complaint, the 49ers let go a number of senior managers in 2011 and 2012 to make room for younger employees from Silicon Valley. The fired employees are now suing the team, alleging age… Read More »