PROJECT RMS
Labor & Employment
Law
Issues related to employment, labor, and/or human resources can arise in any business - large or small. That's why The Carrington Firm treats every issue as if it were our own. With professionals who have been on every side of these issues, we understand how the employer, employee, and agency feel about most any particular issue. Over the years, we've had the ability to work with the nation's largest employers crafting positive outcome human resource policy, manuals and employee handbooks; while also leading plaintiff side actions where instances of discrimination or unfair labor practices have occured. The Carrington Firm's professionals regularly lead Continuing Legal Education (CLE) and human resource training courses around the region to ensure that fellow attorneys, and talent professionals understand particular nuance in law, and therefore encourage compliance with applicable law.
If you feel you have been wronged in interview, hiring, promotion, termination, etc. explore our fields of expertise below and let us get to work getting you the recompense you deserve.
If you are an employer, and would like to know how our professionals might go about assisting your business and employees with understanding and maintaining compliance within applicable law; or you are in need of particularized assitance in crafting policy or providing training, contact our office, and we'd be more than happy to be of assistance.
DISCRIMINATION
The Civil Rights Act that was passed in 1964 made it illegal for any employer to discriminate based on race or gender in regards to terms or conditions of employment. Even though it seems as though we’ve come a long way since 1964, racial and gender discrimination still exists. Not only is it illegal for an employer to discriminate based on race, but it is also illegal to discriminate because an employee is married to, or spends time with, people of a specific race. Discrimination in the work place can be committed against an employee or even an applicant for employment.
Like race discrimination, gender discrimination is also prevalent in the United States. Employers are required to pay both their male and female employees equal pay if they have the same job, with the same responsibilities, in the same work environment. If it is determined that an employer has violated this law, they are forced to increase the wages of the employee being paid less, not decrease the wages of the higher paid employee. Sometimes this can be difficult to prove, however, because the employer will make an effort to show that the employee receiving higher wages is receiving them because of some other factor, such as seniority or merit.
Gender roles often come in to play when employers are looking to hire new employees. There have been cases where an employer has refused to higher a woman with pre-school aged children, but he did hire men with children the same age. This is because his preconceived gender roles told him it was the mothers job to watch the children. Regardless of the fact that, overall, this employer had more women than men on staff, this is still a form of discrimination.
If you or a loved one has been the victim of racial or gender discrimination and would like to learn more about your legal rights regarding discrimination, please contact our office today, to discuss how we might go about being of assistance to you.
Harassment laws in the United States are intended to protect the public from unwanted advances in a work environment. Sexual harassment was first introduced in the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which protected employees from being discriminated against based on their gender; however, the laws have evolved since then.
The United States Supreme Court has divided sexual harassment into two basic scenarios: a hostile environment and a tangible employment action.
A tangible employment action refers to sexual harassment received from someone who makes or highly influences employment decisions. In essence, you either comply with my sexual advances or you’ll be fired, situation.
A hostile work environment, however, describes harassment from co-workers, supervisors, customers, vendors, or anyone who the victim comes into contact with during his or her work day.
HARASSMENT
Some behaviors that can amount to sexual harassment include:
-
Talking about sexual activities
-
Inappropriate jokes
-
Unwanted touching
-
Talking about physical appearance or attributes
-
Inappropriate, provocative pictures being displayed
-
Indecent gestures
-
Trading job promotions or favors in return for sexual activity
-
Using inappropriate terms of endearment
The victim of sexual harassment can be either male or female, and those committing sexual harassment may also be either male or female. Gender does not matter. The judge (or perhaps jury) in a sexual harassment case considers a number of factors, including:
If you are the victim of sexual harassment, do not blame yourself for someone else’s actions. Do not feel ashamed and choose to ignore the behavior. Do not try to handle the problem yourself, especially if it is persistent. Make your feelings known, and if his or her behavior continues, report it.
If you or a loved one has been the victim of sexual harassment, please contact our office and let us be of service to you.
RETALIATION
The Carrington Firm regularly helps employers understand the importance of taking measures to prevent employees from being retaliated against for making legally protected complaints, including complaints of discrimination and harassment. The firm's attorneys have also help clients in the creation and enforcement of non-retaliation policies.
But most importantly, our firm's extensive history in representing employers and management in defense against retaliation claims and complaints places The Carrington Firm's attorneys in an excellent position to provide meaningful, practical training on retaliation prevention and retaliation investigation. The Carrington Firm's attorneys provide their clients with important updates on retaliation, including recent case law and agency memoranda addressing retaliation.
But what about if you've been retailiated against for bringing or raising a legally protected complaint? The Carrington Firm prides itself in the great successes it has had in representing aggrieved clients in pursuing retaliation claims in various venues including state court, federal court, arbitration, and at the agency level. Many times over, The Carrington Firm is able to not only meet, but exceed our client's expectations.
HUMAN RESOURCE TRAINING
The Carrington Firm's attorneys do not take a passive approach to the complex issues related to the legal and regulatory environment facing employers today. The firm regularly offers our clients, human resources professionals, employers, attorneys and others, regular seminars, legal updates by way of social media, our website and blog, and through web-based presentations.
In short, The Carrington Firm wants to be a resource for proactive employers who want to stay ahead of the curve, and offer their employees the best and fairest work environments possible.
The Carrington Firm’s approach to training is simple — offer consistent training products, that delivers an easily understood approach to difficult areas of law with real world examples. Every one of The Carrington Firm’s attorneys have trained clients, human resources professionals members of the public, and conducted Continuing Legal Education (CLE) seminars on labor and employment law issues, and we continue to make sure that our materials and our training are the best they can be.
We invite you to come to one our seminars and take a look at the materials and topics we are discussing. We believe you will leave better informed and better able to face the legal and regulatory environment of today.