By: Jessica Jackler On November 15, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas vacated and set aside the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)’s final rule which increased the salary threshold for the “white collar” overtime exemption under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Significantly, this means that […]

By: Mary T. Yong Illinois was one of the first states to adopt Biometric Privacy legislation. The Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (740 ILCS 14) provides for the award of damages where a private entity violates an individual’s privacy rights under the Act. A private entity violates section 15(b) of […]

By: Storrs W. Downey  In the Seventh Circuit Court’s decision in Emerson v. Dart, No. 23-3029 (7th Cir. 7/26/24), the Court held that for a former employee to establish a potentially viable retaliatory discharge claim they had to present more evidence than just an ongoing active workers’ compensation claim at […]

By: Jessica B. Jackler On April 23, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the finalized overtime rule extending overtime protections to millions of salaried workers. The final rule goes into effect on July 1, 2024. The final rule will restore and extend the right to overtime pay to many […]

By: Mary T. Yong The Illinois First District Appellate Court recently issued a ruling in National Fire Insurance Company of Hartford and Continental Insurance Company v. Visual Pak Company, Inc. that clarified coverage issues in favor of insurers denying coverage related to claims brought pursuant to the Illinois Biometric Privacy […]

By: Jessica Jackler Recently, several new paid leave laws were enacted in Illinois including the Illinois Paid Leave for All Workers Act (PLFWA), the new Cook County Leave Ordinance, and the new Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance. The PLFWA is entirely new and became effective […]

By: Kristy K. Singler In Miramontes v. Peraton, Inc., No. 3:21-CV-3019-B, 2023 WL 3855603 at *6 (N.D. Tex. June 6, 2023), a federal district court for the N.D. Texas, Dallas Division, addressed if an employer can be deemed liable for an employee’s failure to preserve business-related texts received on the […]

By Jessica Jackler On August 2, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) changed the law again governing employee handbooks. The NLRB’s decision in Stericycle, Inc. overruled the employer-friendly precedent in place for the past six years under Boeing Co. (2017), which was later refined in LA Specialty Produce Co. […]

By: Jessica Jackler  In 2018, the EEOC filed suit against Charter Communications, LLC in a Wisconsin federal court alleging disability discrimination for failing to accommodate an employee. The employee worked at a call center for the defendant-employer. Cataracts in both eyes made his vision blurry and made seeing in the […]

By: Jessica Jackler On June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court issued its decision in Groff v. DeJoy, No. 22-174 (June 29, 2023) in which it clarified and changed the standard for religious accommodations under Title VII. The new standard provides that “’under hardship’ is shown when a burden is substantial in […]