The "Ban the Box" Campaign was started in 2004 by All of Us or None, a national civil rights group of formerly incarcerated people and their families. The purpose of "Ban the Box" is to give formerly incarcerated individuals a fair chance in the hiring process. "Ban the Box" allows employers to consider a job applicant's qualifications first, before viewing a candidate's criminal record. The all too familiar conviction question is removed from the job application, and the candidate is not subjected to a criminal check until later in the hiring process.
Currently, there are a total of 16 states, as well as numerous cities and counties, that have adopted the "Ban the Box" policy. Also, since 2012, the EEOC has endorsed the removal of the conviction question job applications as a best policy practice, making clear that federal civil rights laws regulate employment decisions based on arrests and convictions.
To read more about this campaign, click here.
If you have a question regarding your rights in the workplace, please contact Ambuter Law for your free case evaluation.
Monday, April 27, 2015
Monday, April 13, 2015
Unions, Immigrants, and Employment Law
The
NLRB has signed an agreement with three countries - Mexico, Ecuador,
and the Philippines - to teach immigrants how to unionize in the
workplace. This all started back in July 2013, when the NLRB and the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs signed a national letter of Agreement in
Washington D.C. The letter references the National Labor Relations
Act. The NLRB says the Act "guarantees workers the right to join
together, with or without a union, to improve their wages and working
conditions, or to refrain from such activities.”
Also, according to a NLRB press release, the "NLRB and the Mexican Embassy in Washington, D.C., as well as NLRB Regional Offices and Mexican Consulates nationwide, will cooperate to provide outreach, education, and training, and to develop best practices…"
About a month after the letter was signed with Mexico, additional agreements were signed with Ecuador and the Philippines. The agreements state that the Number 1 goal is "to educate those who may not be aware of the Act, including those employees just entering the work force, by providing information designed to clearly inform [that nation’s] workers in the United States of America their rights under the Act and to develop ways of communicating such information (e.g., via print and electronic media, electronic assistance tools, mobile device applications, and links to the NLRB’s web site from the [country’s] web sites) to the … workers residing in the United States of America and their employers.”
Moreover, the NLRB has gone further by saying that the law's protections for unions protects illegal immigrants who may be members of unions. What this means is that employers can be sanctioned for terminating illegal immigrants who may have engaged in union activism if the NLRB determines that the employee's activism was the real reason behind the termination. This has caused more and more illegal immigrants to join unions, which in turn has caused some employers to be up in arms since it makes it much harder to terminate illegal immigrants.
What are your thoughts on this? Ambuter Law wants to know.
If you have questions about your legal rights in the workplace, contact Ambuter Law for your free case evaluation.
Also, according to a NLRB press release, the "NLRB and the Mexican Embassy in Washington, D.C., as well as NLRB Regional Offices and Mexican Consulates nationwide, will cooperate to provide outreach, education, and training, and to develop best practices…"
About a month after the letter was signed with Mexico, additional agreements were signed with Ecuador and the Philippines. The agreements state that the Number 1 goal is "to educate those who may not be aware of the Act, including those employees just entering the work force, by providing information designed to clearly inform [that nation’s] workers in the United States of America their rights under the Act and to develop ways of communicating such information (e.g., via print and electronic media, electronic assistance tools, mobile device applications, and links to the NLRB’s web site from the [country’s] web sites) to the … workers residing in the United States of America and their employers.”
Moreover, the NLRB has gone further by saying that the law's protections for unions protects illegal immigrants who may be members of unions. What this means is that employers can be sanctioned for terminating illegal immigrants who may have engaged in union activism if the NLRB determines that the employee's activism was the real reason behind the termination. This has caused more and more illegal immigrants to join unions, which in turn has caused some employers to be up in arms since it makes it much harder to terminate illegal immigrants.
What are your thoughts on this? Ambuter Law wants to know.
If you have questions about your legal rights in the workplace, contact Ambuter Law for your free case evaluation.
Friday, April 3, 2015
Employment Law and Bullying in the Workplace
Workplace bullying is on the rise. It isn't something new; it's just
becoming more prevalent. According to a recent study, 35
percent of workers said they felt bullied from work. Last year, only 27
percent had felt this way.
So who is doing the bullying? According to the study, most who felt bullied pointed to incidents with their bosses (48 percent) or co-workers (45 percent). Thirty-one percent felt bullied by customers, and 26 percent by someone higher up in the company other than their boss. Also, fifty-four percent of those bullied said the bully was someone older than them, while twenty-nine percent said the person was younger.
So what type of bullying are we seeing? We're seeing employees falsely accused of mistakes, being ignored, having different standards or policies used towards them than other workers, being constantly criticized, being yelled at by their boss in front of co-workers, having belittling comments made about them about their work at meetings, being gossiped about, having their bosses assign their tasks to other workers, being excluded from projects or meetings, and being picked on for personal attributes.
According to the study, many of those bullied confronted their bully or spoke with human resources about the incidents. Unfortunately, for some of those bullied, the situation got worse or human resources did nothing. But remember, unless you report the incident, there may be no chance that the bullying will ever stop, so reporting the incidents and and the bully is the best solution.
If you are the subject of discrimination or harassment in the workplace, contact Ambuter Law for a free confidential consultation.
So who is doing the bullying? According to the study, most who felt bullied pointed to incidents with their bosses (48 percent) or co-workers (45 percent). Thirty-one percent felt bullied by customers, and 26 percent by someone higher up in the company other than their boss. Also, fifty-four percent of those bullied said the bully was someone older than them, while twenty-nine percent said the person was younger.
So what type of bullying are we seeing? We're seeing employees falsely accused of mistakes, being ignored, having different standards or policies used towards them than other workers, being constantly criticized, being yelled at by their boss in front of co-workers, having belittling comments made about them about their work at meetings, being gossiped about, having their bosses assign their tasks to other workers, being excluded from projects or meetings, and being picked on for personal attributes.
According to the study, many of those bullied confronted their bully or spoke with human resources about the incidents. Unfortunately, for some of those bullied, the situation got worse or human resources did nothing. But remember, unless you report the incident, there may be no chance that the bullying will ever stop, so reporting the incidents and and the bully is the best solution.
If you are the subject of discrimination or harassment in the workplace, contact Ambuter Law for a free confidential consultation.
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Employment Law: Employee vs. Indepedent Contractor
What's the difference between an employee and an independent contractor?
Employee
Under common-law rules, anyone who performs a service for an employer is considered an employee if the employer can control what will be done and how it will be done. This is true even if the employer gives the employee freedom of action. What is important is that the employer has the right to control the details of how the services are performed.
Independent Contractor
Individuals such as doctors, dentists, lawyers, veterinarians, accountants, contractors, etc. who offer their services to the general public are generally considered independent contractors. However, whether these individuals are always considered independent contractors depends on the facts of each case. The general rule is that an individual is considered an independent contractor if the payer has the right to control or direct only the result of the work and not what will be done and how it will be done.
An individual is not an independent contractor if he/she performs services that can be controlled by an employer. This applies even if the individual is given freedom of action.
Why does this matter?
If an individual is considered an employee, then the employer must withhold federal income tax, pay Social Security and Medicare taxes, and pay unemployment tax on wages paid to an employee. An employer does not generally have to withhold or pay any taxes on payments to independent contractors.
Consequences for Treating an Employee as an Independent Contractor
If an employer classifies an employee as an independent contractor and has no reasonable basis for doing so, the employer may be held liable for employment taxes for that worker. Also, if an employee is misclassified as an independent contractor, the employee can file Social Security and Medicare tax forms to gain relief.
If you are victim of employment related problems, contact Ambuter Law for your free case evaluation.
Employee
Under common-law rules, anyone who performs a service for an employer is considered an employee if the employer can control what will be done and how it will be done. This is true even if the employer gives the employee freedom of action. What is important is that the employer has the right to control the details of how the services are performed.
Independent Contractor
Individuals such as doctors, dentists, lawyers, veterinarians, accountants, contractors, etc. who offer their services to the general public are generally considered independent contractors. However, whether these individuals are always considered independent contractors depends on the facts of each case. The general rule is that an individual is considered an independent contractor if the payer has the right to control or direct only the result of the work and not what will be done and how it will be done.
An individual is not an independent contractor if he/she performs services that can be controlled by an employer. This applies even if the individual is given freedom of action.
Why does this matter?
If an individual is considered an employee, then the employer must withhold federal income tax, pay Social Security and Medicare taxes, and pay unemployment tax on wages paid to an employee. An employer does not generally have to withhold or pay any taxes on payments to independent contractors.
Consequences for Treating an Employee as an Independent Contractor
If an employer classifies an employee as an independent contractor and has no reasonable basis for doing so, the employer may be held liable for employment taxes for that worker. Also, if an employee is misclassified as an independent contractor, the employee can file Social Security and Medicare tax forms to gain relief.
If you are victim of employment related problems, contact Ambuter Law for your free case evaluation.
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Employment Law and Recording Conversations at Work
A common question that I am always asked is:
"Can I record a conversation at work?"
In Florida, the answer is usually "No." Florida is a "two-party" or "all-party" consent state. What this means is that all parties involved in the conversation have to give consent in order for the tape or video recording to be legal.
"But what if I want to prove discrimination?" is another common question. Most likely you won't be able to prove it via a recording device. However, there are some exceptions to the "two-party" or "all-party" consent rule. For instance, many courts have ruled that there is a lower expectation of privacy in the workplace. Courts have also ruled that conversations that take place in a common area, such as lobby, stairwell, or hallway are not deemed to be places where there is an expectation or privacy.
However, I would tread with caution before recording anything in the workplace without the consent of all parties.
If you have questions or concerns about your rights in the workplace, please contact Ambuter Law for your free case evaluation.
"Can I record a conversation at work?"
In Florida, the answer is usually "No." Florida is a "two-party" or "all-party" consent state. What this means is that all parties involved in the conversation have to give consent in order for the tape or video recording to be legal.
"But what if I want to prove discrimination?" is another common question. Most likely you won't be able to prove it via a recording device. However, there are some exceptions to the "two-party" or "all-party" consent rule. For instance, many courts have ruled that there is a lower expectation of privacy in the workplace. Courts have also ruled that conversations that take place in a common area, such as lobby, stairwell, or hallway are not deemed to be places where there is an expectation or privacy.
However, I would tread with caution before recording anything in the workplace without the consent of all parties.
If you have questions or concerns about your rights in the workplace, please contact Ambuter Law for your free case evaluation.
Thursday, March 5, 2015
Employee Rights and Discrimination and/or Harassment in the Workplace
No one thinks that they are going to be the subject
of harassment and/or discrimination – especially in the work place. Unfortunately, it happens every day. Here are a few things you need to do to
ensure that you are protecting yourself.
2) Contact your company’s ethics' hotline (if there is one). A lot of companies today have implemented what is called an “ethics' hotline.” Many times, employees can call the ethics' hotline and report incidences of harassment and/or discrimination anonymously. This is a great resource for employees to use if they fear retaliation.
3) Keep a journal notating the harassment and/or discrimination. While this may sound silly, this is a great way for employees to notate specific incidences of harassment and/or discrimination that occur on certain occasions. If an employee has kept an accurate journal or log of events, it can be a great source to show the frequency and severity of the harassment and/or discrimination. Just make sure that you are writing your entries down when you are off the clock.
If you are the subject of harassment and/or discrimination in the workplace, please contact Ambuter Law for your free case evaluation.
www.ambuterlaw.com
1) Contact human resources in
writing. Many employees who are the
subject of harassment or discrimination fear that they will be retaliated
against if they contact human resources.
While this can happen in certain instances, you still need to contact
human resources and make them aware of the harassment and/or
discrimination. Also, this needs to be
done in writing, whether via email or a certified letter.
2) Contact your company’s ethics' hotline (if there is one). A lot of companies today have implemented what is called an “ethics' hotline.” Many times, employees can call the ethics' hotline and report incidences of harassment and/or discrimination anonymously. This is a great resource for employees to use if they fear retaliation.
3) Keep a journal notating the harassment and/or discrimination. While this may sound silly, this is a great way for employees to notate specific incidences of harassment and/or discrimination that occur on certain occasions. If an employee has kept an accurate journal or log of events, it can be a great source to show the frequency and severity of the harassment and/or discrimination. Just make sure that you are writing your entries down when you are off the clock.
If you are the subject of harassment and/or discrimination in the workplace, please contact Ambuter Law for your free case evaluation.
www.ambuterlaw.com
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Employee Rights and Unemployment Benefits in Florida
In order to receive unemployment compensation in Florida, you must
meet the eligibility requirements. In order to be eligible, you must
meet the requirements below.
During the base period, your work history and earnings must meet all of the below requirements:
- Your past earnings must meet the required minimum thresholds;
- You must be unemployed through no fault of your own under Florida law; and
- You must be able, available, and actively seeking employment.
During the base period, your work history and earnings must meet all of the below requirements:
- You must have earned wages in at least two of the four calendar quarters that make up the base period;
- Your earnings in during the entire base period must be at least one and a half times your wages in the highest paid quarter of the base period; and
- You must have earned at least $3400 during the entire base period.
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