How the Supreme Court’s Religious Accommodation Decision Impacts Texans In a unanimous ruling on June 29, 2023 in Groff v. DeJoy, the Supreme Court emphasized that employers must grant an employee’s request for a religious accommodation unless doing so would impose a substantial negative impact to the business. This recent clarification from the Supreme Court upended nearly 50 years of precedent in the definition of “undue hardship”. Previously, in order to deny a religious accommodation request, an employer had to prove doing so would have more than a “de minimis”, or minimal, impact on the c ..read more

What to Know About the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) in Texas The long-awaited Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) went into effect Tuesday, June 27, 2023. This exciting new law will increase protections for many pregnant workers who previously may not have been entitled to reasonable accommodations related to their pregnancy under other federal laws. What is the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act? The PWFA requires “covered employers” to provide “reasonable accommodations” to an employee’s known limitations due to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions unless the employer can ..read more

Ross • Scalise EMPLOYMENT LAWYERS retained by employees who have failed to receive their unpaid overtime wages resulting from the Kronos ransomware attack On December 11, 2021, Ultimate Kronos Group (UKG) was subject to ransomware attack which prevented thousands of employers access to time records for their workers. Kronos is a commonly used workforce management platform which tracks employee scheduling, attendance, hours worked and payroll. Kronos has been working on regaining system functionality since the attack. While the days have lagged on since the attack, employees have become fr ..read more

What qualifies as a Disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Texas Labor Code? The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Chapter 21 of the Texas Labor Code protect applicants and employees from being discriminated against at any stage in employment, including job applications, hiring, firing, compensation, leave of absence, and any other terms and conditions of employment because of their disability. These laws apply to Texas employers with at least 15 employees. To qualify under the ADA, an individual must either (1) have a physical or mental disability that subs ..read more

What is Title VII? Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Chapter 21 of the Texas Labor Code protect employees from discrimination mainly on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, and national origin, making it unlawful for an employer to discriminate against an employee or applicant because of these protected classes. These laws apply to Texas employers with at least 15 employees. The purpose of Title VII is to make it illegal for employers to discriminate against employees or applicants based on traits that they themselves cannot change, otherwise known as their “immutable character ..read more

What is a Non-Compete? A non-competition agreement is a restriction on an employee’s ability to work in their particular field. These agreements are primarily utilized by employers to protect their goodwill and confidential information. Employers can face a disadvantage in having an employee separate from their company with specific insider knowledge that they may use to compete against them in the marketplace, so non-compete agreements can be used by employers in turn to prevent former employees from working for their competitors or starting their own business within the same field. Is a non ..read more

What is Severance Pay? Some employers may refer to any additional wages given to a former employee following their separation from employment as “severance pay.” Under the Texas Payday Law and prior state court rulings, severance pay is generally defined as additional compensation that the employer has obligated itself to make, either verbally or by putting it into writing. Severance pay is often based on a set formula, such as the employee’s length of prior service, however there are many factors that can influence the calculation of a severance amount. Pros and Cons to Accepting Severance Pa ..read more

What Is Age Discrimination? The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) is a federal law that prohibits discrimination based on age for employees age 40 and over. Unlike Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the ADEA generally applies to private employers of 20 or more employees, rather than just 15 or more employees. Discrimination on the basis of age can occur through an employer’s decisions regarding hiring, firing, promotion, demotion, interviewing, performance evaluations, compensation, or any other terms or conditions of employment. For example, it may be discriminatory ..read more

What Constitutes Sexual Harassment in the Workplace? While recent social movements have empowered both women and men alike to break their silence and come forward with their stories of sexual harassment, this kind of harassment is unfortunately an all-too-common occurrence in the workplace. A survey by Stop Street Harassment in 2018 showed that 81% of women and 43% of men have been harassed in their lifetime, with 38% of the women surveyed having experienced sexual harassment in the workplace. Sexual harassment can take many forms, such as inappropriate touching and other physical conduct ..read more

How do I prove Wrongful Termination in Texas? Because Texas is an “employment at-will” state, an employer can fire an employee at any time for any lawful reason. Any lawful reason for termination may include a bad reason or no reason at all. However, if an employer fires an employee for an unlawful reason, this is referred to as wrongful termination and can lead to a legal claim. There are many illegal reasons to fire someone, as defined under a multitude of federal and state laws. Wrongful termination cases in Texas can nevertheless be complicated and difficult to prove, with many factors bei ..read more