Commentary

“Am I entitled to overtime if I’m a salaried employee?”   I get this question a lot.  The question arises from an understandable misunderstanding of wage and hour laws, principally the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). How your employer classifies you is irrelevant. That your employer has classified you as salaried does not mean you are not [...]

Category : Blog &Commentary

What makes a “good” sexual harassment?  Obviously, no sexual harassment is good, but when it comes time for an attorney to decide whether to gamble his time and money on a case, some cases are better bets than others. What makes a good sexual harassment case is not necessarily intuitive.  Sexual harassment law, while based [...]

Category : Blog &Commentary

The Family & Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) provides important protections for employees. Here is a general overview of what the FMLA means for you as an employee, but keep in mind the FMLA is considerably more detailed than what I’ve given you here. Employer coverage. The FMLA only applies to employers with 50 or more [...]

Category : Blog &Commentary

Employment law is not always rational.  For example, in Texas, except in limited circumstances, an employee can be terminated for reporting illegal conduct.  Ridiculous I know, but our legal system is not designed to provide a remedy for every wrong, only those Congress or the State legislature has chosen to address. One area where Texas got it right is in [...]

Category : Blog &Commentary

The Texas Unemployment Compensation Act provides benefits for qualified individuals in Texas who lose their jobs.  When an individual files an unemployment claim with the Texas Workforce Commission, the TWC will obtain a response from the company and make a preliminary determination.  If the company or individual is unhappy with that decision, the case will then [...]

Category : Blog &Commentary

The federal law protecting individuals from age discrimination in employment (the Age Discrimination in Employment Act or “ADEA”) does not apply to all employers, and even if your employer is covered you may not be.  Here’s the parameters. First, the ADEA only applies to employers with 20 or more employees.  I’ll spare you the details about [...]

Category : Blog &Commentary

Summer is almost here, and with summer will come interns and the recurring question, “Do I have to pay an intern?”  The short answer is, “It depends.” The Department of Labor has derived six criteria from a Supreme Court decision, Walling v. Portland Terminal Co., 330 U.S. 148 (1947), to determine whether the intern (” [...]

Category : Blog &Commentary

Arbitration is a private trial, generally before one or three arbitrators (usually attorneys or retired judges).  The results are binding and usually not appealable.   The rules of evidence do not apply.  The arbitrators are not required to follow the law or state a reason for their decision.  Here are four reasons arbitration is usually bad for [...]

Category : Blog &Commentary

I’ve noticed over the years that non-lawyers often confuse the concepts of right-to-work and employment-at-will. Because they are foundational concepts, it’s important to understand the difference. Employment-at-will is the general rule throughout the overwhelming majority of the United States. It’s the law in Texas. Employment-at-will means that, absent a contract to the contrary, an employer [...]

Category : Blog &Commentary

The law regarding sexual harassment is designed to encourage victims to report sexual harassment and give their employers the opportunity to correct it.  This means women are often reporting sexual harassment without first consulting an attorney.  Here are three things to remember when reporting sexual harassment. 1.  It’s Not Your Fault.  I didn’t understand this one [...]

Category : Blog &Commentary