I first encountered Bikram Choudhury 10 years ago (okay more like 15, but who’s counting) at his Bikram Yoga College on La Cienega Blvd. in L.A. when trying out his quintessential hot yoga class. He was memorable, parading around in Speedo-like short-shorts on a small stage in front of the class, shouting yoga commands. Given … Continue Reading
1. Mind your tongue. Racial slurs and comments are never appropriate in the workplace and never when used by the boss. Failing to take action when you learn of employees at any level using racial or ethnic slurs undermines efforts to create a harassment free environment and opens the door to serious liability. 2. Pay people fairly. … Continue Reading
The 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) [pdf], signed into law by President Obama on January 2, 2013, provides employees of government contractors, subcontractors, and grant recipients with increased whistleblower protections. Prior to the passage of this act, such employees had some anti-retaliation protections under the False Claims Act; however, this new law allows for … Continue Reading
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act [pdf] (“SOX”) and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank Act”) both include protections for employees who blow the whistle on corporate fraud. One question that remains unsettled is whether employees who are outside the United States can sue for retaliation if they are terminated in retaliation for reporting … Continue Reading
Earlier this month, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced that it will begin offering early resolution and mediation instead of investigations in two OSHA regions to address complaints filed with the agency’s Whistleblower Protection Program. OSHA is charged with enforcing the whistleblower provisions in 22 separate statutes, including the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and … Continue Reading
The Squire Sanders’ webinar series continued on October 2 with Whistleblower Laws and Internal Investigations: Tactics and Best Practices. Topics covered included: Recent updates to the whistleblower provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and Dodd-Frank Act Compliance Best Practices Policies/Procedures for internal reporting Investigations of complaints Treatment of whistleblowers If you have any questions on the webinar … Continue Reading
As previously reported in Squire Sanders’ Sixth Circuit blog, the Supreme Court recently ruled that oral statements made to an employer regarding wage and hour violations are sufficient to trigger the anti-retaliation provision of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp., No. 09-834 (March 22, 2011). Thus, employees are not … Continue Reading
