Labor & Employment Developments Blog

Many employees today use a phone in connection with their work.  Some employers provide employees with phones and others allow or require their employees to use a personal phone. In either case, employee phone use creates a host of potential issues for employers. In this episode, 5 issues related to employee phone use will be considered.

Demonstrating the NLRB’s increased focus on limiting employer confidentiality rules, a three member panel of the NLRB recently ruled in DirecTV U.S. DirecTV Holdings LLC, 359 NLRB No. 4 (January 25, 2013) that four work rules maintained by DirecTV were unlawful restrictions on employees’ Section 7 rights and that the employer did not repudiate the rules. 

As the FMLA celebrates its 20^th birthday this February, social media continues to be an increasingly important resource for employers in combating frivolous FMLA interference and retaliation charges by former employees. 

An issue that seems to come up weekly in my practice is whether employers may monitor employee e-mail, text messages and internet use.

If you follow the news, you’ve probably heard about the resurgence of bedbug infestations around the country...  Unfortunately, the bedbug problem has moved beyond hotels and into theaters, retail stores and the workplace.

According to recent news stories, Mel Gibson is in trouble again. This time because of certain calls that his former girlfriend recorded in which Mel makes several inappropriate comments, including racial slurs, death threats, etc. I know what you’re thinking, “a Hollywood celebrity behaving badly — this is news?” I agree, but within this messy story there is an employment law issue.

Most people have heard the news by now. Gen. Stanley McChrystal was relieved of his command of international forces in Afghanistan after his disparaging remarks about the Obama administration were published in Rolling Stone.  I had not intended to comment on this story, but so many people have asked me my opinion (offline) that I decided to blog about it.  Upon reflection, the story does have some application to labor and employment law issues.  In fact, I have decided to coin a new term for use in the employment law context — a “McChrystal.”