Ver la versión en español aquí. Approaching Halloween, want to hear something Really Scary? Late last year, the U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit (Philadelphia) in Clemens v. ExecuPharm, Inc. (3rd Circuit Dec. 14, 2021), made clear that employers can be held liable for failing to properly protect their employees’ personal data. Why is this … Continue Reading
Simple answer – nope! On February 10, 2022, inspired by the #MeToo movement, the U.S. Senate passed H.R. 4445, an amendment to the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”), also known as the “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021.” I guess the acronym would be “EFASASHA,” but that looks kind of … Continue Reading
Ver la versión en español aquí. I contribute an Employment Law advice column to The Human Resources Association of Broward County newsletter. A reader recently asked a question that I thought was important and I wanted to share. ASK JANET: If an organization does not allow telework for any of their employees, but an employee … Continue Reading
Ver la versión en español aquí Unless you recently woke up from a cryogenic slumber, your biometric information is out there. In today’s world, devices scan our palms before taking standardized tests. We unlock our phones with our fingers and our face. And we bicker with our named audio speakers in order to turn down … Continue Reading
Ver la versión en español aquí Politics aside, the emails which the President’s son recently published serve as a reminder that email is a very powerful tool – one that can be both beneficial and detrimental. The President’s son has admitted that, in hindsight, he should have handled the situation differently. He’s probably referring both … Continue Reading
Ransomware attacks are on the rise. Tuesday, a massive ransomware attack hit global businesses around the world. Last month, the worldwide cyberattack WannaCry affected more than 300,000 computers in over 150 countries. These are just the latest in a string of cybersecurity incidents that have threatened not only the confidentiality of company information, but the … Continue Reading
Ver la versión en español aquí Yahoo! has taken several hits in the last six months for failing to protect its users’ electronic information. Its September, 2016 announcement of a massive 2014 data breach that exposed the email addresses and other personally identifiable information (“PII”) of approximately 500 million accountholders derailed its proposed merger with … Continue Reading
Ver la versión en español aquí Not long ago, we blogged about social media as a blessing and a curse for employers. On the one hand, social media helps businesses market products and services; on the other, social media provides employees with an easily-accessible platform to draw negative attention to the business. To prevent (or minimize) … Continue Reading
Ver la versión en español aquí Do you allow employees to access company data using their personal portable electronic devices instead of company-issued devices? For example, do employees use their smart phones to contact customers and store customer contact information, preferences, etc., on their phones? When these employees quit or are terminated, have you implemented … Continue Reading
Ver la versión en español aquí May 1, 2014, was not a typical day in the office for us. We left our offices from across the state and headed to the Trump National Doral Hotel to join over 380 attendees at our 24th Annual Labor and Employment Law Seminar. Thanks to all the private and public … Continue Reading
Ver la versión en español aquí The Florida Information Protection Act went into effect on July 1. The law imposes notification requirements on any business that acquires, maintains, stores or uses personal information when that business suffers a breach of security, i.e., unauthorized access of data in electronic form containing personal information. The statute’s definition … Continue Reading
As recently reported by The New York Times, non-compete agreements are popping-up in a wide array of businesses to protect varied business interests. As businesses have come to recognize, non-competes are not limited to protection against disclosure of a “top secret” formula, process, or technological invention. A properly drafted non-compete agreement may have much wider … Continue Reading
Ver la versión en español aquí The explosion in popularity of social media has, in my opinion, been a blessing and a curse for businesses. On the one hand, social media helps businesses market products and services, and reach-out to current and potential customers, with relative ease and little cost. On the other hand, social … Continue Reading
An Ohio Federal District Court recently ruled that Verizon Wireless could be sued for reading a former employee’s personal emails on a company-issued device. During her employment, Verizon issued Sandi Lazetle a Blackberry which she used for company email. According to Sandi, she was told that she also could use the Blackberry for personal email, … Continue Reading
A New Jersey federal court ruled this week that “private” Facebook wall posts are covered by the Stored Communications Act (“SCA”). The SCA is a federal law that, among other things, prohibits unauthorized access of communications stored on the internet. Deborah Ehling, a former Monmouth-Ocean Hospital Service Corp. nurse, posted comments on her Facebook wall … Continue Reading
The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, which has jurisdiction over Florida, ruled on Monday that Broward County’s wellness program, which required employees to undergo a biometric screening and fill out a health assessment questionnaire, did not violate the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). The ADA generally prohibits medical examinations and disability-related inquiries unless job-related and … Continue Reading
The new Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) forms issued by the Department of Labor (“DOL”) have one change: the expiration date is now February 28, 2015. The forms can be found here . The forms do not make reference to the amendments to military family leave or include the safe harbor language from the Genetic … Continue Reading
