With the economy suffering a recession, one of the bright spots for the small business employer is that when they are hiring a new employee, they can have their pick of the crop. There are more and more qualified candidates in the available labor pool. Here is a quick legal hiring guide for the small business employer to keep in mind while they are hiring fresh new faces for their small business....
Bringing pot brownies to work is probably not a good move even if you aren’t a bus driver like Ku’uipoaloha Lawler. Lawler brought a batch of homemade brownies to work in August and gave them out to some of his co-workers. He neglected to mention the full list of ingredients but told the drivers he made the brownies himself, reports The San Diego Union-Tribune. Lawler was fired from his job but what about the three drivers who unwittingly indulged in the illegal baked goods?...
Some businesses – mainly restaurants – “are asking customers to help foot the bill for Obamacare” by adding an Affordable Care Act surcharge on their tabs, CNNMoney reports. Case in point: At least eight Gator’s Dockside restaurants in central Florida are now charging a so-called “Obamacare fee” that amounts to 1 percent of a customer’s check. Should your business include an Obamacare fee or surcharge on customer bills? A surcharge is an added liability imposed on something that is already due, such as a tax on tax....
If you were injured by Invokament side effects, you can sue. Liability suits against the drug manufacturer are already taking place around the country. The drug is used to treat patients with Type 2 diabetes, which occurs in over 28 million Americans. Type 2 diabetes is a condition manifesting in the body inefficiently handling insulin, leaving sugar in the blood stream instead of used by cells as energy. High blood glucose levels lead to blindness, kidney failure, neurologic damage, and necrosis, or death of living tissue, often resulting in amputation....
Charlie Sheen is looking for a social media intern. And as if the entertainment value weren’t enough, it’s a paid gig, too. As much as it pains this blogger to write, the self-proclaimed warlock is on the right track. Offering internships legally requires time or money–both of which the recently-fired actor has plenty. So if you’re thinking that you, too, could use the assistance of an intern, read on and learn a little something from Sheen....
A bit of mystery surrounds a lawsuit filed by construction worker Robert Howard against Disney, MLC Theming, and Total Demolition Services. Howard alleges that dangerous conditions at his worksite located within Disney World’s Animal Kingdom created an unsafe work site, which caused him to sustain an injury when a ditch he was digging collapsed on him. Florida Law Makes It Difficult to Sue for Work Related Injuries Interestingly, Florida law insulates its employers from liability related to many on-the-job injuries....
Does a parent’s child support obligation end when a child tosses up the hat at graduation? In most states, the answer is usually “yes.” Generally, a child support order ends when a child graduates or turns 18. Of course, “usually” is a far cry from “always.” In some situations, a child support obligation doesn’t end the moment the child graduates from high school. This is especially true if the high school graduate is headed to college and/or has younger siblings....
Healthcare laws and health insurance have long been areas of contention for small businesses. The expense of issuing health care insurance would often be the factor small businesses would consider before hiring a permanent employee versus a temporary contract employee. Now, healthcare laws have changed and reform has arrived. And the Obama Administration promises to take the pain out of healthcare insurance for small businesses. Two pieces of legislation were passed to that extent: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PL 111-148) and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (PL 111-152)....
When an employer or boss has a ‘favorite,’ it can create real tension in the workplace. The term itself is highly subjective, and even somewhat offensively whimsical. Even if it is based on objective performance criterion, declaring a favorite rather than a top performer is demoralizing and cheapens employees’ performances and accomplishments. Unfortunately for workers, workplaces can be downright awful. But that’s just one of the facts of life. To make matters worse, unless you’re being sexually harassed, discriminated against, or physically attacked, there sometimes can be very little a person can do without risking job security....
You don’t need anyone to tell you that work isn’t confined to the four walls of your office. Gone are the days of punching in and out at a time clock, and clients, customers, and employees will want contact no matter where you are or what time it is. This means doing a lot of business on the phone, and smartphones only increase the amount of work you can do away from your desk....
Genetic manipulation has been a dream to some and a nightmare to others. But the days of inserting, cutting, and swapping out DNA always seemed a bit farther off. Until now. CRISPR-Cas9 is a technology that allows users to quickly and cheaply edit, delete or replace any gene, and is already being used in hundreds of labs. This has many people wondering if designer babies are right around the corner, and whether manipulating human genes is legal....
Friday is Military Spouse Appreciation Day, created to honor the spouses of Americans who serve in the armed forces, many of whom are servicemembers themselves. While military spouses may have more training than the average civilian, many face legal issues that are unique to military families. So as we salute military spouses for their contributions and their sacrifices, here are five legal issues they may encounter and a few resources that can help:...
The company behind Monster Energy Drinks is now selling its product as a “beverage,” not as a “dietary supplement.” The move has strategic legal consequences. The drinks – including the ingredients and the packaging – remain relatively the same. But this change in designation will affect how Monster Energy Drinks are regulated, reports The New York Times. One of the key results of this change is that Monster will no longer be required to notify federal regulators about reports that potentially link its products to deaths and injuries....
People sometimes go online to vent and complain about work or their boss. It’s not uncommon for employees to get in trouble over things they post on the Internet. But are gripes about our jobs protected First Amendment speech? If other coworkers join in and respond to the discussion, the National Labor Relations Board believes it is. The NLRB recently filed a complaint saying that an employer violated the federal National Labor Relations Act by firing an employee for criticizing her supervisor on Facebook, NPR reports....
Do you need pet car insurance? Wait, what is pet car insurance? A newer trend, this type of insurance covers veterinary care should your pet be injured while in your car, whether in an accident or not. So if you’re prone to toting Fido or Tiger or even Iggy from place to place, pet car insurance is something you may want to consider. When looking for pet car insurance, keep in mind that coverage and cost varies from company to company....
Shopping carts may seem innocuous enough, even cute if they’re designed like race cars and carrying toddlers around the store. But they become a bit more sinister after an accident, especially one causing injuries. Shopping carts injure 24,000 kids every year, according to one study, and can become especially dangerous during peak shopping hours – like after work – or peak shopping days – like Black Friday. If you’re injured by a shopping cart in or outside of a store, do you have a legal claim?...
In a 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court today overturned its own previously established rule limiting police from initiating an interrogation of a criminal defendant once he has requested an attorney at an arraignment or similar proceeding. Wait, does this mean what it sounds like it means? Can police simply ignore a defendant’s prior request for an attorney and just pepper him with questions instead? The way the alarming headlines read, one might think so, but in practical reality, things may not be changing quite as much as it sounds (although the four dissenting justices might disagree)....
More than two weeks after Utah’s gay marriage ban was struck down in federal court, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday granted a stay on the decision, effectively stopping gay marriages in Utah for the time being. Responding to an emergency petition by the state of Utah, the Supreme Court put on hold the lower court’s decision to allow gay marriage until the issue is resolved on appeal by the 10th U....
Recently, a lawsuit brought forth by two groups representing the blind – the National Federation of the Blind, and the American Council of the Blind – on behalf of a blind student at Arizona State University was settled. In the lawsuit, concerns were raised over accessibility under the ADA was raised. We wrote about that settlement in the Injured Blog here. Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez was quoted in the press release as saying: “Advancing technology is systematically changing the way universities approach education, but we must be sure that emerging technologies offer individuals with disabilities the same opportunities as other students....
With Election Day behind us, you may be hearing a lot about the Electoral College and America’s unique way of picking a president. So just what is the Electoral College? For starters, the Electoral College is not actually a college. Nor is it even a place. Instead, the Electoral College is a process established by our Founding Fathers as something in-between a direct popular vote and a vote by only members of Congress, according to the National Archives....
