OSHA’s vaccinate or test mandate for large employers (the “ETS”) is set to remain stayed through the first deadline, today, December 6, 2021.  That first deadline would have required employers with 100 or more employees to begin complying with all the ETS’s requirements (aside from…

This afternoon, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation announced it had randomly selected the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeal to hear the consolidated challenges to the OSHA emergency temporary standard (“ETS”) requiring large private employers to vaccinate or test. The majority of the Sixth Circuit’s…

This afternoon, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued its second stay against OSHA’s emergency temporary standard (“ETS”) requiring large private employers to “vaccinate or test” their employees (the ETS is summarized here). The ETS, published on November 5, came under immediate challenge by various…

As you’ve likely heard by now, OSHA fulfilled the task assigned to it by the Biden Administration by publishing a new emergency temporary standard (“ETS”) targeted at private employers with 100 or more employees. We breakdown the ETS and what it means for large private…

Late in the afternoon on October 11, 2021, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued Executive Order GA 40 prohibiting “any entity,” including private employers, from requiring any individual, whether an employee or a consumer,  receive a COVID-19 vaccination if that individual objects to the vaccination.  Abbott…

Effective September 30, 2021, the minimum wage in Florida will increase to $10.00 per hour from its current rate of $8.65 per hour. The increase stems from a state constitutional amendment, approved by Florida voters last November, to raise the state minimum wage to $15.00 by 2026 for…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide, Morey Raiskin and Abood Shebib Hurricane season is only half over, with Hurricane Ida leaving a trail of damage across Louisiana and beyond, and Hurricane Larry swirling in the Atlantic Ocean, although the storm is not expected to threaten the U.S.…

By: Morey Raiskin & Rachel D. Gebaide Shortly after the CDC granted emergency use authorization of COVID-19 vaccines, the EEOC issued new guidance outlining how employers could lawfully and mandatorily require employees to get vaccinated before returning to a worksite or bar unvaccinated employees from the worksite. Essentially,…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide, Morey Raiskin and Rasheem Johnson On November 3, 2020, Florida voters approved Amendment 2, which raises the state minimum wage to $15.00. The increase goes into effect over time, with the minimum wage increasing to $8.65, as planned, on January 1,…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide and Morey Raiskin Florida’s minimum wage will increase effective January 1, 2021 as follows: Florida’s minimum wage will increase by nine cents from $8.56 to $8.65 per hour. Florida’s minimum wage for tipped employees will increase by nine cents from $5.54…

Lowndes shareholders Rachel D. Gebaide, Andrew M. Gluck and Greg McNeill were speakers for the “Financial Relief Webinar” presented by AdventHealth on April 23, 2020. They spoke on three important issues facing today’s businesses amid the COVID-19 pandemic: business interruption insurance, employment law considerations and negotiation of lease workouts. Gebaide…

March 18, 2020 at 10:42 pm UPDATE:  Tonight, after this article posted, President Trump signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act into law, which includes the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act and Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act.  Employers have 15 days, or until April…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide Over the weekend, the U.S. House of Representatives passed sweeping legislation designed to assist a large segment of the nation’s workforce whose ability to work is or may become impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Although the U.S. Senate is expected…

Orlando Business Journal As cell phones become increasingly ubiquitous, employers likely have experienced both positive and negative effects of employees’ ability to remain constantly connected. In many fields, business is conducted regularly through cell phones, and employers may benefit from their employees’ ability to access…

Employers Can No Longer Wait To Assert Affirmative Defense of Failure to Exhaust Administrative Remedies June 6, 2019 By: Morey Raiskin In Fort Bend County v. Davis, the United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled Monday, June 3, 2019, that the requirement that a Title VII plaintiff…

March 8, 2019 The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking yesterday to increase the minimum salary for certain “white-collar” administrative, professional, and executive employees to be classified as “exempt” salaried employees and, therefore, ineligible to receive overtime pay.  The proposed new…

February 6, 2019 By: Jill C. Davis The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently issued a key opinion interpreting the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), which prohibits discrimination against people aged 40 and older. The issue in the case, Kleber…

February 6, 2019 The Florida Supreme Court declined yesterday to hear the City of Miami Beach’s appeal of a lower court’s decision upholding a Florida law barring local minimum wage ordinances.  As a result, Florida cities and other local governments within the state may not adopt ordinances that raise…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide & Jill Davis Florida’s minimum wage will increase effective January 1, 2019 as follows: Florida’s minimum wage will increase by 21 cents from $8.25 to $8.46 per hour. Florida’s minimum wage for tipped employees will increase by 21 cents from $5.23…

February 26, 2018 By: Rachel D. Gebaide Employees must report suspected securities fraud violations to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to benefit from the anti-retaliation provisions in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank).  In a unanimous decision in Digital Realty…

December 14, 2017 By:  Rachel D. Gebaide An appellate court has denied Miami Beach’s latest effort to establish a mandatory minimum wage for employees in that city. Earlier this year, Miami Beach’s minimum wage law, which was intended to raise the mandatory citywide wage to…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE & TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE OCTOBER 13, 2017 Florida’s minimum wage will increase effective January 1, 2018 as follows: Florida’s minimum wage will increase by 15 cents from $8.10 to $8.25 per hour. Florida’s minimum wage for tipped employees will increase by…

September 1, 2017 By:  Timothy C. Haughee & Rachel D. Gebaide The Obama-era overtime rule that was temporarily enjoined at the eleventh hour last fall has been permanently struck down as invalid.  In late November 2016, a federal court in Texas issued a nationwide preliminary…

August 31, 2017 This week, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) implemented an immediate stay of the new pay data collection and reporting requirements on the EEO-1 form that was revised last year during the Obama administration.  Employers who are required to file an…

By Rachel D. Gebaide and Andrew Kelly* Employees – and unsuccessful applicants for employment – are increasingly asserting claims under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) for violations arising out of background checks conducted by third party credit reporting agencies.  Successful claimants can recover actual…

March 30, 2017 Miami Beach’s new minimum wage law, which is intended to raise the mandatory citywide wage to $13.31 by 2021, was struck down on Tuesday by a Miami-Dade circuit court judge who ruled that the ordinance was preempted by state law.  The city…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide and Timothy C. Haughee On November 22, 2016, a federal court issued a nationwide preliminary injunction against the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) that temporarily blocks the implementation of the DOL’s new overtime rule, which was scheduled to take effect on…

November 16, 2016 The federal district court judge who heard arguments yesterday on the new overtime rule said he intends to rule by Tuesday (Nov. 22) on the motion for preliminary injunction filed by 21 states attorneys general and several business groups.  If the Court…

November 10, 2016 By: Rachel D. Gebaide The U.S. Department of Labor’s new overtime rule will take effect December 1st unless a federal judge in Texas issues an injunction after a hearing next week in an action challenging the rule.  In the meantime, employers must…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide and Timothy C. Haughee October 14, 2016 Florida’s minimum wage will increase effective January 1, 2017 as follows: • Florida’s minimum wage will increase by five cents from $8.05 to $8.10 per hour. • Florida’s minimum wage for tipped employees will…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide and Timothy C. Haughee May 18, 2016 The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), at the direction of the White House, issued the long-anticipated final rule that substantially increases the minimum pay threshold necessary for certain “white-collar” administrative, professional, and executive employees…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE The U.S. Department of Labor’s new overtime rules, which exponentially expands the number of workers eligible for overtime, are currently under review by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB).  This means the new overtime rules may take effect…

BY: RACHEL D. GEBAIDE Once upon a time, an employer could respond to an EEOC Charge of Discrimination and include all manner of responsive documents, secure in the knowledge that the Charging Party would never see the position statement, including the documents produced to the…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE & TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE OCTOBER 15, 2015 The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (“DEO”) has announced that the minimum wage in Florida will remain at $8.05 per hour for 2016. The minimum wage for employees who earn tips will remain at…

June 30, 2015 President Obama has announced a proposed rule to increase the minimum weekly salary for overtime exempt employees from $455 to $970.  In other words, the minimum annual salary for an exempt employee will increase from $23,660 to $50,440 if the U.S. Department…

According to data released by the U.S. Equal Opportunity Commission, Claimants filed a record-high 37,955 retaliation charges with the EEOC in 2014.  Retaliation charges accounted for almost 43 percent of all charges filed with the EEOC last year.  Claims based on race discrimination (35% of…

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE & RACHEL D. GEBAIDE MARCH 27, 2015 Employers should take note of this week’s U.S. Supreme Court decision regarding workplace accommodations to pregnant employees. The question presented was whether the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) requires employers to offer workplace accommodations…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE &  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE MARCH 18, 2015 Effective March 27, 2015, the U.S. Department of Labor’s regulations interpreting the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) expands coverage to legally married same-sex spouses, even if the employee lives in a state that…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE &  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE DECEMBER 11, 2014 In a highly-anticipated employment law case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled this week that time spent by employees who undergo employer-required post-shift security screenings is not compensable under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).…

We are excited to announce that we have turned 45 years old! This milestone provides us an opportunity to both reflect on our past and look forward to our future. In celebration, we would like to recognize and thank all of our remarkable clients and…

Our attorney Richard Dellinger was recently quoted in a Business News Daily story about what questions every business owner should ask their lawyer prior to the end of the year. Read the story below: 6 Questions to Ask Your Business Attorney by Year-End by: Nicole…

BY: MATTHEW G. BRENNER October 31, 2014 Arbitration is an alternative dispute resolution method which allows parties to have their case heard and resolved without a court trial.  Many large institutions (such as banks and insurance companies), small business owners, and service providers who use…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE &  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE OCTOBER 15, 2014 The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (“DEO”) has announced that the minimum wage in Florida will increase by 12 cents from $7.93 to $8.05 per hour on January 1, 2015. The minimum wage for…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE &  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE SEPTEMBER 11, 2014 Earlier today, we presented a seminar entitled “Wage and Hour Compliance:  Managing Risk Under the FLSA.”  Below is a link to the PDF document containing the slideshow from the presentation. CLICK FOR SLIDESHOW:  Wage…

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE AUGUST 26, 2014 The 20-month long saga regarding the validity of agency actions taken by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) appears to be reaching its conclusion. As we previously wrote, in June 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court held that President…

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE AUGUST 19, 2014 Last week, a Florida state court judge in Miami declared that Florida’s workers’ compensation law is unconstitutional because the various benefits available to injured workers under the law have been so diminished over time by the Florida Legislature…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE JULY 8, 2014 Employers within Orlando’s city limits may soon need to modify their EEO policies to include a new protected class: gender identity. Today’s Orlando Sentinel reported that the Orlando City Council is considering an ordinance that would outlaw discrimination…

Rachel Gebaide appeared on Fox 35 – Good Day Orlando to discuss the  Hobby Lobby Supreme Court Ruling, and what this may mean to future employers. To watch the video, click on the play button below.

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE JUNE 30, 2014 In two landmark cases today, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that (i) owners of closely held corporations cannot be required to provide contraception coverage under the Affordable Care Act and (ii) non-union members who are not “full-fledged public…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE &  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE JUNE 26, 2014 This morning, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the ruling of a lower appellate court that President Obama’s recess appointments of three National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) members exceeded his constitutional authority. As a result,…

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE JUNE 23, 2014 Last September, we reported that the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) had issued final regulations significantly narrowing the “companionship services” exemption under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). Effective January 1, 2015, this change expands minimum wage and…

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE JUNE 17, 2014 The White House announced this week that President Obama plans to sign an executive order that bans federal contractors from discriminating against employees on the basis of their sexual orientation. Currently, there are no federal laws in place…

We are excited to announce the launch of our redesigned website, www.lowndes-law.com. The site welcomes guests with warm colors, a clean design, crisp new images and fresh content. A strong brand message, “LOCAL ROOTS. BROAD REACH.SM” reflects the firm’s experience and service as well as…

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE JUNE 4, 2014 The minimum wage has been a hot topic over the last year, with many members of Congress pushing for an increase in the federal minimum wage rate and the President signing an executive order raising the minimum wage…

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE & RACHEL D. GEBAIDE MAY 30, 2014 It is well-settled federal law that an employee may not waive “prospective” rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”), but an employee can release FMLA claims that concern past employer behavior. Last month,…

By:  Rachel D. Gebaide April 20, 2014 The Florida Civil Rights Act (“FCRA”) does not specifically state that discrimination based on pregnancy is prohibited, but the Florida Supreme Court ruled last Thursday that the extra language is unnecessary:  The FCRA’s existing prohibition against discrimination based…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE &  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE MARCH 31, 2014 The U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion last week in United States vs. Quality Stores, Inc., in which the Court ruled that severance payments made to former employees who were involuntarily terminated by their…

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE MARCH 14, 2014 The Obama Administration announced this week that it will ask the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) to issue rules that increase the minimum salary that must be paid to exempt employees.  Currently, certain salaried employees, including shift supervisors,…

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE MARCH 11, 2014 Currently, Florida employers may ask their employees or prospective employees to provide their social media passwords and can fire the employees or refuse to hire the applicants if they refuse.  Florida legislators, however, have proposed a new law…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE MARCH 6, 2014 Earlier this week, the U.S. Supreme Court announced that it would hear oral arguments in Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc. v. Busk, a case in which the Supreme Court will decide whether time spent by employees undergoing security screenings…

BY:  CINDY CAMPBELL FEBRUARY 27, 2014 During his State of the Union address on January 28, 2014, President Obama announced his plan to raise the minimum wage for federal contractors (and subcontractors) from $7.25 (or $7.93 in Florida) to $10.10 per hour.  On February 12,…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE &  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE FEBRUARY 12, 2014 The Obama administration has announced that the employer “play-or-pay” mandate portion of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will not be enforced for some employers until 2016. Under the employer shared responsibility provisions of the…

BY:  TERESA B. FINER (guest blogger) JANUARY 31, 2014 In Tuesday night’s State of the Union address, President Obama could not say much more on immigration than: “Let’s get immigration reform done.” Yesterday, Speaker of the House John Boehner responded “It’s time to deal with…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE JANUARY 28, 2014 Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion regarding the interpretation of the phrase “changing clothes” contained in the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).  The High Court held that the donning and doffing of protective gear by…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE JANUARY 23, 2014 It is not uncommon for employers who have been sued by current or former employees for disability discrimination to seek the production of medical records regarding the alleged disability in question.  However, are those medical records, which typically…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE JANUARY 13, 2014 As we previously reported, the U.S. Supreme Court last summer announced that it would review whether or not President Barack Obama’s recess appointments of three National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) members exceeded his constitutional authority, potentially nullifying several…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE JANUARY 10, 2014 Employers who reluctantly posted the National Labor Relations Board’s “Notification of Employee Rights under the National Labor Relations Act,” two years ago can remove the posters from their employee break rooms.  After two federal appeals courts struck down…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE JANUARY 10, 2014 As many who follow current events know, Congress is in the process of determining whether or not to extend long-term unemployment benefits to millions of Americans nationwide.  As the debate in Congress progresses, the Associated Press released this…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE JANUARY 7, 2014 Last month, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced that a Wawa convenience store located in Pennsylvania violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) by firing an employee who complained that the company had not given her flexibility…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE DECEMBER 10, 2013 Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the “individual mandate” portion of the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”).  Despite that landmark legal ruling, however, the White House continues to face other legal challenges to certain portions…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE DECEMBER 6, 2013 This morning, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the U.S. economy added 203,000 jobs for the month of November and that the national unemployment rate fell to 7.0%, which represents the lowest unemployment…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE NOVEMBER 26, 2013 Earlier this month, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) announced a proposed rule that would require employers to electronically submit to OSHA records of workplace injuries and illnesses.  OSHA would then post the records online and make…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE NOVEMBER 22, 2013 Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division announced that two separate but related resorts in California agreed to pay nearly $60,000 in back wages to 53 employees, including maintenance and housekeeping employees, as…

By:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE NOVEMBER 19, 2013 Last week, the United States Senate voted 64 to 32 to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2013 (“ENDA”), which seeks to protect gay, lesbian, and transgender employees from discrimination in the workplace.  Under ENDA, employers with at…

BY:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE, MELODY B. LYNCH, &  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE NOVEMBER 14, 2013 Last week, members of our Labor & Employment Law Practice Group hosted a breakfast briefing for our clients and business partners.  The subject of the breakfast briefing was “Workplace Violence and…

By:  RACHEL D. GEBAIDE, TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE & HALLIE B. FISHER OCTOBER 30, 2013 In a big win for employers, the U.S. Supreme Court held earlier this summer that only supervisors who have been empowered by their employers to bring a “tangible employment action” against…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide October 24, 2013 The fall-out from the spate of unpaid wage lawsuits by unpaid interns continues.  According to the New York Times, publishing giant Condé Nast announced the closure of its internship program, which was popular among aspiring journalists seeking experience…

BY:  TIMOTHY C. HAUGHEE OCTOBER 23, 2013 Many employers (especially retailers) routinely search their employees’ bags, backpacks, and purses in an effort to ensure that the employees do not abscond with the employers’ valuable merchandise while leaving for a lunch break or for the end…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide and Timothy C. Haughee October 15, 2013 The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (“DEO”) has announced that the minimum wage in Florida will increase by 14 cents from $7.79 to $7.93 per hour on January 1, 2014. The minimum wage for employees…

By:  Timothy C. Haughee October 9, 2013 In an effort to combat the steady uptick in motor vehicle crashes caused by drivers who were sending text messages or e-mails on their cell phones, the Florida Legislature passed the “Florida Ban on Texting While Driving Law,”…

By:  Timothy C. Haughee October 4, 2013 Against the backdrop of a continuing government shutdown, the U.S. Supreme Court announced yesterday that it would begin hearing cases next week for its new term.  One of the first cases to be heard – Madigan v. Levin…

By: Timothy C. Haughee October 3, 2013 Contrary to concerns about employers reducing their workforce’s hours to fewer than 30 per week to avoid penalties under the Affordable Care Act, the Orlando Sentinel reported yesterday that Walt Disney World announced that it has offered to…

Welcome to the Employer Lawyers blog!  In this blog, we will examine current legal issues, news, and developments in Labor and Employment Law at federal, state, and local levels.   We will bring you not only the news but also our thoughts on how these new…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide and Timothy C. Haughee October 1, 2013 In a cautionary tale for employers, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) recently investigated the popular T.G.I. Fridays restaurant chain relating to a complaint by an employee that the company violated the Family and…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide and Melody B. Lynch September 23, 2013 Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued final regulations significantly narrowing the “companionship services” exemption under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).  Effective January 1, 2015, this change expands minimum wage and…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide and Timothy C. Haughee July 3, 2013 The Obama administration announced yesterday that the employer “play-or-pay” mandate portion of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will not be enforced until 2015.  Under the employer shared responsibility provisions of the ACA, large employers…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide, Timothy C. Haughee & Hallie B. Fisher June 25, 2013 In an uncertain economy, unpaid interns are especially appealing to employers.  However, the recent ruling by a federal district court should leave employers wary about using unpaid interns. In Glatt v.…

By: Rachel D. Gebaide and Timothy C. Haughee June 24, 2013 Earlier today, the U.S. Supreme Court announced that the high court would review whether or not President Barack Obama’s recess appointments of three National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) members exceeded his constitutional authority, potentially…

Rachel D. Gebaide, Morey Raiskin & Abood Shebib Under new legislation passed by Congress last week, an employee, despite having signed an agreement with their employer to arbitrate all claims prior to the existence of any actual claim, would have the option to refuse to…

Late last week, the U.S. Supreme Court lifted the stay of the healthcare worker vaccination mandate (CMS Rule) in 24 states where the CMS Rule had been stayed. The CMS Rule, issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid  Services (CMS) on November 5, 2021, is back in…