Employers in Virginia or the District of Columbia who have questions about how to determine whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor are welcome to call Searcy Law Offices, LLC at 703-644-4122 for a consultation.

For more information about the District of Columbia's paid sick leave law, see my prior posts here and here.

Employers are required to post the notice, which describes federal employment discrimination laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, equal pay, disability and genetic information. Copies of the EEOC poster can be requested through the EEOC's website.

Question: What is the common law fiduciary duty of loyalty?

Recently, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") published Understanding Waivers of Discrimination Claims in Employee Severance Agreements. This publication provides a useful overview of the potential legal effect of waivers and releases of age, sex, race, gender, disability or other employment discrimination claims. As reflected in the EEOC's publication, parties on both sides of severance agreements are best served by retaining competent legal counsel.

For help with drafting, negotiating, or interpreting a separation or other employment agreement, feel free to contact Searcy Law Offices, LLC at 703-644-4122 in Virginia or 202-393-1443 in the District of Columbia.

While the best defense against employment discrimination cases is to ensure that employment-related decisions are based on business reasons free of discriminatory bias, I thought it would be useful to refer readers to a previous post about layoffs, reductions and employee terminations.

After considerable delay, beginning on September 8, 2009, most federal government contract solicitations and federal government contract awards will include a clause requiring federal government contractors to use E-Verify. Government contractors will have 30 days from the contract date to enroll in E-Verify.

As a practical matter, federal government contractors and subcontractors in Virginia, the District of Columbia, and nationwide should begin taking steps now for a smooth transition to the E-Verify system. DHS'
frequently asked questions and answers about the E-Verify system is a good place to begin getting up to speed.

In analogous Title VII cases, where an employee presents direct evidence that the employer's adverse decision was motivated in part by unlawful employment discrimination (because of race, sex, religion, national origin, or color), a burden-shifting mechanism kicks in. Instead of the norm where the burden of persuasion rests with the employee, the jury in a Title VII mixed-motive case is instructed that the employer bears the burden of persuasion to establish that it would have made the same adverse decision absent the alleged unlawful discrimination.

Based on the majority's view of differences in the statutory language of Title VII and the ADEA, the Court refused to apply Title VII's burden-shifting mechanism to ADEA claims. Under Gross, regardless of whether an employee presents direct (or other) evidence that age was a motivating factor in the employer's adverse decision, the employee always retains the burden of persuasion to establish "but-for" causation, i.e., that age discrimination was, in fact, the reason for the adverse decision. As a practical matter, Gross makes age discrimination claims, which were already difficult for employee's to establish because of the comparatively high "but-for' causation standard, ever more difficult from the employee's perspective.

Held: Vacated and remanded, THOMAS, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which ROBERTS, C. J., and SCALIA, KENNEDY, and ALITO, JJ., joined. STEVENS, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which SOUTER, GINSBURG, and BREYER, JJ., joined. BREYER, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which SOUTER and GINSBURG, JJ., joined.

The D.C. Wage Payment and Wage Collection Law applies to most non-government employers in the District of Columbia. In general, it requires employers to pay employees wages earned at least twice a month on regular paydays and to make timely payment of wages upon an employee's departure. The wage law does not apply to executives, administrative, or professional employees.

Here are answers to some frequently asked questions about payment of wages in the District of Columbia:

Specifically, the Virginia Conspiracy Act provides for civil actions based on a conspiracy by two or more persons to injure a person or entity's business interests (not employment interests). In addition to injunctive relief, a prevailing plaintiff may recover treble damages (three-times the amount of damages), plus attorneys' fees and costs.

Key provisions of the Virginia Business Conspiracy Act follow:

Courts in Virginia and the District of Columbia have carved out “narrow” exceptions to the at-will doctrine for claims of "wrongful termination" or "wrongful discharge" in violation of public policy. The highest courts of the respective jurisdictions have expressed the public policy exception to the at-will doctrine as follows: