T-Mobile’s Confidentiality Agreement is called into question Some companies have policies that prohibit employees from discussing internal investigations. Such policies are meant to protect employers. But they may violate employee rights outlined by federal law. The National Labor Relations Board recently said T-Mobile should not have required employees to sign a confidentiality agreement that prohibited […]

Florida Competitive Workforce Act would raise state employment standards For the seventh time, Florida lawmakers are trying to pass a bill that would make it illegal to fire someone based on his or her sexual orientation or gender identity. Some cities and counties already prohibit such discrimination, but statewide, it is still permitted. The bill […]

What’s the Law? Are You an Independent Contractor or Employee? It’s estimated that by 2020, 40 percent of the U.S. labor force will be freelancing. With freelancing and independent contractor status comes a world of freedoms for the employee, but this might also trigger employment law issues and violations of your rights. According to the […]

Protect Your Employee Rights Before Entering into Arbitration There’s a disturbing trend occurring with employee rights. Employees are signing away their rights to a court hearing in favor of arbitration, largely because they don’t understand the ramifications of doing so. Have you signed away your employee rights? Here’s what that could mean: What is Arbitration? […]

Federal authorities work to curb growing problem of employee misclassification The United States is undergoing a shift in the way business operates. Some call it the rise of the “1099 economy,” named for the tax form freelancers receive. Instead of classifying their workers as traditional “employees,” companies such as Uber, Lyft, and Homejoy have classified […]

Uber and the Battle over Contractors One of the biggest questions in employment law currently is the difference between an employee and a contractor. It’s an important question for many companies because it determines employee benefits and protections. Often the hiring of independent contractors saves companies an enormous amount of money because they don’t have […]

If you think you need an employment lawyer, there are several things you should think about before hiring one. Employment lawyers, and their skills in representing you, are not all equal. Some are more tenacious than others. Some are more experienced. Take the time to speak with several of them and ask the following: How […]

Getting terminated from a job is very stressful. Not only do you have financial concerns but your pride suffers as well. It hurts to be told, “this just isn’t working out”. While Florida is an at-will state, and you can be fired at any time, there are several reasons employers can’t fire you. Knowing these […]

If you have an agreement with your employer – written or verbal (albeit verbal is harder to prove) – that has been broken, you have several courses of action. If the employment/employee contract is a union contract, speak with your union representative first. If not, then you can: Speak with the Human Resources Department While […]

You May Have a Wrongful Termination Case. Employers institute non-compete agreements for a variety of reasons, mainly to prohibit employees with critical information on the company to take clients or ideas to competitors. Agreements can be narrow in prohibiting only direct pilfering of clients, research, and employees or extremely broad in prohibiting employees from working […]