CBS News (03/25/12)

Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) are asking U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to look into whether companies that ask applicants for Facebook passwords during job interviews are violating federal law. The senators are sending letters to the heads of the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. On Friday, Facebook warned companies not to ask job applicants for their passwords and threatened legal action against acts that violate its policy against sharing passwords. A Facebook executive warned that if a company learns that an applicant is a member of a protected class, the company may be vulnerable to discrimination claims if it doesn’t hire the applicant.

Business Insurance (03/23/12)

In the case of Barrett Business Services Inc. vs. Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board, a California appellate court has ruled that even though a company’s $17,000 check was stolen and cashed, the company still must pay the workers’ compensation claimant who never got the check. Rafael Rivas worked for Barrett and injured his back in 2005, but changed addresses numerous times before his claim was settled. Barrett mailed the settlement check to Rivas at an out-of-date address, and a “Rafal Rivas” fraudulently cashed the check. Barrett argued that because it mailed the check to Rivas at an address specified in a compromise and release agreement, it had fulfilled its duties in the matter. However, the court disagreed.

Lexology (03/19/12) Bernard J. Bobber

Employers that have some reportable activity as defined by the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 must file a Form LM-10 (Employer Report) with the U.S. Department of Labor. The law requires certain payments of money or other items of value to a union, union official, labor relations consultant, or employee to be disclosed, even if the company’s employees are not represented by a union. For companies using the calendar year as their fiscal year, the reporting deadline is March 30. Under LMRDA, the payments to be reported must be greater than $250 and include such things as gifts or services given to employees on the condition that they will not organize, paying a labor relations consultant to plant agents among employees to report on union organizational activities, paying to print or disseminate pamphlets and other advertisements that threaten to close or move plants if organized, or taking out a union official with whom collective bargaining agreements are being negotiated. The report must be signed under oath by the employer’s president and treasurer, and willful violations could result in criminal and civil penalties.

HR.BLR.com (03/19/12)

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says that for 2011, it received more complaints about retaliation than any other kind of complaint, such as race or disability discrimination. Retaliation—finding a pretext to fire or transfer an employee because the employee complained about mistreatment by a supervisor, improper company practices, sexual harassment, or anything similar—is illegal. Furthermore, retaliation claims are easier to prove than discrimination claims.

To address the surge in retaliation claims, the U.S. Department of Labor has issued three new fact sheets on the issue: Fact Sheet #77A: Prohibiting Retaliation Under the Fair Labor Standards Act; Fact Sheet #77B: Protection for Individuals Under the FMLA; and Fact Sheet #77C: Prohibiting Retaliation Under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.