Law and the Workplace

Tag Archives: Arbitration

Federal Law Prohibiting Pre-Dispute Arbitration of Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault Claims Not Retroactive, New Jersey Court Confirms

By Evandro Gigante, Laura Fant and Dixie Morrison on Posted in Arbitration
A new federal law invalidating pre-dispute arbitration agreements for sexual harassment and sexual assault claims does not apply retroactively, a New Jersey appeals court recently confirmed. In Zuluaga v. Altice USA (N.J. App. Div. Nov. 29, 2022), the plaintiff had signed an arbitration agreement waiving her right to bring employment-related disputes in court when she … Continue Reading

UPDATED: President Biden Signs Bill Prohibiting Mandatory Arbitration and Class Action Waivers for Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault Claims

By Guy Brenner, Tony Oncidi, Evandro Gigante, Laura Fant, Theresa Madonna and Ariel Brotman on Posted in Arbitration, Class/Collective Action
***UPDATE: President Biden signed the bill into law on March 3, 2022.  The law takes effect immediately.*** Today, the Senate passed H. 4445, the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (the “Act”), by a voice vote.  The bill had previously passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 335-97. The … Continue Reading

EEOC Rescinds Its Long-Standing Policy Statement On Arbitration Agreements

By Allison Martin and Steven Hurd on Posted in Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation
The EEOC has rescinded its 1997 Policy Statement on Mandatory Binding Arbitration of Employment Discrimination Disputes as a Condition of Employment (the “Policy Statement”), which set forth the Commission’s position that agreements requiring mandatory arbitration of discrimination claims as a condition of employment are contrary to the principles of the federal employment discrimination statutes. In … Continue Reading

Second Circuit Affirms Expansion of Gender Bias Class Action against Sterling Jewelers

By Jordan Glassberg and Mark W. Batten on Posted in Arbitration, Class/Collective Action, Title VII
On November 18, 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit revived a potentially sweeping class action against Sterling Jewelers, Inc. (“Sterling”), holding that potentially tens of thousands of female employees could take part in an arbitration class involving claims of sex discrimination.  The Second Circuit’s holding is the latest in the … Continue Reading

Substantial Changes Ahead for Illinois Employers in 2020 Relating to Sexual Harassment Training, Mandatory Arbitration Agreements, and More

By Caralyn M. Olie, Edward Young and Steven J. Pearlman on Posted in Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation, Litigation and Arbitration, Workplace Policies and Procedures
Seal of the State of IllinoisOn August 9, 2019, Governor Pritzker signed into law Public Act 101-0221 (the “Act”), which enhances protections against workplace sexual harassment and discrimination.  The Act creates new laws and amends several existing ones, including the Illinois Human Rights Act (“IHRA”), as summarized below: NEW LAWS The Workplace Transparency Act (“WTA”).  The Workplace Transparency Act will … Continue Reading

Illinois Enacts Workplace Transparency Act

By Caralyn M. Olie, Edward Young and Steven J. Pearlman on Posted in Hiring/Background Checks, Workplace Policies and Procedures
On August 9, 2019, Illinois Governor Pritzker signed the Workplace Transparency Act (the “Act”) into law.  The Act will apply to all contracts, agreements, clauses, or waivers entered into, modified, or extended on or after January 1, 2020.  Here are the key features with respect to arbitration agreements, employment agreements and separation agreements that Illinois … Continue Reading

New York State Significantly Expands Workplace Anti-Discrimination Protections

By Arielle E. Kobetz, Laura Fant and Evandro Gigante on Posted in Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation, Workplace Policies and Procedures
On August 12, 2019, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law significant expansions to workplace anti-discrimination protections in New York State. As we previously reported in detail, the new legislation includes numerous measures regarding discrimination and harassment in all forms (not just sexual harassment) in the workplace.  The signing of the bill triggers the countdown to … Continue Reading

Second Circuit Compels Individual Arbitration of Putative Class FLSA and State Labor Law Claims

By Myron Rumeld and Rachel Therese Gulotta on Posted in Uncategorized
On July 2, 2019, a three-judge panel of the Second Circuit reversed the lower court’s denial of a motion to compel individual arbitration of a putative class action suit brought under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and New York Labor Law (“NYLL”). Abdullayeva v. Attending Homecare Services, LLC, d/b/a Attending Home Care, No. 18-651. … Continue Reading

SCOTUS:  Employers Can Compel Individual Arbitration of Wage and Hour Claims

By Allan Bloom and Mark W. Batten on Posted in Wage and Hour
  In its eagerly-awaited opinion in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, the U.S. Supreme Court held on May 21 that class action waivers in arbitration agreements between employers and employees do not violate the National Labor Relations Act.  The opinion resolves a split among federal circuits, and reiterates—once again—the strong federal policy favoring arbitration. While … Continue Reading

Governor Cuomo Signs New York State Budget Anti-Harassment Provisions Into Law

By Allan Bloom and Laura Fant on Posted in Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation
On April 12, 2018, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law the New York State budget, which, as we previously reported, includes several significant measures directed at both private and government employers regarding sexual harassment in the workplace. The signing of the budget bills triggers the countdown to the effective dates of the various … Continue Reading

New York State Budget Includes Workplace Anti-Sexual Harassment Measures

By Allan Bloom, Bassam Gergi and Laura Fant on Posted in Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation
The New York State Legislature and Governor Andrew Cuomo have reached agreement on a $168 billion budget deal for the 2019 fiscal year, which began on April 1, 2018. The budget includes several significant measures directed at both private and government employers regarding sexual harassment in the workplace. Many of the measures mirror legislation that … Continue Reading

Massachusetts Legislature Considers Prohibiting Mandatory Arbitration of Employment Claims

By Mark W. Batten and Samantha Regenbogen Manelin on Posted in Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation
A bill prohibiting mandatory arbitration of employment-related claims, introduced in late 2017 before the Massachusetts House of Representatives, continues to gain traction in early 2018.  The bill (House Bill 4058), which proposes legislation that would prohibit enforcement of mandatory arbitration agreements “relating to a claim of discrimination, non-payment of wages or benefits, retaliation, harassment or … Continue Reading

Fifth Circuit Instructs that, When Raised, Arbitrability is a Gateway Issue that Must Be Considered Prior to Conditional Certification in FLSA Collective Actions

By Minia Bremenstul and Nicole Eichberger on Posted in Class/Collective Action, Litigation and Arbitration, Wage and Hour
On October 4, 2016, the Fifth Circuit in Reyna v. International Bank of Commerce instructed district courts that when the issue of arbitrability is raised in a prompt motion to compel, it should be decided at the outset of the litigation—even prior to deciding conditional certification in FLSA collective actions. Reyna builds upon the Fifth … Continue Reading

2015 Year in Review—the Top 10 Trends in New Jersey Employment Law

By Catherine Pontoriero, Joseph O’Keefe and Esther Pak on Posted in Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation, Hiring/Background Checks, Litigation and Arbitration, Wage and Hour, Whistleblower
In 2015, there were important developments in New Jersey employment law. This newsletter examines some of those developments in ten key areas— background checks, whistleblowing, paid sick leave, wage and hour, Law Against Discrimination (“LAD”) litigation, arbitration, workplace injury, “Faithless Servant” Doctrine, Family Medical Leave Act, and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of … Continue Reading

Second Circuit: FAA Mandates Stay of Claims Pending Arbitration

By Evandro Gigante, Lindsey Chopin, Nigel F. Telman and Steven Hurd on Posted in Litigation and Arbitration
The Second Circuit recently held in Katz v. Cellco P’Ship d/b/a/ Verizon Wireless, Nos. 14-138, 14-291, 2015 WL 4528658 (2d Cir. July 28, 2015) that, under the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”), district courts must stay all proceedings upon a finding that the claims before the court are subject to arbitration if a stay is requested. … Continue Reading

A Woolley Situation: District of New Jersey Refuses to Enforce Arbitration Clause in Employee Handbook

By Daniel Saperstein, Harry N. Hudesman, Joseph O’Keefe and Robert Schwartz on Posted in Litigation and Arbitration, Workplace Policies and Procedures
New Jersey employers should consider the risks of including an arbitration agreement in a standard employment handbook in light of a recent decision by the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey in Raymours Furniture Co., Inc. v. Rossi, No. 13-4440, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1006 (D.N.J. Jan. 2, 2014). The court refused … Continue Reading

AAA Adopts Optional Appellate Arbitration Process

By Allan Weitzman, Fredric Leffler, Katharine Parker and Marc A. Mandelman on Posted in Litigation and Arbitration
Parties now have an opportunity to seek review of unfavorable arbitration awards before an appellate arbitral panel, pursuant to the Optional Appellate Arbitration Rules (Rules), recently released by the American Arbitration Association, effective November 1, 2013. This alert takes a look at the new rules, which describe the process and requirements for parties wishing to … Continue Reading

California Court Holds that Representative PAGA Claims Are Not Subject to Mandatory Arbitration

By Proskauer on Class and Collective Actions on Posted in Uncategorized
In a 2-1 decision, the California Court of Appeal held that representative actions under California’s Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) may not be waived in mandatory, pre-dispute employment arbitration agreements. (Brown v. Ralphs Grocery Co., Cal. Ct. App., No. B222689. This decision comes as something of a surprise in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling … Continue Reading

The Supreme Court Favors Arbitration — Again

By Mark W. Batten on Posted in Uncategorized
In recent years the U.S. Supreme Court has consistently favored arbitration against efforts to limit it, so long as the parties’ intent to arbitrate is clear.  In 14 Penn Plaza v. Pyett, in which Proskauer represented the Petitioner, the Court held that parties to a collective bargaining agreement can require bargaining unit members to arbitrate discrimination claims … Continue Reading

Class Arbitration Waivers: More Uncertainty

By Mark W. Batten on Posted in FLSA
Continuing on our recent theme of conflicting rules on class issues, Judge Kimba Wood of the Southern District of New York ruled March 3 (PDF) that Ernst & Young could not enforce a provision in its employment contracts with its accountants that waived class claims and required claims against E&Y, including overtime claims, to be … Continue Reading

More Threats to Class Action Waivers

By Mark W. Batten on Posted in Uncategorized
The post-oral-argument betting is that the Supreme Court will uphold California’s prohibition on class action waivers in arbitration agreements, in AT&T v. Concepcion — through some combination of conservative Justices concerned about protecting states’ rights and less conservative judges concerned about unconscionability.… Continue Reading
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