4th Circ. Says NC Law May Shield Internal Safety Complaints
Josh Van Kampen
North Carolina law protected a construction worker from retaliation when he called out a colleague’s on-duty intoxication, the Fourth Circuit said Thursday in a ruling clarifying protections for workers who report safety concerns internally rather than to state authorities.
EEOC Coronavirus Guidance No Silver Bullet For ADA Risks
Josh Van Kampen
Recently issued U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidelines give employers leeway to aggressively respond to coronavirus, but experts say employers will have to tread carefully without violating the Americans with Disabilities Act. Further legislation must protect workers and show that employees with COVID-19 are not an impediment to employers.
Van Kampen Law Client Robinson Bradshaw Calls Plaintiff’s Brief Outlandish
Josh Van Kampen
Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA and Van Kampen Law fired back Thursday against a black female attorney’s court filing accusing the law firm of using racial stereotypes in its efforts to escape her bias suit against it, saying the attorney “caustically embellishes the most outlandish allegations of her complaint.”
Van Kampen Law Hired to Represent Defense Firm Robinson Bradshaw
Josh Van Kampen
Sharika M. Robinson, who joined the Carolinas-based Robinson Bradshaw as an associate in 2015, accused the firm in her suit last month of engaging in a pattern of gender and racial discrimination that belies its public marketing to prospective clients and employees as being committed to diversity and inclusion.
5 Tips To Help Employers Cope With Natural Disasters
Josh Van Kampen
The battering that Hurricane Florence dealt to the southeastern United States should serve as a fresh reminder to employers that advance planning is an important aspect of dealing with the chaos that nature can cause. See what the experts are saying employers should keep in mind when dealing with a natural disaster.
DOJ’s Class Waiver Shift Complicates DR Horton Defense
Kevin P. Murphy
The U.S. Department of Justice’s recent refusal to throw its weight behind National Labor Relations Board precedent in a U.S. Supreme Court battle over the legality of mandatory arbitration agreements with class waivers added new obstacles for the NLRB in defending the position.
High Court’s BNSF Ruling A Roadblock For Forum-Shopping
Josh Van Kampen
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that BNSF Railway Co. can’t be sued in Montana by two out-of-state employees who weren’t injured there, giving large corporations more control over the jurisdictions.
Partial HB2 Repeal Lets Fired Worker’s Lawsuit Go On
Josh Van Kampen
By: David Donovan
When North Carolina’s lawmakers hurried HB2 through the legislature, it originally contained a provision that prohibited workers from suing their former employers under state law for cases of wrongful termination based on discrimination. That provision raised concerns from attorneys.
Time Bar on NC Discharge Claims Not Retroactive: Judge
Josh Van Kampen
Law360, New York – A North Carolina federal judge concluded Friday that the state’s recent reduction of the statute of limitations for certain wrongful discharge claims, which stemmed from the now-infamous law limiting transgender individuals’ access to public facilities, can’t retroactively be used to kill a claim that would have been timely absent the change.
NC Legislature’s Tweak Leaves Bathroom Law Mostly Intact
Josh Van Kampen
Law360, New York (July 5, 2016) — North Carolina lawmakers have largely left intact a controversial transgender bathroom law that blocks local governments from granting civil rights protections to LGBT individuals, but restored the ability to sue for discriminatory termination in state courts and gave workers one year to bring such claims.
4th Circuit Transgender Ruling Signals Defeat For NC Law
Kevin P. Murphy
Law360, New York – When the Fourth Circuit ruled this week that barring a transgender male student from the boys’ bathroom in Virginia violates federal education law, it forecast a defeat over North Carolina’s already notorious discrimination law. Among its many provisions, H.B. 2 restricts transgender people’s access to public restrooms, which, if enforced in schools, experts say could cost North Carolina $4.5 billion in federal funding.
NC Governor Proposes Tweaks To Transgender ‘Bathroom’ Law
Kevin P. Murphy
Law360, New York – A hastily enacted North Carolina law that undid a Charlotte anti-discrimination ordinance that in part allowed transgender people to use the restroom of their choice could potentially limit access to state courts for employees trying to pursue a wide range of discrimination claims, including those related to race and gender, plaintiffs attorneys say.
