During the holiday period, December 30th to be exact, the Department of Labor issued a guidance on how the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) applies to faith-based organizations. Although RFRA has been found not to apply to the states, it...

Our own Paul Secunda was recently quoted in the Chicago Tribune on a disturbing case in which it is alleged that an employee was terminated to avoid the medical claims made on behalf of her terminally ill husband. The employer...

Happy new year to all our readers! While we were taking a short holiday break, Louise at Colorado Health Insurance Insider was toiling away to produce a special New Year’s Eve Cavalcade Of Risk. Theres some good reading there, its good way to ease your way back into some of the health care issues that lie before us in the...

Because they are more interested in their profits than their customers needs. The big comp network companies (with big referring to the size of the network, not the company, as theres only one BIG NETWORK COMPANY - Coventry) have a...

David C. Yamada, Workplace Bullying and Ethical Leadership (525). Anup K. Basu, Alistair Byrne, Michael E. Drew, Dynamic Lifecycle Strategies for Target Date Retirement Funds (163). Francine J. Lipman, The Undocumented Immigrant Tax (144). David C. Yamada, Human Dignity...

Steven Pearlstein has an interesting column in the Washington Post discussing ways to reduce some of the sting in the labor market during a recession. As Pearlstein notes, an alternative to significant layoffs during downturns in the labor market is...

Friend of the blog, Jack Sargent poses this question: guess who loses what happens when gross sexual discrimination meets statutory construction in the Minnesota Court of Appeals? Minnesota public radio provides the report of the decision in Krueger v. Zeman...

In taking the case of Metlife v. Glenn, the Supreme Court attempted to bring some clarity to ERISA denial of benefit cases when the insurer is both the one to determine the benefits and pay them. Instead, things are now...

Way back in 2006, we posted on the Church Homes case, in which the Second Circuit rejected the NLRB's conclusion that an employer's secret hiring of permanent replacements did not suggest an independent unlawful action under Section 8(a)(3). On remand,...

Much against my better judgment, here are my predictions - in no particular order - for the work comp managed care world in 2009. 1. Coventry will be acquired. Currently trading just under $15 per share, Coventry Health looks to...

If you're looking for a reason to stay in Southern-ish California after the AALS, you might be interested in an upcoming conference that friend of the blog Patrick S. O'Donnell forwarded to me: Nelson Lichtenstein, University of California Santa Barbara,...

The Fourth Circuit recently issued an interesting decision on the LMRA's prohibition under against employers giving anything of value to a union (Section 302). In Adcock v. Freightliner, the court rejected the argument of employees (represented by the Right to...

As a sign that the political machinations surrounding EFCA has reached a fever pitch, we now have news of a recent initiative to place a secret ballot amendment in various state constitutions. And yes, I'm thinking what you're thinking--could you...

As the options on the table become somewhat more clear, it appears all but inevitable that any national health reform program will include a public insurance option, sometimes labled as Medicare for All. The plans offered by Pres. Elect Obama...

David C. Yamada, Workplace Bullying and Ethical Leadership (508). Anup K. Basu, Alistair Byrne, Michael E. Drew, Dynamic Lifecycle Strategies for Target Date Retirement Funds (156). Francine J. Lipman, The Undocumented Immigrant Tax (136). David C. Yamada, Human Dignity...

Its that time of year when the media takes a look back at the top stories of the preceding year so we thought wed jump on the seasonal bandwagon and offer a retrospective of our top posts for 2008, along with a list of the top 10 most popular posts of all time. Your top 20 favorites of 2008 Bullshit...

Rick Hills (NYU), one of the more thought-provoking and provocative thinkers over at PrawfsBlawg, has an interesting post on the interaction between the democratic process and the law of ERISA preemption. His post takes off from the recent ERISA preemption...

Ross Runkel's Employment Law Memo has this fascinating decision from the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, finding that an employer’s Rule 68 offer of judgment to a class plaintiff in a Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) wage and hour case...

Color me unsurprised: the Washington Post has a story out today on OSHA's lack of enforcement during the Bush Administration. A major problem appears to be the influence of political appointees at the agency interfering with career scientists' findings. According...

A positive brand image. Thats what every successful company seeks, and what unsuccessful companies dont have - and which the Democratic party, despite its recent successes, is sorely lacking. Yes, the 2008 elections were a rousing success for the Democrats,...