Connecticut Employment Law Blog Insight on Labor & Employment Developments for Connecticut Businesses

Tag Archives: privacy

Employers Checking Employee E-mail: The Split Continues

By Daniel Schwartz on Posted in Human Resources (HR) Compliance

Last year, employers were taken aback when a New Jersey court ruled that an employee did have some expectation of privacy of e-mails she sent to her attorney using work computers.  The case, Stengart v. Loving Care Agency became one of the most talked about cases of the year.  Last week, a California court came… Continue Reading

Will Facebook’s New Download Feature Change E-Discovery on Social Networks?

By Daniel Schwartz on Posted in Human Resources (HR) Compliance, Social Media

In my post earlier today, I noted that courts have been all over the map on whether someone’s Facebook page info was discoverable.  This afternoon, Facebook announced a new feature that will allow individuals to download all of their own data onto their computers (or into a file.) According to TechCrunch: Facebook Product Manager David Recordon… Continue Reading

Breaking: U.S. Supreme Court Rules that Two-Member NLRB Decisions Are Improper; Public Employer Can View Employee Text Messages

By Daniel Schwartz on Posted in Human Resources (HR) Compliance, Labor Law & NRLB, Laws and Regulations, Litigation, Wage & Hour

The U.S. Supreme Court issued decisions in two important labor & employment law cases this morning. Because the cases are limited to some labor law issues and public employers, the impact on private employers may not be immediately felt. But the decisions are notable nonetheless. First, the court issued a 5-4 decision in New Process… Continue Reading

Quick Hits: Unpaid Interns, Employee E-mail Privacy, LinkedIn Recommendations, Advice from the “Enemy”, Retaliation, The “Restroom Issue”

By Daniel Schwartz on Posted in Discrimination & Harassment, Human Resources (HR) Compliance, Litigation, Wage & Hour

With my work on the Law & Technology Symposium for the Connecticut Bar Foundation last week, there are several employment law topics that I haven’t had time to discuss in full. While I’ve shared some of these links via my Twitter feed (which you can find at twitter.com/danielschwartz), I thought I would recap some of… Continue Reading

Do You Really Want To Take on the 350 Million Pound Gorilla in the Room?

By Daniel Schwartz on Posted in Litigation

So, you’re an employer and you’ve just been sued for disability discrimination.   Allegedly, you fired an employee who was out of work without a legitimate reason.  You had heard grumblings that the worker had actually taken a four-day weekend in Vail but never had definitive proof, so you just relied on the no-call/no-show policy to… Continue Reading

New Connecticut Law Requires Employers to Protect Employment Applications From Disclosure

By Daniel Schwartz on Posted in Laws and Regulations

Buried in a new law regarding identity theft is a provision that requires employers to protect employment applications from being disclosed. (Hat tip to my colleague Jennifer Willcox for pointing this out.) The law (Public At 09-239), which went into effect on October 1, 2009, states that "Each employer shall obtain and retain employment applications… Continue Reading

Protecting the Confidentiality of Social Security Numbers – New Requirements for Employers and Businesses

By Daniel Schwartz on Posted in Human Resources (HR) Compliance, Laws and Regulations, Legislative Developments, Wage & Hour

UPDATED 12/8/08 to correct cap on penalty amount to $500,000 With all the focus this year on minimum wage, 15-year-olds in the workplace, and the like, other less-publicized bills in Connecticut still haven’t received much attention. In an earlier post, I noted that I would update readers on them when the dust settles.  One of… Continue Reading

Lactation in the Workplace – What Happens in Connecticut?

By Daniel Schwartz on Posted in Human Resources (HR) Compliance

Over the last few days, the mainstream press and blogosphere have been abuzz over the  Harvard Medical School student and new mother who asked for extra time during her licensing exam to express her breast milk.  Ultimately, a Massachusetts court denied Sophie Currier’s request of the National Board of Medical Examiners for the time.  The… Continue Reading