Healthcare professionals who complain about patient-safety and substandard healthcare are protected against retaliation from their employers. Generally speaking, the Minnesota Whistleblower Act (Minn. Stat. § 181.932) (“MWA”) protects employees who, in good faith, report a violation, suspected violation, or planned violation of law. To be protected, the report must be made to the employee’s employer, a government body, or law enforcement … [Read more...]
Federal Laws that Prohibit Employment Discrimination
Federal employment discrimination laws, and related retaliation laws, date back to the post-Civil War Reconstruction period. The Civil Rights Act of 1866 was the first federal law to prohibit race discrimination in employment. Five years later, the government passed the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 to enforce the provisions of the Fourteenth Amendment and provide redress for discriminatory action taken by the government, but few people brought claims … [Read more...]
Expanding Mothers’ Rights to Express Milk at Work
This past summer, Minnesota amended its nursing mothers statute to ensure greater access to breaks for expressing milk. While taking time to express milk at work was already protected, new mothers have continued to face backlash at work for taking breaks to express milk and for needing a private room in which to do so. The amended law should help clarify mothers’ rights and hopefully minimize some of the negative feedback from employers. … [Read more...]
Restricting Noncompete Restrictions
Noncompete agreements continue to disadvantage employees and create massive obstacles for employee mobility. The uncertainty they create is often the biggest problem. What does my noncompete actually preclude me from doing? Can I be fired for not signing it? Is it legal? Is it even enforceable? We hear these questions from clients all the time. And, regardless of the right answers to them, if the employer attempts to enforce the noncompete, the … [Read more...]
Identifying Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
State and federal laws prohibit sexual harassment in the workplace, and what qualifies as sexual harassment is broad. According to the EEOC, sexual harassment includes “unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature.” Non-verbal conduct can qualify as well. The harassment doesn’t have to come from the victim’s supervisor; it can come from management and non-management … [Read more...]
