November
30
October
Evil Company Alert: Publisher of In Touch Weekly and U.S. Weekly Accused of Sexist Workplace Culture
The publisher of several magazines targeted towards young women has been sued over allegedly having a sexist workplace culture. A360 Media publishes Us Weekly, In Touch Weekly, Life & Style, and Star. Brittany Romano, a former commerce writer at A360 Media, filed a gender and disability discrimination action with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”). She alleged that her former employer has an abusive and “sexist, all boy club culture.” Romano’s suit, filed in New York, also alleges that a
25
October
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16
October
Evil Company Alert: New York Restaurant Owner Physically Attacks Gay Worker
Emilio’s Pizzeria & Ristorante, located in Long Island, New York, is facing criticism after the owner reportedly insulted and physically attacked a gay employee. Michael Abenante had worked at Emilio’s as a waiter since 2017. Abenante, who identifies as gay, wore the wrong shoes to work in November 2019. In response to this mistake, the restaurant owner, Emilio Branchinelli, allegedly yelled “F—king f—got, I’ll murder you!” Then, Branchinelli allegedly kicked Abenante in the back and punched him in the face.
02
October
5 Ways To Protect Your Rights As A Flat Rate Contract Driver
Too often, large employers violate the workplace rights of flat rate contract drivers. The good news is that these drivers are winning lawsuits around the country to get back their rightfully earned wages. If you are a flat rate contract driver, keep reading to learn how you can protect your rights now so that you may have a more successful lawsuit in the future.
1. Keep Your Receipts
Keep all of your receipts for any work-related expenses. Flat rate contract drivers often
27
September
Mother of All Evil Company Alerts: Heroic Father Fired After Saving His Children From Shooting in the Bronx
Anthony Jefferson was shopping at On the Road Automotive Group, a car dealership in the Bronx, to buy his wife a car for her birthday when something horrific happened. Three armed suspects fired several shots into the car dealership. Jefferson quickly shielded his children, aged six, five, and two, from the bullets with his body. While protecting his children, Jefferson was shot three times in the legs. None of Jefferson’s children were injured due to his heroism. The NYPD is
18
September
Arbitration or Frankenstein: Have Employers Created A Monster?
Arbitration is a private form of dispute resolution where conflicting parties choose a third party to resolve a dispute. Rather than filing a lawsuit in court, parties in arbitration privately resolve a conflict behind closed doors. Employers first created this process to lower legal costs and hold disputes in a venue that might be more sympathetic to them. For example, some employers think that arbitrators, who may be retired judges or business people, are more impartial than typical jurors and
12
September
Andrew Yang Says WWE Wrestlers have a “Ridiculous” Classification
Last week, Andrew Yang, a former candidate for the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee, wrote on Twitter: “if I’m not the Secretary of Labor I’m pretty confident I’ll have his or her number to talk about the ridiculous classification of WWE wrestlers as independent contractors while controlling their name and likeness for years, even for something as benign as Cameo.” Unlike employees, independent contractors don’t receive certain legal protections, such as those of anti-discrimination laws, overtime pay laws, or healthcare benefits.
Andrew
11
September
Law Office of Christopher Q. Davis Preliminarily Wins $4.1M Settlement for IT Workers
The Law Office of Christopher Q. Davis, located in New York City, recently received preliminary approval for a $4.1 million dollar settlement on behalf of IT workers. The Law Office of Christopher Q. Davis represented a class of IT employees who worked at FDM Group, Inc. These employees argued that they were misclassified as overtime-exempt and should have received overtime wages. After nearly 6 months of negotiations on this issue, The Law Office of Christopher Q. Davis struck a $4.1
04
September
7th Circuit Rules that Gay Worker Can Sue the Catholic Church
A former music director at a Catholic Church in Chicago claimed that his supervisor harassed him because he is gay and overweight. The music director then sued the Catholic Church for employment discrimination claims. The Seventh Circuit ruled that the Church is not immune from all cases of employment discrimination even though it is a religious institution.
What the Ministerial Exception means for the Catholic Church
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court ruled in Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru that