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The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling that a Kansas City cafe’s former owner owes more than $450,000 in back wages, liquidated damages, legal fees and expenses to six undocumented Guatemalan workers. The workers had filed suit claiming that their employer had violated federal wage and hour laws by failing to pay them minimum wage and…
More workers are taking their employers to court to get overtime pay. Recent cases include a police officer and a lawyer who each said they worked more than 40 hours without overtime pay. Nine candy company workers say their employer wrongly classified them as sales representatives to avoid paying overtime. Employment lawyers say more sue because they are becoming more…
Some businesses believe that the Department of Labor have made the employee rights surrounding internships complex enough that many companies may not want to take the risk, and Missouri students seeking internships may be finding them harder to come by. Internships are primarily meant as a method for students to gain valuable on-the-job training as well as an extra line…
In recent years, theft by employees has been an increasing problem for many employers. As a result, some Kansas City retail companies have begun to use databases to record employees accused of theft. Tens of thousands of companies, including some major retailers, subscribe to these databases. There is some question about how these databases impact employee rights. An employer may…
Missouri and Kansas teachers may be interested in how the controversial new right-to-work laws in another state are affecting that state’s education system. In Michigan, some school districts and colleges are approving new contracts that will let them avoid the legislation for a few years. However, side-stepping the laws could cause a problem. State Republicans are angry that some schools…
It is not uncommon for a doctor who is employed by a hospital or health care system to become involved in a dispute over the terms of his or her employment agreement. Typical provisions in physician employment contracts that are ripe for differing interpretations include those relating to productivity bonuses, termination requirements, geographic scope of work and noncompete clauses. The…
Under federal law, unions must represent all workers when engaged in collective bargaining or providing services, such as legal representation following unfair dismissal. A majority of states allow unionized workplaces to collect dues from all new employees as a condition of employment, but this majority may become an even split. Missouri legislators have been recently considering right-to-work legislation that would…
A huge number of employment law claims in Kansas and Missouri — or any other state for that matter — are brought based on allegations that a co-worker, supervisor or business owner has committed an action or failed to correct an action against an employee that violates state or federal law. The truth is that there are times in which…
The Family and Medical Leave Act provides workers with a way to take off a little extra time for family and medical needs when they arise. FMLA allows for workers to not only take the unpaid time off, but to continue having employer-provided health care coverage as well as security that their job will be available for them when they…
The federal government continues to incur debt, and while legislators cannot agree on exactly how it to gain and allocate federal funds, they don’t want them wasted. Federal employees who report any fraud, waste or abuse that is being committed during government operations are protected under federal law from retaliation. While there are laws in place to protect federal whistleblowers,…