human resources compliance

NAACP's Criticism of Iowa Civil Rights Commission is Misplaced

Patrick Smith
February 28, 2012 15:58

Two local branches of the NAACP recently issued a report criticizing the Iowa Civil Rights Commission because of the low percentage of “probable cause” findings in discrimination complaints filed with the agency.   Although the report was issued December 31, it was recently...

Facebook Firings and Social Media A Top Priority for NLRB Enforcement

Patrick Smith
January 31, 2012 12:00

Last August the National Labor Relations Board Acting General Counsel issued a report detailing the outcome of investigations into 14 cases involving employee use of social media and social media policies.  A second report issued January 24 on the same subject underscores that social media...

Supreme Court, Executive Branch Take Opposite Approach on Religious Accomodation

Patrick Smith
January 30, 2012 12:57

We have written many times here about an employer’s obligation to reasonably accommodate an employee’s sincerely held religious beliefs, so as not to unlawfully discriminate on the basis of their religion. Indeed, according to EEOC statistics, claims of religious discrimination by...

What You Don't Know About the NLRA Might Hurt You

Patrick Smith
August 30, 2011 15:24

The vast majority of private sector employers in Iowa do not have a unionized workforce. Many employers (and employees for that matter) don’t understand that the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) still applies to them.     Section 7 of the NLRA grants employees the...

Judge's Pregnancy Discrimination Ruling Prompts Debate About Work-Life Balance

Patrick Smith
August 26, 2011 15:00

Last week a federal judge in the Southern District of New York Judge dismissed the EEOC’s long running sex and pregnancy discrimination lawsuit against financial media company Bloomberg, LP.    EEOC claimed Bloomberg engaged in a “pattern and...