GardnerFrankhouser, LLP

Does your employer require you to punch out for breaks of 20 minutes or less? If so, this practice violates the law. Break periods of 20 minutes or less must paid for by your employer. If this is your situation, you should consult with a qualified employment lawyer. www.gfemploymentlaw.com

Does your employer round your time to the closest quarter hour? Did you know that if your employer always rounds your work time down, this practice violates the law? If your employer always rounds your work time down, you may be owed additional wages and overtime. If you’re in this situation, you should consult with a qualified employment lawyer. www.gfemploymentlaw.com

Lew Gardner and Rob Frankhouser are pleased to announce the opening of their new law firm representing individuals in complex employment matters. Our practice is focused on wage and benefit theft; non-compete, severance and employment agreements; and retaliation and whistleblower issues. Follow us on Facebook and Linkedin.

Workplace/Sexual Harassment Harassment is unwelcome conduct that is based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age, disability or genetic information. Harassment becomes unlawful where: (i) enduring the offensive conduct becomes a condition of continued employment, or (ii) the conduct is so severe that it creates a work environment that a reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive. Harassment against individuals in retaliation for filing a complaint of discrimination or opposing employment practices that they reasonably believe discriminate against individuals is also unlawful. www.gfemploymentlaw.com

Discrimination & Retaliation In most circumstances, employers can terminate the employment relationship at any time and for any reason. However, it is unlawful for an employer to terminate, discipline, demote or make other changes to the employee’s terms of employment based on the employee’s: race, color, religion, gender, disability, age, pregnancy, national origin, disability, or use of protected leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act. It is also unlawful for an employer to terminate, discipline, demote or make other changes to the employee’s terms of employment because the employee legally protected activity (i.e., complaining or filing a lawsuit about discrimination, participating in an investigation related to discriminatory conduct, etc.) www.gfemploymentlaw.com

In a landmark decision, the United States Supreme Court held that the prohibition in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 making it illegal for employers to discriminate on account of a person's sex extends to discriminatory decisions on the basis of sexual orientation and transgender status. https://zcu.io/diL5

Employment, Severance & Non-Competition Agreements employment related agreements should always be reviewed by an employment lawyer. In most cases, the terms of an employment, severance and non-competition agreements can be negotiated to make them more employee friendly. In addition, if you are employed pursuant to an employment agreement, any changes in your compensation or other terms of employment must be agreed to by both parties. Unilateral changes made by your employer may be a breach of your employment agreement. https://zcu.io/B0mz

Overtime claims - There are many ways employers (intentionally or unintentionally) avoid paying overtime. Whether you may be entitled to overtime compensation depends on the facts of your specific situation. Overtime laws are complex and technical, but some examples of situations where overtime claims may arise include: misclassification as a manager or supervisor, an exempt employee being paid less than $684 a week, paying straight time for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek, failing to pay overtime adjustments on bonus payments; failing to compensate employees for off-the-clock work, failing to pay employees overtime working on a day rate or fluctuating workweek basis. https://zcu.io/WXcp

Unpaid wage claims (refusal to pay wages, commissions, bonuses, business expenses, etc.) if you are owed unpaid wages, commissions, bonuses or unreimbursed business expenses from your employer, you may have a claim under the Pennsylvania Wage Payment and Collection Law (WPCL). The WPCL provides a statutory remedy for employees to collect these unpaid amounts from current or former employers who breach their obligations to make these payments. https://zcu.io/Ksxv

While laws vary by state, in Pennsylvania, the law is the same as federal law: employees in the private sector must be paid 1 times their regular hourly rate for all hours worked in excess of 40 per workweek. https://zcu.io/87a3