The line between when employees are on or off the clock have become more and more grey with the advent of Blackberries, iPhones, and providing employees with remote login access from their homes. On-call time is considered compensable work time if it is spent primarily for the benefit of the employer and its business. In
City Dress Code Requires Employees To Wear Underwear
A Florida city revised its dress code last week to require that employees wear underwear to work. The dress code also prohibits provocative clothing, halter tops and piercings other than in the employees’ ears. I was asked to speak on the subject of dress codes about two weeks ago. The timing was just a bit
Job Applicants Asked To Provide Their Passwords To Social Networking Sites
The City of Bozeman, Montana asked job applicants to provide their user names and login 
information to common social networking sites on their job applications. As you may expect, this has caused a major uproar from privacy groups.
Just over one-year ago, I was asked by employers about what legalities were involved in Googling
Massachusetts Employee Seeks Refuge From Noncompetition Agreement In California
The case of David Donatelli is a good reminder to employers how important choice of law provisions can be in noncompetition agreements. The Trade Secrets and Noncompete Blog recently chronicled a fight between EMC Corp (based in Massachusetts) and Hewlett Packard Co. (based in California) over the enforceability of a noncompetition agreement with a former
Employee’s Personal Data On Company Computers And Devices
The Wall Street Journal recently wrote about how employees are surprised after being given notice that they have been laid-off that they cannot retrieve personal (and business related) information from their computers. The author notes that with advances in technology that often times blur the boundaries between work and personal pursuits, many employees are hit
“Direct Table Service” Is Not Required For Employees Participating In Tip Pools: Budrow v. Dave & Buster’s
California restaurateurs received a huge victory from the Second District appellate court’s ruling in Budrow v. Dave & Buster’s Of California, Inc. The lawsuit against Dave & Buster’s alleged that its tip pool policy violated California law in that it required employees to tip out bartenders who did not provide "direct table service." The
How Many HR Managers Have To Sit Through Interviews Like These?
I am sure HR managers have their share of funny interviewing tales – but I recently came across the How To Nail An Interview website (via Seth Godin). The author of the site staged a fake company to see what type of applicants he would have for an open "marketing coordinator" position. He
Etheridge v. Reins International: Employees Who Do Not Provide Direct Table Service May Still Participate In Tip-Pools
Another California Court of appeal ruled on the issue of tip-pooling in California. In Etheridge v. Reins International California, Inc., the court held that employees who do not provide “direct table service” may participate in tip-pools mandated by employers. (This holding confirms another recent appellate court’s ruling in Budrow v. Dave & Buster’s Of California
Managing Conflict In The Workplace
I completed two seminars (one for California and the other nationwide) last week for BLR on conflict management in the workplace, and I thought it would be a good time share a few additional thoughts on the topic. I’ve encountered a lot of skepticism about this topic – especially from other lawyers – that it
California Appellate Court Holds Postings On MySpace.com Are Not Private
The issue in Moreno v. Hanford Sentinel, Inc., as stated by the court, is:
… whether an author who posts an article on myspace.com can state a cause of action for invasion of privacy and/or intentional infliction of emotional distress against a person who submits that article to a newspaper for republication.
The case