Legal Blog
Workplace Age Discrimination Targets Workers as Young as 45, Study Reveals
A study several years ago showed that 30 percent of people over age 53 face some kind of discrimination due to their age. Newer studies now show that age discrimination even affects employees 45 and older. According to the new study, people 45 or older who are out of a job will now remain… Read More »
Consumer Complaints Filed with the FTC Surged 20% in 2015, FTC Reports
Last year, about 500,000 more consumer complaints were filed with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) than in 2014, bringing the 2015 total to approximately 3 million filings. Over the past five years, the increase has been dramatic, as FTC consumer complaints have reportedly increased nearly 130 percent since 2010.1 While this snowballing trend may… Read More »
Prison Guard Pay Eclipses Cal State University Faculty
Over the last several months, California State University (“CSU”) faculty members have been appealing to CSU trustees to approve reasonable and common sense pay increases of 5%. Such pay increases would impact roughly 26,000 professors, lecturers, librarians, guidance counselors and staff. CSU trustees refuse to budge, currently offering no more than 2%. At the… Read More »
Decisive $31.2 Million Verdict in Discrimination & Wrongful Termination Case against Walmart Sends Powerful Message to Employers
Weeks ago, a New Hampshire jury ordered Walmart Stores, Inc. to pay $31.2 million to the plaintiff in a discrimination and wrongful termination case. This substantial verdict has captured national headlines, and its message to employers may be significant. Background on the Discrimination & Wrongful Termination Case This case (McPadden v. Wal-Mart Stores East… Read More »
What Justice Antonin Scalia’s Death Could Mean for Future of Consumer Class Actions
In the wake of Justice Antonin Scalia’s death, the fate of class action cases brought before the U.S. Supreme Court has come under serious question. While some are concerned that, most immediately, Scalia’s absence will cause more ties – allowing lower court decisions to stand, many others are hopeful that this could have positive… Read More »
The California Fair Pay Act Clarifies & Strengthens Equal Pay Laws, Is Now in Effect in California
While California’s equal pay law is one of the toughest in the nation, it was recently made stronger by changes that took effect on Jan. 1, 2016. That is because these changes now require California employers to pay women and men equally for “substantially similar work,” regardless of their specific job titles. Prior to… Read More »
2016 Sees Increase in the California Minimum Wage
Effective Jan. 1, 2016, the minimum wage in California increased about 11 percent, rising from $9/hour to $10/hour. This hike has increased the California minimum wage to $2.75 more than the federal minimum wage of $7.25, which has not been increased in more than six years. Commenting on the importance of this minimum wage… Read More »
Consumers Can Sue Companies for Falsely Labeling Products as ‘Organic,’ California State Court Rules
California consumers can sue companies they believe have falsely labeled items as ‘organic,’ the California Supreme Court ruled earlier this month in a 7-0 decision (in Quesada vs. Herb Thyme Farms, S216305). This ruling overturns a lower court’s ruling, which interpreted federal organic labeling laws as only allowing the federal government to sue for… Read More »
5 Important Facts to Know about Workplace Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment is a persisting problem in U.S. workplaces, despite state and federal laws prohibiting it. In fact, as we noted in a recent blog, about 1 in every 3 women in the U.S. is subjected to some type of workplace sexual harassment by the age of 34. As distressing as this may be,… Read More »
FDA Takes Action against Two Companies for Illegally Marketing Supplements as Drugs
NaturalDoctor and Biomedic Labs Rx have recently been sent warning letters from regulators at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), claiming that at least some of their advertised claims violate the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (Act). Specifically, federal authorities have taken issue with the fact that NaturalDoctor and Biomedic Labs Rx… Read More »
