New York Employment Lawyer Blog

Employees who lose group health insurance coverage prior to May 31, 2010 because of an involuntary termination are eligible to receive the 65% federal government subsidy for the COBRA insurance payments. Under the Continuing Extension Act of 2010, the federal government will pay 65% of an employees COBRA payment. This COBRA subsidy has enabled many former employees to remain covered under their existing health insurance plans. Without this subsidy many more American workers would be uninsured. For example, a family of four may have a COBRA payment of $1,200 per month which would prove to be far too expensive; however, under the subsidy the family could continue coverage at $300 per month for specific time period. This subsidy has proved to the be difference in whether families and individuals are covered in these turbulent economic times. The maximum duration of the COBRA subsidy is 15 months. Employers must notify those individuals who are eligible for COBRA continuation coverage that they may be eligible for a COBRA subsidy. This notice must be given within a 60-day period beginning on the date of the involuntary termination of employment. Employees should follow-up with Human Resources to confirm that they receive the COBRA subsidy. If an employer fails to timely notify an employee of the COBRA subsidy and the employee does not elect coverage because of the prohibitive cost and then later incurs significant medical bills, the former employer could responsible for the former employee's medical bills for its error. Employers must be careful in providing notice to its former employees. To help employers and employees, the United States Department of Labor recently issued updated COBRA model notices.

*
If you, your friends or loved ones have any questions about your health coverage or the COBRA continuation subsidy, the experienced Employment Law Attorneys at Villanueva & Sanchala can help you. Call us now at (800) 893-9645 for a free initial telephone consultation.

Continue reading "COBRA Subsidy Extended for Involuntary Terminated Employees" »

After a extensive three-week trial, over 700 current and former employees of Raceway Petroleum were awarded nearly 4 million dollars for unpaid overtime and penalties. The majority of the employees were gas station attendants in New Jersey which one of the few states that allows full-service service at gas stations. Under state and federal overtime laws, eligible employees such as gas station attendants are required to be paid time and a half for hours they work in excess of forty hours in a week. Here, some of the employees worked over 100 hours in a week without being paid overtime. Like many employers who do not pay their employees overtime, Raceway Petroleum did not keep accurate time and payroll records which are required by state and federal laws. In the absence of the employer's records, the court may rely on an employee's records and credible testimony. This case and principle demonstrates the importance of every employee keeping accurate time and payroll records in the event there is a dispute for the employer and employee. If an employee is not paid overtime, the employee should start to keep time records in a diary, day planner or online calendar. The employee's records can be informal and handwritten.

In this case, the employees were also docked pay for time periods that were greater than the breaks taken. This is the equivalent of a second theft against the employee. First the employees were robbed of overtime pay and then robbed of pay when they were working but accused of taking a break. Responsible employers will maintain credible time-keeping systems such a punch-card clock system or sign-in and sign-out sheets. In the absence of such systems, employees should ask their employer to implement a proper time keeping system and keep accurate contemporaneous records.

If you, your friends or loved ones were not paid overtime wages and wish to discuss the circumstances surrounding the termination, the experienced Employment Law Attorneys at Villanueva & Sanchala can help you. Call us now at (800) 893-9645 for a free initial telephone consultation.

Continue reading "New Jersey Employee Awarded $3.9 Million in Overtime Wages and Damages" »

According to the United States Department of Labor, in March of 2010, New York State employees were affected by 60 mass layoffs or plant closings. In these layoffs, over 6,000 New York employees lost their jobs. From January to March 2010, over 40,000 New York workers have lost their jobs in a mass layoff. These terminated employees may have a claims against their employers and should be careful before signing any severance agreements.

The following is a partial list of the mass layoffs affecting New Yorkers in 2010:

• St. Vincent's Hospital Manhattan laid off over 1,000 workers.

• New York City's Off-Track Betting Corporation (OTB) let go over 1,000 workers.

• Albany's School District laid off over 300 employees.

• Westchester County may layoff upto 1,600 employees.

• New York City MTA may layoff approximately 1,000 employees.

• New York City Library System lays off over 200 workers.

• New York Police Department may lay off over 1,300 employees.

Employees who lose their jobs as a result of a mass layoff may have rights under The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN ACT) and/or the The New York State Workers Adjustment and Retraining Notification (NY WARN ACT). Employees let go in a layoff are sometimes targeted for their age, for compensation reasons, or based upon some protected category. Although New York law does not require employers to provide severance pay to its employees, employees may have claims for severance based on an employer's past practices and policies or the reason for the inclusion in the mass reduction-in-force. Our New York employment law attorneys have helped clients secure severance packages and negotiate additional compensation in severance agreements. In these difficult times, it is important for employees to speak with an experienced New York employment lawyer who can advise them about their rightss before signing a severance agreement which generally will prevent them from filing any complaint against their former employer. The employee's former employer is represented by its attorney - employees should be represented as well.

If you, your friends or loved ones were affected by a layoff, reduction-in-force or termination and wish to discuss the circumstances surrounding the termination, the experienced New York Employment Law Attorneys at Villanueva & Sanchala can help you. Call us now at (800) 893-9645 for a free initial telephone consultation.

Continue reading "Laid off employees may have rights under WARN and other employment laws" »

The Family & Medical Leave Act protects eligible employees for up to 12 weeks per year from losing their jobs (or comparable jobs) as well as their health insurance benefits. The Act applies to all public agencies, public and private elementary and secondary schools and companies with 50 or more employees. Under the FMLA, an employee can take up to 12 weeks* of unpaid leave each year for any of the following reason:

• To give birth and care for a newborn;

• For placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care;

• To care for an immediate family member (spouse, child, or parent) with a serious health condition; or

• For medical leave when the employee is unable to work because of a serious health condition.

Under the FMLA, a "serious health condition" is "an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves . . . continuing treatment by a health care provider." The FMLA allows the employer to ask for certification that the employee has a serious health condition. Upon return to work, the employee is entitled to return to the same position or to an equivalent position.

In order to be eligible to take time off under the FMLA, an employee must

• Have worked for that employer for at least 12 months; and

• Have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12 months prior to the start of the FMLA leave; and

• Work at a location where at least 50 employees are employed or within 75 miles of the location.

An employee wishing to take foreseeable time off under the FMLA should notify the employer at least 30 days in advance that he or she needs time off. If the leave is not foreseeable, the employee can provide notice "as soon as practicable" which means at least verbal notice to the employer within 1 or 2 business days of learning of the need to take time off.

Continue reading "Family and Medical Leave Act ("FMLA"): Overview of Employee Rights and Responsibilities" »

The United States Department of Labor recently released a new set of criteria to determine the legality of an unpaid internship for services to a "for-profit" private sector employers and whether interns should be paid minimum wage and overtime pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act and State Labor Laws. The six criteria provide a framework in which to analyze whether an internship is really a job entitling one to wages.

The first factor provides that an internship is similar to training which would be given in an academic environment. Under the second factor, the internship experience should also benefit the intern. For example, the intern should learn skills that can be used in multiple employment settings and not just that particular employer's company. Under this factor, the intern should not be doing the routine work of the company on a regular basis such as photocopying. The third factor provides that the intern should not be replacing regular workers. If an intern does work for which the employer would otherwise have used another employee or hired someone to perform then the intern is covered under the FLSA. The last two factors focus on whether that the intern is entitled to a job at the end of the internship or entitled to wages during the internship.

Continue reading "Are Unpaid Internships Legal? The Department of Labor Investigates Internships Under the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA") and State Labor Laws" »

New York City home health care workers recently filed a class action lawsuit against their employer, McMillan's Home Care Agency, alleging that the Agency did not pay them overtime when they worked over 40 hours a week and as many 60 hours a week. The New York home care workers allege that the Agency unlawfully made them purchase supplies, pay for cleaning supplies and falsified pay records. The home care workers seek to collect their unpaid wages and the Agency's future compliance with New York State's Labor Law and the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

The lawsuit was filed by Josephina A. Toleda-Montera in the Supreme Court of New York, New York County, on behalf of herself and hundreds of current and former workers employed by McMillan for the past 6 years. The complaint alleges that Ms. Montera worked over 40 hours per week but was not paid overtime wages as required by the New York State Labor Law and FLSA. In addition, she alleges that the Agency's practice of requiring employees to attend training sessions without paying the employees for that time violates labor laws. Specifically, she alleges that she and other employees were required to attend half-day training sessions three-times a year. Although home health care workers generally are not covered under the FLSA for overtime, home health care workers are eligible to receive overtime compensation at the rate of one and half times the minimum wage under New York State Labor Law.

Continue reading "New York Overtime Pay Lawsuit: Home Health Care Workers File Class-Action Lawsuit for Unpaid Wages" »