Tennessee Employment Lawyer Blog

$1.7M Awarded to Injured Biotech Whistleblower

Wed, 04 Aug 2010 17:11:36 -0500

Recently a federal jury awarded former biotech scientist Becky McClain $1.7 million in damages after finding that Pfizer terminated her employment after she became sick with a bioengineered virus and then complained about safety issues. While the actual complaint of contracting the paralyzing virus through workplace safety inadequacies was dismissed by a judge due to lack of evidence, the jury did find that Pfizer violated whistleblower and free speech laws when it fired her.

Many workers' advocates have long pressed for better regulation and safer conditions in biotech facilities fearing just this sort of event. Ms. McClain claimed was stonewalled repeatedly when she tried to get the genetic code for the virus being told it was a trade secret.

According to consumer advocate Ralph Nader, "It's a field that has been trade-secreted out of the sunlight." Nader has taken an interest in the case and has spoken numerous time with McClain. She spoke of situations where desks were right next to biological experiments being conducted and other safety problems.

McClain now suffers from a debilitating illness of partial temporary paralysis caused by a severe potassium deficiency. She believes she contracted this virus from a coworker's experiment. This case has caused OSHA to reevaluate and improve regulations concerning biotech materials.

Honolulu Television Station Receives $175,000 in FMLA Lawsuit

Mon, 02 Aug 2010 17:45:30 -0500

Tennessee workers and workers all across the country work hard to support themselves and their families each and every day. Sometimes however, situations come up where a worker needs to stay at home for an extended period of time to care for a sick loved one. This is when the Family Medical Leave Act usually allows a worker to do so. Unfortunately, though there are times when employers violate the rules of the Family Medical Leave Act and as a result the employee and their family usually suffer. If you feel that your FMLA rights have been violated, then you be entitled to compensation and should contact a Tennessee FMLA lawyer right away to help you.
In this case, Mary Zanakis, a reporter for KHON-TV claimed that her news director, Jim McCoy and their station manager at the time of the incident, Kent Baker, violated her FMLA rights by demoting her after she went on maternity leave in December of 1998. According to FMLA, a worker is entitled to return to his or her same position when returning from leave, unless the employer can show a reason why holding the position open would pose a hardship for the company or its workers.
Baker and McCoy denied this claim and stated that Zanakis position as reporter and producer of the medical segment of the station’s morning news show had been eliminated during her leave. They also claim that her termination in June of 1999 was a result of budget cuts being made and the quality of her work declining.
A federal court jury however, agreed with Zanakis and awarded her $87,000 in damages. Zanakis also wanted $770,000 more for wages she would have earned if she had continued to work at that station. However, a federal judge said she was not entitled to this amount because she had accepted another job with KITV for $45,000 a year in February of 2000. The judge however noted that Zanakis did apply to any other Honolulu TV stations and the salary she accepted at KITV was simply a result of her value in the news reporter market.
The judge also found that McCoy and Baker had “reasonable grounds for believing that their decision was not a violation of Family Medical Leave Act”.
The lawyers for both sides then agreed on a settlement amount of $175,000 which includes attorney fees.

Hilton Grand Vacation Settles Pregnancy Discrimination Suit

Mon, 26 Jul 2010 17:30:32 -0500

For one Hilton Grand Vacations Company, LLC employee one of the happiest times of her life rapidly turned into an employment nightmare. After a pregnancy related health issue, she was encouraged to resign her position as a recruiter for Hilton in Orlando, Florida. Having been assured she'd be rehired after the baby was born, she agreed. In fact, what really happened when she reapplied for open positions in the company was less qualified people were hired to fill the jobs she was trying to get.

The EEOC filed a suit on her behalf and was successful. In addition to paying the victim $25,000 in monetary damages, Hilton must submit any charges of sex or pregnancy discrimination to the EEOC for monitoring, must post the outcome of the suit and conduct discrimination training.

EEOC Acting Regional Attorney Michael O'Brien stated, "Women who have complications with their pregnancies need to be treated the same as any other employee with a medical condition. Employers must not make employment decisions on the basis of stereo types."

"Employers must take firm steps to assure that they act in accordance with the law when making employment decisions. The law requires that pregnant women, and women returning to work after childbirth, are afforded the same rights as any other employee," added EEOC Acting Prosecutor.

The U.S. Department of Labor Expands Employees that Qualify for the Family Medical Leave Act

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:05:08 -0500

Some times in our lives especially as parents or legal guardians or even caregivers for children, we need to take time off of work to care for sick or severely ill loved ones because they cannot do so by themselves. This happens to Tennessee workers as well as workers across the country. This is why the Family Medical Leave Act was created to allow qualified employees to take time off up to twelve weeks without fear of losing their jobs. If you or someone you care about feel you qualify for this time, but are denied the leave, you may want to consider contacting a Tennessee FMLA Attorney right away. They will help you get the time you need for yourself and your loved ones.

The Family Medical Leave Act also allows certain employees leave if they are standing in place of a parent or guardian. In these cases, the caregiver and child do not have to be biologically related. Previously, these cases had to be that the caregiver provided day to day care and supported the child financially. However, now, only one or the other has to hold true for an employee to qualify for leave.

This interpretation of the act will lead more people to be able to qualify for this leave. This also means that employers will have to be more careful about how they handle employees who do not have a traditional parent-child situation and decide whether or not they will qualify for the leave. An employer can require “reasonable documentation” of the family relationship but the employer should still be careful so they can avoid being accused of denying leave for an employee.

Pharmaceutical Sales Reps Entitled to Overtime Pay Rules Federal Appeals Court

Tue, 13 Jul 2010 17:42:57 -0500

When Tennessee workers and any workers across the country put in extra hours and time at their jobs, they expect to be paid for their time and effort. Unfortunately, many times employers fail to pay their workers overtime pay or give them a special exception title, so that they can avoid paying them overtime. However, overtime pay is required by law and if you do not get the pay you deserve, you could be entitled to compensation and should contact a Tennessee Employment Overtime Pay Attorney.

In this specific case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second circuit ruled that pharmaceutical sale representatives who visit doctor’s offices to deliver drug samples and deliver pre-scripted messages describing their employer’s pharmaceuticals are not exemptions to overtime pay because they should not be considered by federal or state law to be “outside sales” or in “administrative” positions and are entitled to overtime pay under federal law. This also applies to Tennessee employees.

This decision was extremely significant for Novartis overtime and other overtime lawsuits concerning pharmaceutical sales representatives across the country. This decision by the Second Circuit “not only reversed the trial judge's dismissal of the Novartis Reps' overtime case, but has now held, as a matter of law, that Novartis owes its Reps overtime pay”. This decision is also very important because it is the first federal appeals decision that says that “outside sales” and “administrative” overtime exemptions does not apply to pharmaceutical sales representatives.

A case was made by Norvartis that the representatives are “outside salespersons” and should be covered by the exemptions. However, this decision made it clear that when a pharmaceutical representative goes to a doctor’s office to deliver messages about the employer’s drugs that “in no sense” is that representative making a sale to the doctor according to federal and state overtime laws. The Court decided that these representatives are promoting a product to the doctor which will be sold by another person and are not making a sale.
The Court also decided that these representatives were not “administrative” exemptions because the representatives have no say or role in planning Norvartis marketing strategy, they do not write up the pre-scripted core messages, and they are required by their employer to visit a doctor’s office a specific number of times and are required to promote a certain drug a specific number of times, and finally hold a specific number of promotional events required by Norvartis. This means they are not allowed to make their own judgments or have control over their duties on the job which means they are not “administrative” exemptions to overtime laws.

The Court after this case and its decision also stated the two main reasons for overtime laws. These are “to prevent the evil of overwork and to spread work among as many employees as possible.”

Supreme Court Ruling Allows Public Employees Text Messages to Be Read

Tue, 22 Jun 2010 21:44:27 -0500

Technology is changing everywhere and part of this technology is the use of cell phones and texting ability. Many of us across the country and right here in Tennessee use cell phones each day, and may even be guilty of texting while at work a time or two, but a new ruling has allowed employers to read personal text messages of employees when the text messaging service is supplied by the employer or when it is violation of work rules.

This ruling is very important because it discusses employment and privacy rights and laws. This ruling also questioned the Fourth Amendment ban on “unreasonable searches” and questions whether this puts limits on public employers, mostly due to a privacy lawsuit filed by police officer, Sgt. Jeff Quon in Ontario, California, when the department’s chief of police Lloyd Scharf decided to read some of the text messages being sent using the department’s texting pagers. The lawsuit found that Sgt. Jeff Quon was texting personal messages to his ex-wife and girlfriend, using these pagers. After this happened, Sgt. Jeff Quon sued on the basis of privacy and won his case. However, this ruling the law favors the employer not the employee and the employee has “limited privacy expectation” when using a texting pager supplied by the department.

The search was considered reasonable because it was for a legitimate work-related reason and was not excessive. This ruling was thought to be very narrow and does not dispute all the issues that will come up in the future concerning technology and privacy rights for employees and their employers.

Many of us here in Tennessee and around the world, use technology such as computers, cell phones, and text messaging every day. However, maybe this ruling will be a wakeup call to many people that sometimes privacy laws and rights do not apply in some cases involving technology and the workplace. If you or your loved one have any questions or concerns about how this may affect you and your privacy, we encourage you to contact one of our experienced and caring Tennessee employment attorneys right away. We will hear your case, answer your questions and make sure your rights are being well protected.

1.5 Awarded to Debtor in Call Collections Center Lawsuit

Sat, 19 Jun 2010 10:14:12 -0500

In most cases here in Tennessee and across the country, when someone owes money for a debt, they have to pay the debt collector. However, in some cases like this one, the debt collectors’ conduct may be abusive or in violation of the law and in this leads to the debt collector actually owing the original debt the money instead of the other way around.

In this case, Allen Jones from Lewisville, Texas claimed being harassed by phone calls from the employees at the Advanced Call Center Technologies or “ACT” in 2007. The claim stated that ACT employees were trying to collect on credit card debt and they reportedly used racial remarks in voice messages to Jones. Then Jones and his attorneys used these saved messages to sue ACT.

The attorney for ACT, Dean Siotos, said the voicemails are not representative of how the company normally operates and says the calls must have been in some personal attack that was unrelated to the business. The two employees who allegedly left these messages, no longer work for ACT.

After a trial, the jury found that the company violated Texas collection rules and awarded Allen Jones $50,000 for mental anguish, $143,000 in attorney fees, and 1.5 million in additional damages. At this time, there is no information of an appeal by ACT.

Unfortunately, even with rules and guidelines and laws to help protect people in debt from these kinds of practices, calls like these happen every day, even to the residents of Tennessee. If you or someone you care about has been harassed or mistreated by debt collectors or their agencies, it is important that you contact one of our experienced Tennessee Debt Collection Claims Attorney right away. It is also a good idea to keep any evidence of the violation and show it to one of our attorneys. We will help make sure your rights are heard and that you get the compensation you deserve, for the treatment you have suffered.
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Workers of Bank of America sue for Overtime Pay

Sun, 13 Jun 2010 12:04:22 -0500

Many of us across the country and even right here in Tennessee are struggling to make ends meet in these hard economic times. We all work the best we can to pay our bills and to provide for our loved ones. That is why it is unfortunate and even frustrating to hear about cases in which employees may not have been given the proper amount of pay for the time they work. However, this happens every day and workers at Bank of America are no exception.

The lawsuit against Bank of America was filed on June 4, 2010 and resulted in one class action lawsuit. Current and former bank tellers and other hourly employees for the last three years have claimed that Bank of America violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and state laws in California, Florida, Texas, Washington, and Kansas for not paying overtime for the employees that worked more than forty hours a week.

Instead of overtime pay, the bank was giving the employees paid time off or instructed them not to record more than forty hours on their time cards. Employees also claim that in some cases, the bank modified the tellers recorded hours to eliminate overtime. The workers in the class action lawsuit want back pay, attorney fees, and other damages for a total of more than $100 million, which would affect more than 180,000 employees at the bank’s branches.

When we go to work every day and put in the extra enough and time, it is our right to get properly paid for that time. If you or someone you love has been improperly paid for the hours they have worked or if you suspect other employment problems and issues, we encourage you to contact one of our overtime payment and employment attorneys right away. We will listen to your case and help make sure you get the pay you deserve for the work you have done.

Court to determine if Fired Google Manager was victim of Age Discrimination

Thu, 27 May 2010 16:35:23 -0500

We all use the search engine Google for many things on a daily basis. Many of us across the country and even right here in Tennessee, use it to search for information, to look up news, or even to find out how popular a website or product may be. Even though we all like and use Google daily, they are still a company with employees and this case may discriminate against the age of their employees.

In this case as reported on May 27, 2010, a Google manager Brian Reid claims he was dismissed from the company for being too old. He was hired as the director of operations and engineering when he was fifty-two, and was then fired by the company two years later after being told by his supervisor that he was not “a cultural fit” for the company. His lawyer, Paul J. Killion told the California high court that company e-mails show that Google prefers younger workers.

Reid’s lawyer also told the court that a former Google recruiter testified that the term was used only in company circles to refer to older workers. Reid also said that his colleagues referred to him as an “old fuddy duddy” and an “old man”. He also said a high level manger said he was “fuzzy, sluggish, and lethargic”.

Google says that Reid was fired because his position was eliminated. Paul W. Crane Jr, the representative for Google, argued that courts should not decide the merit of lawsuits based on random discriminatory comments by employees who were not involved in the decision to fire Reid.

Chief Justice Ronald M. George, said that “a failure to explore new ideas or be imaginative could have nothing to do with age” and asked whether the fact that Reid was already in his 50s when he was hired, undermined his case. Crane the Google representative said it did.

However, an appeals court ruled that Reid had presented sufficient evidence of age discrimination to have his case heard before a jury. Google appealed and now the state high court will determine what kind of evidence courts may consider in whether a case should go before a jury. Reid’s lawsuit also included evidence that showed older workers received worse evaluations and lower bonuses than younger employees.

In this fast paced Internet world we live in, it is unfortunate to think that as we grow older we may be discriminated against or told that we are too slow or too old to work for a certain company, but cases like these happen every day, even right here in Tennessee.

Gender Discrimination Case against Novartis is won by Female Sales Representatives

Tue, 18 May 2010 16:38:06 -0500

Every day many of us have to go to work to support ourselves and our families. When we are at work, we expect to be treated with respect by our coworkers, our bosses and the company we work for. Unfortunately in many places across the country and even right here in Tennessee that is not always the case. Many employees face discrimination and some of it may just be because of their gender.

A jury recently found the company Novartis Pharmaceuticals, guilty of gender discrimination in issues involving pay, promotions, and pregnancy. This was a nation wide class action suit of 5,600 female sales representatives making it the largest gender discrimination case to go to verdict.

The jury also awarded the twelve testifying witnesses 3.36 million in compensatory damages for the specific instances of discrimination that those witnesses testified to. That was also just the beginning of the money that will be awarded as a result of the verdict. Other punitive damage amounts are being decided on today, Tuesday May 18, 2010. Finally, in separate hearings, compensatory damages for each member of the class action that opts in will be decided on.
In this case, the judge, Judge McMahon, also gets to decide what orders to give to Novartis to change its policies and procedures to in order to help prevent more discrimination in the future. This case included female sales representatives that worked for Novartis between 2002 and 2007.

The jury stated that what they learned from this case is that you would not “want your wife, your mother, your sister or your daughter to work," for this company.

Pre-Shift Meetings without Extra Pay Leads to Class Action Lawsuit against Harrah’s Entertainment

Thu, 13 May 2010 11:49:56 -0500

Anytime a worker is required or volunteers to work any overtime whether it be 5 minutes or an hour, the company they work for are required to give them extra pay for the time they work. Unfortunately, there are many times where companies will find ways around this requirement or simply will not pay their workers for the time. If this happens, anywhere in the country, even here in Tennessee, then you may be able to file a lawsuit in order to receive the pay that you deserve.

In Las Vegas, Harrah’s Entertainment which owns properties such as Planet Hollywood, Paris, Bally's, Bill's, Flamingo, O'Sheas, Imperial Palace, Caesars Palace, Rio and Harrah's, is facing another class action lawsuit filed by Nevada workers. The lawsuit alleges that Harrah’s Entertainment required workers to arrive ten to fifteen minutes before their shifts were supposed to start but did not pay them for this extra time. This may not seem like much, but if it’s added up can amount to thousands of dollars a year and in some cases millions.

The Nevada workers were required to arrive early because of pre-shift meetings which may include pep talks from managers, and reminders about job standards and expectations. Station Casinos is facing an overtime lawsuit that involves this pre shift meeting issue. That case was filed last year in state court, but is being put on hold while the company deals with bankruptcy issues.

The lawsuit against Harrah’s says that “the employee clocked in early to attend daily management meetings where she received instructions from previous shift supervisors.” The Harrah’s spokeswomen, Jacqueline Peterson, said that “we will vigorously defend ourselves against any accusation that alleges we are in violation of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.”
This case is a little unusual because Daprizio filed the lawsuit while still working for Harrah’s and not while being laid off.

This seems to show that people are not willing to let these wage and overtime violations go, especially not during a recession when every bit of pay counts.

Discrimination Charge Filed by Waiter of Ritz-Carlton due to racial prejudice

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 16:51:53 -0500

These days with the rough economy, it is hard enough to find work and then if you do, you may find that some employers discriminate against certain employees. This should not happen, but there are still many cases in which it does, even in Tennessee.
On April 21, 2010, a waiter at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Naples, Florida filed a discrimination against the hotel , its vice president and managing director, because they allowed a couple to make a “no colored” waitress request. This discrimination lawsuit was filed under Section 1981 Title 42 of the Civil Rights Act and is connected to the “contracts with employees and employer contract”.

The waiter, Wadner Tranchant, said that the couple Rodney Morgan made a discriminatory request and told the staff that they did not want to be served by any “people of color” or waiters with “foreign accents”. The hotel manager and vice president then allegedly entered this request into the hotel’s computer system.

The lawsuit also alleges that when the waiter who worked at the hotel for 15 years, attempted to serve the couple on March 12th, his supervisors did not allow him to serve them based upon the family’s biased request and reservation for “banquette seating”. The waiter also said this was not the first time the hotel allowed prejudice requests.

Wal-Mart May Face Massive Class Action Suit in Trial

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 09:21:26 -0500

Even the residents here in Tennessee know about Wal-mart and all of their success. Many of us also know about the problems they have faced over employee issues and much more. So, this new story may not come as much of shock to many across the country and here in Tennessee.

Wal-Mart may owe billions in legal damages due to a divided federal courting in San Francisco that ruled on Monday April 26, 2010, a massive class action suit which alleges gender discrimination over pay for female workers. In the 6-5 ruling the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals said that the world’s largest private employer will have to face charges in trial that allege that it pays women less than men for the same jobs and that the female employees get fewer promotions and have to wait longer for these promotions than male employees.

Wal-Mart has tried to fight this lawsuit since it was first filed in federal court in San Francisco in 2001. It lost two previous rulings in trial court and appeals court in 2007. Wal-Mart was able to convince the appeals court to revisit the case in 2007 with a larger eleven judge panel. They argued that women who allege discrimination should file individual lawsuits. They also argued that the case was too big to defend.

“In this case six women who have worked in thirteen Wal-mart’s 3,400 seek to represent every woman who has worked in those stores over the course of the last decade- a class estimated in 2001 to include more than 1.5 million women.”

The appeals court told the trial judge to reconsider awarding punitive damages as well.
We all know that over the years, Wal-Mart has faced several similar allegations and problems and maybe now their employment practices will finally improve.

Tips for Choosing a Tennessee Employment Attorney

Fri, 02 Apr 2010 15:58:49 -0500

After you have struggled with an employer or company over your compensation or different employment rights, you may feel very frustrated and confused. You want to be able to hire the best Tennessee employment attorney possible, but you may not know how to go about doing this or you may worry that you may choose the wrong one. Here are some tips to help get you started. This way you can pick the best employment attorney possible for your case.

First, it may be a good idea to talk with friends and family and even coworkers. They may have had employment disputes before and may be able to recommend a good Tennessee employment attorney for you. It will also help you to feel reassured knowing a close friend or family member trusts them, so you should too. It also may be a good idea to contact your Tennessee Bar Association. They may have a referral system you can use and may be able to give the name of the best attorney there may be for your specific case.

After you get the names of a few employment attorneys, it is a good idea to do some research. Go online to their website and check out their experience, the cases they have handled and any other organizations they may be a part of. It also may be important to give them a call and ask any questions you may have. This will let you know what you can expect when you meet with them and if they help you with your case.

When you meet with Tennessee Employment attorneys, it is always a good idea to ask about their experience and if they have any previous clients you may be able to call for a reference. It is also a good idea to ask about the fees and additional costs they may have. It is important to ask for an estimated cost if they were to take on your case.

All of these tips and suggestions can help you make the important decision about which Tennessee Employment attorney to choose. It is also best to trust your instincts and go with what makes you the most comfortable. The Tennessee employment attorneys at the Higgins firm are experienced and we care about your case and getting you the rights and treatment you deserve.

A Glance at Our Tennessee Law Firm

Tue, 30 Mar 2010 19:12:13 -0500

The Higgins Firm PLLC, was created to serve all the law needs of the residents in Tennessee as well as across the country. We have offices in Nashville and Memphis. To better meet all of these needs, the firm was divided into five sections but everyone works together as a team to help meet the needs of our clients. These four sections include: civil litigation, workers compensation, nursing home neglect and employment law litigation. The three partners of this team are: Jim Higgins, Don Himmelberg, and Rick Piliponis. We all work together to make sure that we can serve our clients in the best manner possible. Here at the firm, we ask questions about our clients, but we believe that is important that our clients know about us and what we stand for.

Jim Higgins oversees the serious injury and wrongful death litigation within the firm. He is the partner that handles cases in these areas of practice. This section may include: workers compensation, medical malpractice, nursing home abuse, vehicular accidents, and premises liability cases. He began his career in law by helping to defend insurance companies but since than has dedicated his career over the past several years to only representing those that have been injured. Mr. Higgins works with many experienced attorneys to help him best represent clients that have been injured. Mr. Higgins has also joined organizations such as the Million Dollar Advocates Forum which limits its membership to attorneys who have won million and multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements to help better serve their clients. He not only represents clients where he lives, but all across the United States.

Don Himmelberg is the partner that oversees the criminal litigation section of the Firm. He is a former assistant district attorney and he represents clients who have been accused of misdemeanors and felonies. His main areas of practice are in state and federal court.

Rick Piliponis graduated from the University of Tennessee and DePaul University Law School and currently oversees and manages the business and malpractice ligation sections for the Higgins Firm.

This firm also has a biligual lawyer who is experienced in helping with cases concerning the Hispanic and Latino communities. He is William W. Merrell. William W. Merrell graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 1964. He then graduated from the South Texas College of Law in Houston in 1974. He then attended graduate school at La Universidad de las Americas in Mexico City and the University of Madrid in Spain. He is a vital part of the firm and is known to many Hispanic clients as “El Abogado del Pueblo”.

Jon Street is a graduate of Wake Forest Law School. He leads the firm’s employment law litigation group. He has handled overtime, wage and hour, and discrimination cases throughout the state.