The New York Department of Labor (NYDOL) is reportedly taking an unusually long amount of time to determine whether Uber drivers who lose their ability to drive for Uber may collect unemployment insurance benefits. This issue relates to the class action lawsuit against Uber which we have previously written about. …
Currently, in Maine, it is legal for an employer to refuse to hire an applicant because she is unemployed. A bill which recently passed the Maine House would change that. Discrimination against someone because he is unemployed strikes many as unfair particularly because so many people become unemployed due to…
The Maine Employment Lawyers Association (MELA), an organization of lawyers who represent workers in Maine, plans to ask the Maine Attorney General to investigate allegations that Governor LePage pressured unemployment hearing officers to more often find in favor of businesses and against workers. The request for an investigation stems from…
Yesterday, the New York City Council passed a bill that prohibits employers from discriminating against applicants because they are unemployed. This bill is reportedly similar to other laws in New Jersey, Oregon, and the District of Columbia except New York City’s law is the first in the nation to permit…
This week, Maine began to use a new uniform legal definition for who is an “independent contractor” and who is an “employee.” This distinction is important for purposes of determining whether a worker is entitled to workers compensation, unemployment insurance, overtime pay, and other benefits. While employees are entitled to…
Today, the Connecticut Department of Labor (CDOL) announced that in January and February, 2012, it issued “Stop Work orders” to 19 companies working on construction projects in Connecticut. One of these companies was Deanes, Inc., a Maine based company that was working on a rest stop on I-95 in Milford,…
In recent weeks, the press has extensively covered changes that the LePage administration has proposed to Maine’s unemployment fraud law. Opponents of the proposed changes question the need for the enhanced penalties since unemployment fraud is very rare in Maine. News reports have indicated that Maine has the fifth lowest…
Many employers in Maine and across the country engage in the practice of misclassifying employees as independent contractors. Misclassification is sometimes called “1099’ing” because of the 1099 tax form independent contractors receive instead of a W-2 form. While misclassification is illegal, it can save employers as much as 30% in…
The American Jobs Act, a bill that President Obama is urging Congress to pass, would prohibit certain employers from discriminating against unemployed applicants. Under the American Jobs Act, it would be an “unlawful employment practice” if a business with 15 or more employees refused to hire a person “because of…
Currently, it is legal for an employer to refuse to hire anyone who is unemployed. Obviously, if this practice becomes widespread, the current high unemployment rate would remain high for much longer. A Congressman from Georgia believes this is unfair and he has proposed legislation to make it illegal. Under…