Author: dank

Dan Kalish is a partner and founder of HKM Employment Lawyers (www.hkm.com), an employment law firm that represents individuals nationwide. A graduate of Harvard College and Yale Law School, Dan frequently speaks and writes about issues related to employment law on hkm.com/employmentblog.

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What You Should Know About Religious Headwear in the Workplace

Religion plays a fundamental role in many people’s lives. For some, practicing religion is a much more active process than just attending services. Some religions require adherents to wear specific clothing, for example. This can create issues when a religious person seeks out employment, because those of a mind to discriminate based...
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What You Should Know About the Whistleblower Protection Act

Whistleblowers are a vital part of our society. Without them, corruption and unfair and unsafe practices would continue unabated. These brave men and women have differing legal protections based upon what they blow the whistle on, whom they blow the whistle on, and where they live. One law that protects some is...
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Your Right to Compare Salaries

How do employers get away with paying a protected class of employee less than other workers, despite laws that make it illegal? By allowing each staff member to negotiate his or her own salary, and then discouraging employees from sharing salary information. This discouragement interferes with your ability to prove discrimination. Fortunately,...
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What You Need to Know About Genetic Information Discrimination

Most people have heard of discrimination based on race, sex, age, and disability. However, you may not have ever heard of genetic information discrimination unless you have been a victim of this sort of illegal employment practice or know someone who has.   (Photo Credit: Miki Yoshihito/Flickr) What Is Genetic Information Discrimination?...
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You Can Be a Victim of Employment Discrimination Without Even Working

We often think of employment discrimination as being something that happens to people who already have jobs. A woman may be denied a raise because of her sex, or an older person may be forced into retirement because of his age. But employment discrimination also happens on the front end of employment,...
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The Obamacare Employer Mandate: What Employees Need to Know

Americans have differing opinions on the Affordable Care Act, which is often referred to as Obamacare. Last year, the individual mandate went into effect, which required a large percentage of Americans to obtain health insurance or risk having to pay a penalty when tax time arrives. This year, a similarly contentious part...
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Even Great Employees Can Be Fired for a Single Mistake

We like to think that employers take an employee’s whole record into account when making a decision as to whether the employee should lose his or her job. But sometimes just one mistake can be enough to end an employment relationship, which can be absolutely devastating for the employee. (Photo Credit: WarmSleepy/Flickr)...
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When Discrimination Is Allowed: About Bona Fide Occupational Qualifications

As a general rule, employers are not allowed to discriminate based on certain factors like sex and sometimes age. However, what many people do not understand is that anti-discrimination laws like the Civil Rights Act or the Age Discrimination in Employment Act actually do allow for discrimination under some circumstances. One time...
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What You Don’t Know About Age Discrimination

When people think of employment discrimination, they often think of discrimination based on race, gender, or disability. But age discrimination is very real. On the federal level, these claims are covered by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, or ADEA. Indeed, ADEA claims continue to rise every year, and many think this...
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Suit Claims Subway Franchise Made up Fake Employees to Avoid Paying Overtime

The Huffington Post reports that a man is suing a Subway franchise, alleging that rather than paying him the overtime he was due, his boss created fake employees. (Photo Credit: pakorn/freedigitalphotos.net) According to the complaint filed by Erwin Zambrano Moya, he worked at a Subway location in Washington D.C. for nearly two...
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Looking for a New Job? It Could Get You Fired

Sick of your current job, and thinking about looking for something better? Then you may want to save up enough to pay your bills for a few months, just in case your job searching gets you fired. While many people think they can only be fired for looking for a new job...