Category Archives: Employment Law

Canada: Employee Had Valid Privacy Expectation In Workplace Computer Despite Employer Policy To Contrary

The Supreme Court of Canada ruled that an employee may have a reasonable expectation of privacy in the contents of his workplace computer, even though the employer’s policies disavow any privacy interest. R. v. Cole, 2012 SCC 53 (Canada Oct. … Continue reading

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Posted in Constitutional Law, Employment Law, General, Privacy Law | Tagged , | Leave a comment

No Unemployment Compensation For Worker Fired for Disparaging Tweets

The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court upheld the denial of unemployment benefits to a claimant whose former employer fired him for posting disparaging comments about his workplace and co-workers on the micro-blogging website Twitter. Burns v. Unemployment Compensation Board of Review, No. … Continue reading

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Illinois to Ban Employers’ Demands for Social Media Account Information from Current & Prospective Employees

Both houses of the Illinois state legislature have passed a bill that would prohibit employers from asking their employees and prospective employees to provide passwords or other account information about the individual’s social networking accounts or profiles, or to demand … Continue reading

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EEOC: Employer’s Delay in Halting Workers’ Wearing of Confederate Flag T-Shirts May Have Created Discriminatory, Hostile Workplace

In a decision recently released by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”), the EEOC concluded that an African-American employee of the U.S. Postal Service adequately alleged that he was subjected to a racially discriminatory hostile work environment because his … Continue reading

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US Tax Court Reverses IRS’s Determination that 7 Alleged Independent Contractors Were Employees, but Holds Employer Liable for Employment Taxes & Penalties as to 3 Other Workers.

In John Keller, Action Auto Body v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo 2012-62, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service reclassified ten workers at an auto repair shop as employees instead of independent contractors as the shop had claimed. The IRS issued a notice … Continue reading

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US 9th Circuit: Computer Fraud & Abuse Act Targets Unauthorized Access to Computerized Information, Not Its Subsequent Misuse or Misappropriation.

The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals gave a restrictive reading to the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”), rejecting its use to remedy violations of a private company’s computer use policies by the company’s employee. United States v. Nosal, … Continue reading

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Posted in Communications Law, Employment Law, Intellectual Property Law, Internet Law | Leave a comment