1. Chapter 20: Employment Law

2. Term
What I think It Means?
What it Means?
Promissory Estoppel
Union
Collective Bargaining
Grievance Procedure
Severance Pay
Public Policy Tort
Implied Contract
Employment-At-Will
Disclaimer
Implied Covenant
Union Shop
Right-To-Work Laws
Child Labor Laws

3. In Groups of 2…
Write Down All You Know About Being Employed…

4. Employment Relationships
Employment-At-Will
Unionized Employees

5. Employment-At-Will
Doctrine That Is The General Rule Governing All Employment In Most States.
States:
Employer Is Permitted To Discharge An Employee At Any Time, For Any Or No Reason, With Or Without Notice
Based On The Notion That Both Parties In The Relationship May Leave The Employment Arrangement At Any Time

6. NY = Employment-At-Will State
EAW Does Not Apply When…
Union Negotiated A Collective Bargain Agreement For Its Members (Hiring And Firing Procedures May Be Built Into The Agreement)
In This Situation, Specific Procedures Must Be Followed To Dismiss An Employee

7. Exceptions to Employment-At-Will
Wrongful Discharge (AKA Unjust Dismissal)
Provides Employees With Grounds For Legal Action Against Employers Who Have Treated Them Unfairly

8. Courts Examine 5 Standards For Wrongful Discharge
Promissory Estoppel
Implied Contract
Public Policy Tort
Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress
Implied Covenant

9. 1- Promissory Estoppel
If An Employer makes a promise to an employee and that employee relies on the promise and suffers a loss as a result, then the employee may be permitted to bring a wrongful discharge lawsuit based on promissory estoppel

10. 1 - Promissory Estoppel
In Order To Prove PE, Four Elements Must Be Proven
The Employer makes a promise to an employee that the employer can reasonable expect the employee to rely upon.
The Employee actually relies upon that promise, and as a result, does or doesn’t do something.
The employee ordinarily would not have acted or refrained from acting had it not been for the employer’s promise.
The employee is in some way harmed by the employer’s failure to honor the promise.

11. 2 – Implied Contract
Arises when an employer has said, written, or done something to lead the employee to reasonably believe that he or she is not an at-will employee

12. 2 – Implied Contract
Most Federal And State Courts Allow Employers To Use A Disclaimer To Avoid Implied Contract
A Statement that holds that, regardless of any provisions, policies, or oral promises to the contrary, an employment-at-will situation still exists between the employer an its employees.

13. 3 – Public Policy Tort
Holds that no one should be allowed to do anything that tends to hurt the public at large
Example: You can’t get fired for missing work for jury duty.

14. 4 – Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress
If the conduct of an employer in discharging an employee caused severe mental and emotional trauma, the employee may bring lawsuit based on this provision

15. 5 – Implied Covenant
Principle that holds that any employment relationship is based on an implied promise that the employer and employee will be fair and honest with one another

16. Employment-At-Will
Song

17. Illegal Discrimination
Regardless Of Union Membership, An Employee Cannot Be Discharged For A Reason That Is Discriminatory In Nature
Race
Color
Creed (Religion)
National Origin
Gender
Age

18. Unionized Employees: Doctrine-At-Will Does NOT Apply
Union: An Organization Of Employees That Is Formed To Promote The Welfare Of Its Members
Unions Create Collective Bargaining Agreements

19. Collective Bargaining Agreements
Contracts Negotiated By The Employer And Representatives Of The Labor Union, And It Covers Issues Related To Employment
Govern:
Working Conditions
Wages
Benefits
Job Security
Layoffs
Firing Policies

20. Collective Bargaining Agreements
Grievance Procedure: Establishes A Series Of Steps That An Employee Must Follow To Appeal The Decision Of An Employer Who May Have Violated The Collective Bargaining Agreement.

21. Collective Bargaining Agreements
CBA’s Cannot Guarantee Employment For Life
Economic Conditions Can Cause Layoffs And Plant Closings
CBA’s Include Negotiated Procedures On How Layoffs Occur
CBA’s May Provide For Severance Pay
A Set Amount Of Money To Compensate Employees For Being Discharged And To Help Them Through The Time That They Remain Unemployed.

22. Rights and Duties Of Employers and Employees
Employers Have Right To Expect Employees To Have Experience, Education, and Skills They Claim To Possess
AKA: You Can’t Lie On Your Resume!

23. Rights and Duties Of Employers and Employees
Employers Can Also Expect A Reasonable Amount Of Work From Employees Within A Reasonable Amount Of Time

24. Rights and Duties Of Employers and Employees
Employees Are Expected To Be
Loyal
Honest
Dependable
Rule Abiding

25. Rights and Duties Of Employers and Employees
Employees Can Expect Employers to Provide
Regular Pay
A Safe Working Environment
Appropriate Job Training
Opportunities to Earn Raises and Promotions
Safe Tools
Ability To Make Reasonable Complaints

26. Regulating Collective Bargaining
Originally thought to be an illegal conspiracy, the government now supports and regulates CBA’s

27. Wagner Act First Federal Law Addressing Collective Bargaining
AKA National Labor Relations Act of 1935
Purpose: Encourage Collective Bargaining, Discourage Certain Unfair Labor Practice and Provide Federal Assistance In Obtaining Fair Bargaining.

28. Wagner Act
Established Guidelines for Determining Employment Concerns Included In Collective Bargaining
Must Negotiate:
Wages, Hours, and Conditions of Employment

29. Taft-Hartley Act AKA Labor-Movement Relations Act
Came Into Effect Because Many felt The Wagner Act Gave Too Much Power To Unions

30. Taft-Hartley Act What It Did… 60 Day Notice Before Calling A Strike
Made The Closed Shop Illegal (A business or company that requires a person to be a union member before being hired)
Union Shop Legal (A business in which a worker must join the union within 30 days after being employed)

31. Taft-Hartley Act
Allows States To Pass Right-To-Work Laws (Prohibit Union Shops)
Prohibits Featherbedding (assigning more employees to a job than are actually needed and pressure exerted by a union to retain unnecessary employees)

32. Regulating the Employment of Minors
Why?
Industrial Revolution: Exploitation of Children

33. State Child Labor Laws
Laws that control the work that children are permitted to do

34. Federal Child Labor Laws
Prohibits the interstate or foreign trade shipment of any goods produced in factories in which “oppressive child labor” had been used within 30 days of the removal of the goods

35. Fair Labor Standards Act
AKA Wage and Hour Law
Requires:
Minimum Hourly Wage
Time-And-A-Half For All Work Over 40 Hours
Regulates Employment of Minors

36. Equal Pay Act Men and Women Must Receive = Pay for = Work
Equal Pay Rule: Covers Hourly Workers, Executives, Administrators, Professional Employees, and Outside Salespeople Receiving Salary or Commission