Recent News

In a decision last week, Johnson v. Chevron, the Washington State Court of Appeals held that an employee was not required to prove that his disability accommodation was “medically necessary” to enable him to perform his job. Johnson had sued the employer, asserting state law claims for race discrimination (disparate treatment) and disability discrimination (disparate… Read More

The Washington State Court of Appeals has tackled a case of first impression in their decision on a 2004 case, Anfinson v. FedEx. The issue involves the definition of an “independent contractor” under the State’s Minimum Wage Act (MWA). In 2004, a class action lawsuit was filed against FedEx in King County Superior Court alleging… Read More

Recent Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) initiatives are focused on eradicating what the EEOC views as more covert forms of discrimination, such as policies that exclude applicants with bad credit reports or criminal convictions. In light of this new scrutiny, employers who conduct credit or criminal background checks should make sure that their practices do… Read More

Employers in Washington who fail to timely pay wages to an employee are liable for statutory penalties equal to twice the unpaid wages plus attorney’s fees. Even when an employer seeks bankruptcy protection, officers and senior managers remain personally liable for the unpaid wages, statutory penalties and attorney’s fees. This rule was recently reaffirmed by… Read More

The Case: In EEOC v. Prospect Airport Services (2010), a male employee, Rudolph Lamas, allegedly suffered hostile work environment sexual harassment at the hands of a female co-worker, Sylvia Munoz. His employer, PAS, supplies wheelchair assistance to disabled passengers at Las Vegas’s McCarran International Airport. Lamas was a well-respected employee who was promoted to a… Read More