Arbitration in employment cases is still new. It is also private. So, researchers have not had access to arbitration decisions or awards. But, a statute passed in California requires the arbitrators to make public their decisions. One Cornell researcher obtained those public awards and found some remarkable trends. The largest provider of arbitration services is
Armstrong Case back in Arbitration
Large employers and corporations have been pushing arbitration as the panacea for a host of consumer issues, from purchasing phone plans and automobiles to applying for jobs. But, there are some things arbitration just cannot do. In 2012, Lance Armstrong admitted he had used drugs as part of his training regimen. But, for years before
Non-Compete Agreements are Increasingly Common
Non-compete agreements have been used in the market place for decades within certain sectors, such as physicians and some sales representatives. In the past year or so, I have heard from several workers who signed non-compete agreements. One poor young woman, in her 20’s, was sued after she changed jobs. She simply moved to a
Coach Leach’s Appeal Denied Again
Mike Leach was fired by Texas Tech over five years ago. He filed suit over that termination, saying it violated his contract. I previously wrote about his lawsuit here and here. He sued to force the state to honor its contract hiring him. But, his initial appeal was denied. And, now the Texas Supreme
Lance Armstrong Ordered to Pay Back $10 Million
Arbitration is more and more with us, all of us. Every consumer signs some arbitration agreement sometime, somewhere. Arbitration is increasingly found in the work place. Many employers require their employers to sign agreements to submit any dispute to arbitration. SCA Promotions paid a $10 million dollar bonus to Lance Armstrong years ago for winning
Stock Options do not Support a Covenant Not to Compete
Just when we thought the Texas Supreme Court cleared things up regarding non-compete agreements, the court issues another decision that muddies the water. In Exxon Mobil Co. v. Drennen, 2014 WL 4782974 (Tex. 2014), the court addressed a non-compete agreement in which the employee would forfeit deferred
Jimmy John’s Requires Non-Compete Agreements
Non-competition agreements have been around for a long time. They have usually been used for saelsmen who have access to cloesly guarded customer lists and to doctors. But, now, they have been uased for hourly employees at a sandwich chain. Jimmy John’s has been sued because it requires employees to agree they will not work
Mandatory Arbitration Used to Hide Sex Harassment
The folks at Public Justice have written a bog post about the pernicious use of mandatory arbitration by American Apparel, a major U.S. clothing manufacturer. Based on an article in the New York Times, the post recounts the story of Dov Charney, long-time CEO of American Apparel. Mr. Charney was known for such witticisms
Vacation Pay Is Not Owed to Departing Texas Employees
Under the Texas Payday Statute, terminated employees are not entitled to their vacation pay when they leave their job. So explains Russ Cawyer in this post. The same statutory provision applies to sick leave or severance pay. Such benefits are owed to the employee only if the departing employee has a valid contract providing
Windcrest Seeks Former City Manager’s Office Condo
A couple of years ago, Ron Cain was demanding severance pay. See my prior blog post. Now, Ronnie Cain and his brother, Gary Cain are facing efforts by the City of Windcrest to seize the office condo they purchased. Windcrest alleges they purchased the condo with money stolen from the city. See San Antonio