Archives: Employer Obligations

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Sixth Circuit: Title VII Prohibits Discrimination Based on Transgender and/or Transitioning Status

By Anne H. Littlefield on Posted in Board of Education, Generally, Board Organization, Authority and Responsibilities, Colleges and Universities, Discrimination, Employer Obligations, Employer Responsibilities, Independent Schools, Liability, Public Schools, Religion and the Schools, Responsibilities, Rights of Teachers, Superintendents, Teacher Employment, Evaluation and Dismissal

Less than one week after the Second Circuit Court of Appeals held that Title VII’s prohibition on sex discrimination bars discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals issued its own landmark Title VII … Read more

Education Legislation Summary: 2017 Special Session – Biennial Budget, Connecticut General Assembly

By Andreana R. Bellach, Ashley L. Marshall and Herbert Rosen on Posted in Board Organization, Authority and Responsibilities, Employer Obligations, Independent Schools, Public Schools, Publications and Alerts, Special Education

On October 26, 2017, the General Assembly passed Emergency Certified Bill 1502 (“Bill 1502” or “the Bill”). The Bill was signed by Governor Malloy on October 31, 2017 (except for a line item veto related to hospital charges). This summary … Read more

Title IX Procedures and The Need for Fairness to All Parties

By Gary S. Starr and Julie C. Fay on Posted in Board Organization, Authority and Responsibilities, Colleges and Universities, Employer Obligations, Independent Schools, Public Schools, Rights of Students, Students, Teacher Employment, Evaluation and Dismissal

Recent headlines make clear that sexual harassment is a serious problem in our society. It has also been a focus of attention on school campuses. Since the adoption of Title IX, colleges and universities, as well as other educational institutions, … Read more

Statutory Changes to Athletic Trainer Laws: What’s New?

By Peter J. Maher on Posted in Colleges and Universities, Employer Responsibilities, Extracurricular Activities, Independent Schools, Public Schools, Supervision of Students

Earlier this summer, the Connecticut General Assembly passed Public Act No. 17-195, An Act Concerning Athletic Trainers (the “Act”), which amended the statute governing the professional requirements surrounding athletic trainers. Effective October 1, 2017, Section 1 of the Act amended … Read more

High School Sleuths Expose Questionable Credentials of New Principal

By Anne H. Littlefield and Ashley L. Marshall on Posted in Board of Education, Generally, Board Organization, Authority and Responsibilities, Employer Obligations, Employer Responsibilities, Employment of Teachers, Public Schools, Responsibilities, Teacher Employment, Evaluation and Dismissal

Earlier this month in the city of Pittsburg, Kansas, a group of curious student journalists raised serious questions about the credentials of their newly hired principal, Amy Robertson.  According to the Kansas City Star, Robertson had received 100 percent … Read more

Register Now for Teacher Evaluations in Connecticut: Where Are We Now?

By Richard A. Mills, Thomas B. Mooney and Jessica L. Ritter on Posted in Employer Obligations, Employer Responsibilities, Evaluation, Public Schools, Seminars and Events, Teacher Employment, Evaluation and Dismissal

It has been nearly five years since the Connecticut General Assembly adopted Public Act 12-116 titled An Act Concerning Educational Reform, and most importantly, made changes to Section 10-151b regarding the teacher evaluation process.  Changes to Section 10-151b provide that … Read more

Texas Judge Clarifies Scope of Transgender Guidance Injunction; Feds Appeal to 5th Circuit

By Anne H. Littlefield and Gwen J. Zittoun on Posted in Colleges and Universities, Discrimination, Employer Obligations, Public Schools, Rights of Students

We have been tracking the development of litigation concerning rights, obligations, and duties with regard to transgender students as cases unfold across the country.

Earlier this summer, Texas and twelve other states challenged the propriety and legality of a joint … Read more

U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Justice Release Dear Colleague Letters Jointly Announcing New SECURe Rubrics for School Resource Officer Programs

By Jessica L. Ritter on Posted in Board of Education, Generally, Constitutional Rights, Discipline, Discrimination, Federal and State Role in Education, Liability, Public Schools, Responsibilities, Rights of Students, Supervision of Students

On September 8, 2016, the United States Department of Education and the United States Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (“COPS”) jointly released new guidance regarding school resource officer programs.  The new Safe School-based Enforcement through Collaboration, … Read more

Connecticut Unaffected by Federal Court Order Forbidding Enforcement of Transgender Guidance

By Anne H. Littlefield on Posted in Board of Education, Generally, Board Organization, Authority and Responsibilities, Colleges and Universities, Employer Obligations, Public Schools, Students, Teacher Employment, Evaluation and Dismissal

Recently, a federal district court in Texas sided with Texas and several other states that challenged federal guidance instructing schools to accommodate transgender students under federal anti-discrimination laws.   The preliminary injunction, issued on the eve of a new school year, … Read more

Effective July 1, 2016, School Districts Subject to New Requirements for Employee Background Checks

By Jessica Richman Smith, Peter J. Murphy and Peter J. Maher on Posted in Employer Obligations, Employer Responsibilities, Public Schools

Previously, Conn. Gen. Stat. § 10-222c merely required school districts to make a documented good faith effort to contact previous employers of applicants to obtain “information and recommendations which may be relevant to the [applicant’s] fitness for employment” before hiring … Read more

TRB Issues New Guidance Concerning the Reemployment of Retired Teachers

By Richard I. Cohen on Posted in Employer Obligations, Employment of Teachers, Public Schools, Publications and Alerts, Rights of Teachers, Teacher Employment, Evaluation and Dismissal

On June 17, 2015, Connecticut’s Attorney General issued an opinion concerning the “statutory limits on the compensation provided to reemployed teachers (including superintendents and other administrators) pursuant to Conn. Gen. Stat.§ 10-183v(a).” Based on his analysis of the language of … Read more

The Department of Labor Says Most Workers Are Employees, Not Independent Contractors

By Gary S. Starr and Henry J. Zaccardi on Posted in Colleges and Universities, Employer Obligations, Independent Schools, Public Schools, Publications and Alerts

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued an Administrator’s Interpretation letter on the topic of misclassification of employees as independent contractors. Their conclusion is that “most workers are employees under the FLSA’s broad definitions.” The DOL sets out several … Read more

Overtime Pay Changes on the Horizon

By Daniel Schwartz, Gary S. Starr and Henry J. Zaccardi on Posted in Colleges and Universities, Employer Obligations, Independent Schools, Public Schools, Publications and Alerts

With great fanfare, President Obama announced a plan to potentially raise the incomes of white collar employees.  The proposed federal regulation would make white collar employees eligible for overtime pay after 40 hours worked if their salary is less than … Read more

New Prohibitions on Discrimination for Unpaid Interns

By Leander A. Dolphin, Christopher Engler and Henry J. Zaccardi on Posted in Colleges and Universities, Discrimination, Employer Obligations, Independent Schools, Public Schools, Publications and Alerts

On June 19, 2015, the governor signed into law a series of protections for unpaid interns.  The new law, Public Act No. 15-56, extends the prohibitions on discrimination and harassment from the Connecticut Fair Employment Practices Act (“CFEPA”) to … Read more

Federal Government Files ‘Statement of Interest’ In Gender-Identity Case

By Anne H. Littlefield and Leander A. Dolphin on Posted in Board of Education, Generally, Board Organization, Authority and Responsibilities, Colleges and Universities, Discrimination, Employer Obligations, Employer Responsibilities, Federal and State Role in Education, Independent Schools, Liability, Public Schools, Responsibilities, Rights of Students, Students

In recent years, there have been increasing concerns involving discrimination faced by the transgender community.  Not surprisingly, these concerns have centered on the challenges faced by gender non-conforming students and whether the needs of such students are being met by … Read more

New Year Ushers in Changes to Paid Sick Leave Act and Minimum Wage

By Daniel Schwartz and Henry J. Zaccardi on Posted in Colleges and Universities, Employer Obligations, Independent Schools, Public Schools, Publications and Alerts

With the new year, the amendments to the Connecticut Paid Sick Leave Act (“PSLA”) the legislature enacted last year are now effective.  We explained the details in our legislative update last summer, but here is a quick refresher:  (1) the … Read more

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