Under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (“COBRA”), group health plans sponsored by employers with 20 or more employees are generally required to offer employees and their families a temporary extension of health coverage under certain circumstances...
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Beware of “Vishing”: The Latest Trend in Cybercrime
As we previously blogged, the rise of telework during the COVID-19 era has coincided with a rise in cybercrimes such as “phishing” and “pharming.” Small businesses that do not have large cybersecurity budgets have been especially vulnerable to these practices during...
Under the FFCRA, Am I Entitled to Leave to Watch My Kids During Summertime?
As we previously blogged, employers are obligated under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFRCA) to provide employees up to two weeks (80 hours) of paid sick leave and up to 12 additional weeks of paid, expanded family and medical leave to an employee whose...
Good News for Maryland Employees: 4 New Laws That Will Protect Employees’ Rights
COVID-19 has made 2020 an undeniably hard year for employees. Luckily, the Maryland legislature recently passed 4 new pro-employee laws that will go into effect on October 1, 2020. Mandatory Mini-WARN Act As I previously blogged, the federal WARN Act requires that...
“OK Boomer”: How to Prevent Age Discrimination in Hiring
Your company has an opening and you want to upload a job posting that reads: "Applicants should have no more than 7 years of experience." But you wonder: could this be a form of discrimination under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)? The Supreme Court...
Office Romance: Do’s and Don’ts
Over one-third of employees report having been romantically linked to a co-worker, so while an outright ban on office romances might seem like an easy fix, it is naïve. With Valentine's Day right around the corner, love is in the air, so there is no better time to...
Tale as Old as Time: #MeToo #Vashti
The Me Too Movement takes its name from the phrase created a decade ago by civil rights activist Tarana Burke and popularized by Alyssa Milano when she encouraged women to tweet it to "give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem." Since October 2017, #MeToo...
Can someone be the victim of age discrimination in their 20s?
Under the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), employers cannot fire, refuse to hire or otherwise discriminate against employees because of their age. But, if you were to dig a little deeper into the ADEA, you would quickly find that it actually only...
Employee or independent contractor — and why does it matter?
Employers are required to pay all employees time-and-a-half once they hit 40 hours in a given workweek, right? Well, not necessarily. In fact, both federal and Maryland law carve out several exceptions to the overtime rules, including situations involving certain...
Linda Hitt Thatcher Selected as Maryland Super Lawyer
is proud to announce that its Managing Partner, Linda Hitt Thatcher, has been recognized as a 2019 Super Lawyer by Thomson Reuters. Only five percent of attorneys receive this honor. Ms. Thatcher has also consistently been named a top...