By Bill Wright The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals recently offered a refresher course on contract formation, as applied to employee bonus plans. The employer promised substantial bonuses, payable in five years, provided the eligible at-will managers were still employed. A couple of years later, the employer saw that the bonuses were going to be […]
Category: Workers’ Compensation
Court Order Trumps Board
By Bill Wright What happens when the NLRB says an arbitration agreement is illegal, but a court enforces the agreement anyway? Four plaintiffs recently found out. In Hobson et al. v. Murphy Oil USA, Inc., No. CV-10-S-1486-S (N. D. Ala. July 8, 2015), the plaintiffs brought a collective action, for themselves and others, seeking unpaid […]
Grievance Process Killed Retaliation Claim
A recent decision on a Workers Compensation retaliation claim shows a hidden value for employer-union grievance processes. In Macon v. UPS, No. 12-3080 (10th Cir. February 19, 2014), the plaintiff claimed that when he returned from a Workers’ Comp. leave, his supervisors began to scrutinize his work, wrote him up repeatedly, and repeatedly attempted to […]
No Leave Benefit Goes Unpunished
By Bill Wright A worker is injured – seriously injured – and goes out on long term leave. He files a workers compensation claim. The comp. claim stalls and, for 11 years, the employer pays insurance benefits for the worker with no end in sight. Finally, the employer notifies the worker that, if he is […]
Ex-NFL Players Fumble Their Cumulative Injury Claims
By John Alan Doran In a procedurally complex case involving workers compensation claims by former NFL players, a federal court recently ruled that the players could not take advantage of California’s workers’ compensation scheme. The former NFL players, all former members of the Kansas City Chiefs, asserted that they experienced cumulative injuries as a result […]