SimplyHR | Employment & Labor Blog 

Since June 2010, contractors and subcontractors with contracts that result from federal agency solicitations issued on or after June 21, 2010, have been required to display the Department of Labor (DOL) poster notifying employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). On May 16, 2019, the DOL made the following updates to this employer-required poster:

1. a new telephone number for the National Labor Relations Board; and
2. new contact information for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing.

In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held that an employee’s failure to exhaust administrative remedies is not a jurisdictional prerequisite to filing a lawsuit, rather it is a procedural requirement that could be waived by the employer’s failure to timely raise the issue.

In Fort Bend County, Texas v. Davis, --- S.Ct. ---- (U.S. June 3, 2019) the plaintiff, Davis, filed a charge of discrimination alleging sex discrimination and retaliation. While that charge was pending, Davis was told to report to work on a Sunday. When Davis refused due to a prior church commitment, her employment was terminated. Intending to amend her earlier charge, Davis submitted an EEOC Intake Questionnaire on which she handwrote “religion” under “Harms or Actions” and checked the boxes for “discharge” and “reasonable accommodation.” However, Davis made no change to her formal charge of discrimination document to allege discrimination on the basis of her religion.