The Dallas Hospitality Employment Lawyer Blog

Last week an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) found that an employer's "No Gossip Policy" violates Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).   See Laurus Technical Institute , Case 10-CA-093934, before the National Labor Relations Board, Atlanta Branch Office.   The non-unionized employer's No Gossip Policy provided that, ""Gossip is not tolerated…Employees that participate in or instigate gossip about the company, an employee, or customer will receive disciplinary action."  The Policy defined "gossip," in part, as: 1.  "Talking about a person's personal life when they are not present." 2.  "Talking about a person's professional life without his/her supervisor present." 3.  "Negative, or untrue, or disparaging comments or criticisms of another person or persons." 4.  "Creating, sharing, or repeating information that can injure a person's credibility or reputation." ...

Congress passed the Occupational Safety and Health Act in 1970 with the purpose of requiring employers to provide a safe and healthy work environment.  It also protects an employee from retaliation for reporting an unsafe work environment, which is often referred to as a "whistleblower complaint."  The law covers most private sector employers, and grants the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), part of the United States Department of Labor, investigation and enforcement authority. Recently, OSHA provided employees with a new method for lodging whistleblower complaints against employers.  Through a portal on the United States Department of Labor's website, employees can now electronically file whistleblower complaints anonymously, and in any language.  The online form is located at www.whistleblowers.gov. Employers curious about OSHA's whistleblower investigation process should familiarize themselves with OSHA's Whistleblowers Investigat...