New Census Bureau research, comparing the amount of money couples report to the Census with “true” earnings from IRS tax records, shows a surprising result: when women in different-sex couples earn more than their male spouses, “[h]usbands say they earn more than they are and wives underreport their income.” Both spouses exaggerate the man’s earnings and minimize the women’s earnings, although men…
By now we all know the general story of the 2008 financial crisis. Large banks made reckless subprime mortgage loans to people buying homes. These loans were resold to different institutions in various forms until the market eventually crashed when borrowers were no longer able to make their payments. One reason many banks were willing to make reckless loans is…
In today’s political climate, we have all seen how heated political debates can get. A perfectly pleasant Thanksgiving dinner with family can instantly turn hostile once the topic of politics comes up. But what happens when that political fervor carries over into the workplace? Can a private sector employee be fired for his or her political beliefs or political affiliation?…
By law, employees in the United States must be paid a base minimum for their work performed. However, this protection varies widely depending on the state in which the employees are working. The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) provides the baseline protection for employees. Regardless of state, employers generally must pay their employees at least $7.25 per hour. While…
The #MeToo movement has shined an unflattering light on employer-mandated arbitration agreements, which commonly prevent victims of sexual harassment from speaking publicly about their experiences. Mandatory and confidential arbitration has the effect of forcing women into silence, while allowing perpetrators to continue to harass and assault other employees. With the rise of the #MeToo movement, states have begun to enact…
In the landmark civil rights decision Brown v. Board of Education, the court ruled that racial segregation in the public schools was unconstitutional. But if the Plaintiffs in Brown had been subject to an arbitration agreement with their schools, public schools might still be segregated today. Today women do not have to tolerate hostile conduct motivated by sex or gender. But if the…
Hourly workers’ paychecks can be unpredictable, varying drastically depending on their hours. Unscrupulous employers exploit this variance to short hourly employees of their full wages for their labor, often undetected. Tipped workers in most states are uniquely vulnerable to wage theft. Most tipped workers earn a reduced hourly rate – in Washington, DC, the tipped rate is currently $3.89 per hour. For…
The False Claims Act is one of the government’s most powerful tools to fight fraud. Under the Act a whistleblower, called a “relator,” can provide the government with information about the ways in which it is being defrauded. If the government subsequently recovers money as a result of the relator’s tip, the relator receives a share of the government’s recovery…
Medical devices are a crucial component to health care treatment and advancements. With an increasingly competitive market, medical device manufacturers and sales personnel are under pressure to maximize their sales and outpace competitors. To accomplish these objectives, device manufacturers may engage in sales practices that violate the False Claims Act (FCA)—a federal statute that allows individuals, known as whistleblowers or…
What is a Whistleblower? A Whistleblower is a person who informs the federal and/or state government about illegal and fraudulent behavior that causes the government to pay money to an individual or business that is not entitled to receive those government funds. For assisting the government in uncovering fraud, the Whistleblower receives between 15% to 30% of the amount of…