Kansas City Employment Law Blog

Discrimination happens in many different ways. Recently, a Missouri employee had his paycheck withheld because he says he was discriminated against for his hairstyle.

The Missouri employee who incurred the discrimination and possible wage violation says it was because of his dreadlocks. The employee's previous employment -- at a temp agency and in fast food -- did not ever comment on his choice of hairstyle, but his current employer -- a convenience store and gas station -- had an issue with his dreadlocks.

The human mind and body is not designed to work for a straight eight hours or more without a rest, and yet millions of people across the United States are finding themselves unable to take the meal break regulated by many federal and state laws, including in Kentucky. Even though the body will wear itself down without proper breaks, workers are feeling forced to stay at their desks to eat or to skip lunch altogether. If you need numbers, one survey found that 65 percent of the workforce eats at their desks or does not take a break at all. Around 33 percent said that they still take a break.

The economy has created an unhealthy workplace environment where the tasks keep building while staff numbers decrease. This means that fewer workers are required to shoulder more work now than ever.

Wal-Mart stores have become a staple for personal shopping. Over the years Wal-Mart stores have expanded throughout the United States and grown to become a large retailer that even includes groceries. To expand and grow into the large business Wal-Mart has become, the company also had to employ more people. All of the employees are entitled to the compensation provided for under federal wage and hour laws, and employees in Missouri and Kansas are also entitled to their respective state laws regarding wage and hour regulations.

Although the Wal-Mart employee's wage and hour protections vary by their respective states, all of the employees are entitled to federal protection. So, when the U.S. Department of Labor investigated and determined Wal-Mart was violating overtime payment laws, the findings included employees in Missouri and Kansas. In response to the Department of Labor's findings, Wal-Mart owes back pay to over 4,500 employees, which amounts to $4,828,442. In addition to the back pay, Wal-Mart was also assessed civil penalties that amount to $463,815.

Sexual harassment in the workplace is illegal and often under reported. It is difficult to report sexual harassment due to the stigma sometimes associated with reporting the harassment and also the embarrassment that some victims feel when retelling the incident. Sexual harassment is illegal in Missouri, but for any action to be taken, the victim is must report the incident.

A civilian employee in a police department reported the sexual harassment she suffered and has found closure in that the lawsuit has been settled. The lawsuit was filed a little over one year ago and named the defendants as the city and the highest ranked female employee.