Smoking has become a very important topic for employers recently. More and more employers, particularly in the healthcare industry, are refusing to hire smokers. This is by no means a recent development, as companies like Turner Broadcasting have been refusing to hire smokers for over twenty years. However, in the last few years, with rising healthcare costs, employers are seeing a ban on hiring smokers as a way to reduce costs. It is common knowledge that smokers are one source of high costs for many employers. According to the American Lung Association, smokers cost the economy over $193 billion each year, and employers could save an estimated $3,400 per year for each employee who quits smoking. Insurance rates are significantly[…]

When a Texas employee believes he or she has been discriminated against at work because of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information under a number of federal laws, they can file a Charge of Discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. All of the laws enforced by the EEOC, except the Equal Pay Act, require an employee to file a charge before filing a job discrimination lawsuit. The employee must bring the charge within 180 days from the day the discrimination took place, or within 300 days if a state or local agency enforces a law that prohibits employment discrimination on the same basis. With allegations of age discrimination, the filing deadline[…]