Employment contracts do not become an issue until a disagreement arises between the employee and employer. It is when this happens that an employment contract will be highly scrutinized and interpreted by lawyers and the courts, and any previously unidentified weaknesses will be revealed.

At the Law Offices of Gary A. Costales, PA, we regularly represent both employees and employers in employment contract-related disputes. Here are three of the most common disputes we represent our clients in:

— Non-compete clause disagreements: Florida courts will honor non-compete agreements but only by employing a sense of fairness. For example, courts will generally not allow a non-compete agreement to prevent an employee from being able to earn a living in his or her field of expertise. That said, courts will not allow an employee to purposefully engage in the practice of stealing business from his or her former employer.

— Severance pay disagreements: Disagreements often arise over how much severance pay is owed to an employee who is laid off. In some cases, this issue is clearly addressed within an employment agreement. However, an employer might try to argue that an employee is being terminated for reasons that prevent the employee from being able to receive a previously agreed-upon amount of severance pay.

— Family Medical Leave Act disagreements: Under federal law, employees are able to receive time away from their jobs due to approved medical and family reasons, and they must be permitted to return to their jobs once the reason for taking leave has been resolved. However, disagreements may arise when the employee is terminated, denied medical leave or denied other provisions and rights included in this law.

Florida employees and employers who are in the midst of an employee contract dispute may be able to benefit from having an experienced employment law attorney on their side. At the Law Offices of Gary A. Costales, PA, we have employment law attorneys available to speak to Florida residents about their cases and advise them of their legal rights and options.

An Orlando car dealership is facing a wrongful termination lawsuit filed by an ex-employer. The lawsuit cites violations of the Family and Medical Leave Act.

According to the male employee, who filed his lawsuit on Oct. 26 in the Middle District of Florida U.S. District Court, Sun State Ford terminated him after he attempted to exercise the employee rights offered him under the FMLA. The complaint states that the man became disabled in 2015 and required FMLA protection while he took leave to recover. However, the man says that his wages were lowered when he returned to work, and later he was wrongfully terminated.

According to the plaintiff, Sun State Ford owes him financial damages because he was terminated in retaliation for his request to go on medical leave under the FMLA. The plaintiff has asked for a jury trial in addition to remuneration for compensatory damages, interest, legal fees, punitive damages and other relief the court deems appropriate.

The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 is a federal law that protects employees who are experiencing circumstances relating to their family and health that require them to take temporary leave from their job. Employers are required to honor the terms of the FMLA or face legal consequences and liabilities for violating it.

Floridians who believe that their employee rights have been violated by their employers may want to discuss their situations with an employment law attorney familiar with state and federal statutes.Employees who have suffered financial injuries or have inappropriately lost their jobs related to an FMLA or other employment law violations may be able to seek financial compensation in federal court.

Source: Florida Record, “Employee sues car dealer for alleged wrongful termination,” Oct. 27, 2016

Miami Beach has been awarded a perfect score in a special report that evaluated the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer inclusiveness of different cities in the United States. The report was released by the country’s biggest LGBT rights group, Human Rights Campaign. The Mayor of Miami Beach commented on the perfect score, saying that the city is a model for the promotion of progressive initiatives like environmental protection, LGBTQ rights and fair wages.

According to HRC, Miami Beach received 14 bonus points on top of its 96 standards score, causing it to exceed the number of points required for a perfect score of 100. The bonus points were because the city has openly LGBTQ officials on its payroll, and it offers services to LGBTQ youths, elderly and trans individuals.

One of the reasons why the city did not receive the full 100 points, was due to 4 points deducted for the city’s failure to use the term LGBT in its contractor nondiscrimination ordinance. However, in response to this, the city’s mayor stated that in all its employment contracts it uses language that prohibits LGBTQ discrimination.

Several other Florida cities were given 100-plus ratings by the HRC. Those included: St. Petersburg, Orlando, Wilton Manors and West Palm Beach. Meanwhile, the least inclusive cities in Florida were Port Saint Lucie, coming in at 30, and Cape Coral, coming in at 25.

Clearly, not all Florida cities are equal when it comes to making efforts to limit LGBTQ discrimination. In fact, even Miami Beach has thus far failed to include non-discriminatory language in its contractor nondiscrimination ordinances. For any LGBTQ member who feels that he or she has suffered as a result of LGBTQ employment discrimination, these individual should know that they may have the right to pursue justice and financial restitution in court.

Source: Miami Herald, “National group scores Miami Beach highest in Florida for LGBT inclusiveness,” Ariana Figueroa, Oct. 18, 2016

The Yankees organization has faced 16 claims of employee discrimination occurring in the last four years. One of the cases — which has already settled — involved a female executive assistant, who alleged that a top level employee of the organization raised his voice at her when she complained that a fellow employee referred to her with two derogatory names

The executive assistant who was allegedly called these inappropriate names filed an employment lawsuit against the baseball team in 2014. In the suit, she accused the chief financial officer of the Yankees of telling her not to complain about instances of sexual harassment.

Allegedly, the CFO also refused to let the woman talk with the owner and co-chairman of the team about the name-calling incidences. The lawsuit said that when she asked to speak with the team owner, she was told that the owner did not want to talk with her, that the issue was stupid and the woman was being “childish.” Later, however, the Yankees settled the complaint and entered into a confidentiality agreement with the woman.

In other employee lawsuits filed in Florida, the Yankees were accused of various forms of discrimination, including national origin, sex and age discrimination. Last month, the Yankees disclosed all of these claims when it requested to the Economic Development Corporation for the refinancing of $1 billion worth of tax-free bonds that it used to finance the construction of its new stadium.

Unfortunately, some of the most esteemed and well-regarded companies and organizations in Florida have been accused of discrimination and sexual harassment. Florida employees subjected to any kind of sexual harassment or workplace discrimination should remember that they are well within their legal rights to pursue claims for justice and restitution, and to directly request that the sexual harassment and discrimination stop without any fear of negative retaliation.

Source: dnainfo.com, “Yankees CFO Called Female Employee ‘Childish’ for Sex Harass Claim: Suit,” James Fanelli, Oct. 13, 2016

A controversial case has reached a controversial conclusion, at least for the time being. A group of Muslim workers who filed claims alleging religious discrimination against their employer have lost their suit after the judge in the case sided with the employer.

The U.S. District judge presiding over the case did not see evidence of mistreatment, and cleared the meat packing plant of any claims of mistreatment of its Somali Muslim employees. The employees had alleged that they were being discriminated against based on the plant’s refusal to grant them what they considered “reasonable religious accommodations.” Their case seemed to hold water, as it was taken up and represented by the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, a federal organization.

The case, which was first filed in 2010, alleged that the plant had refused to grant these accommodations at least as far back as 2007. The specific grievances centered primarily on the request to be granted special time allowances for religious prayer. The judge in the case, after reviewing all of the evidence extensively, concluded that there was no evidence to conclude that discrimination took place. When questioned about the suit, a representative for the employer stated that he had informed the employees in question that their requests were in violation of some provisions of their collective bargaining agreement.

Whether this particular case will be taken up by a higher court, or if this ruling will stand still remains to be seen. If anything, it serves to illustrate just how complex the world of workplace discrimination can be, and how it is often not as cut and dried as it may seem. If you or someone you know believes that you have been the victim of workplace discrimination, you owe it to yourself and anyone else who may be experiencing similar frustrations to consult with an experienced workplace discrimination lawyer. An experienced lawyer can help you protect your rights as you pursue justice.

Source: Miami Herald, “Muslim workers lose prayer dispute lawsuit against company,” Sep. 27, 2016

The Betty Griffin House is a special shelter for the victims of domestic violence located in St. John’s County, Florida. Recently, six ex-employees of the shelter claim that they were wrongfully terminated from the Betty Griffin House. They also claim that the organization had hazardous safety conditions while they worked there.

Court documents outline claims related to racial discrimination, employees not being paid minimum wage and retaliation. Allegedly, the employees were terminated in retaliation for reporting the organization’s various Occupational Safety and Health Administration violations. Six ex-employees claim that they had to work without air-conditioning, in a room that was full of black mold and had a leaky roof while ceiling tiles fell on top of them. The lawsuit also alleges that rats and rat feces predominated the building, and there were also a number of fire hazards caused by overstocking.

The lawsuit claims that OSHA inspected the facility last April, and the inspection resulted in almost 24 citations. Following the OSHA visit, certain employees were intimidated and bullied by the organization’s management, and eventually, they were fired. At this time, Betty Griffin House has yet to respond to reporters who have requested comments on the pending lawsuit.

Wrongful termination lawsuits in the state of Florida can take many forms. However, one common theme in such lawsuits is retaliation. Indeed, it is not uncommon for a Florida employee to be retaliated against for reporting safety violations that his or her employer refuses to correct. That retaliation could take the form of wrongful termination, reduced work hours, reduced pay, unfair punishments and more.

Source: news4jax.com, “Lawsuit claims Betty Griffin House thrift store unlawfully fired whistleblowers,” Francesca Amiker, Sep. 27, 2016