Adviser LeadingAge New York Winter 2014 Winter 2014 | Page 17

Trends in Healthcare... (continued from page 15) to challenge alleged violations of federal and/ or state wage-and-hour laws, such as the Fair Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) and its state counterparts. A popular plaintiff ’s strategy in this regard, which presents an exceptional threat to employers through potential class actions, is to claim either a “single employer” or “joint employer” theory, or both. Using one or both theories, plaintiffs who were simultaneously employed by two or more companies who shared common ownership will argue that the aggregation of their hours is necessary for overtime purposes because of a close functional relationship between the entities. Those plaintiffs will seek unpaid overtime, liquidated damages and attorney fees. Our research also shows a significant increase in national origin discrimination claims – , particularly as workforces strive to achieve diversity – and disability discrimination cases, especially where employers must navigate between disability discrimination and family leave laws. Recent trends also show a stark increase in retaliation and whistleblower claims. We anticipate these somewhat drastic upticks will be difficult to combat for most companies. Technology Solutions for the Long Term IT Assurance Delivers Peace of Mind • Full or Part Time Onsite IT Support • EMR implementation and planning • On going monitoring and support of your facility’s PCs, servers, and network equipment • Data encryption to ensure secure transmission of prescriptions and patient information • Network assessments to identify security vulnerabilities Most companies we deal with often experience documentation failures, a lack of informed human resources personnel and insufficient Contact Custom’s Long Term Care Team legal training. Healthcare companies, which are 800.598.8989 | [email protected] usually quite adept at documenting everything that happens on a day-to-day basis, are no different. Our healthcare company audits have revealed poor documentation in hiring Right People. Right Results. (applications, interviews and references), employee handbooks and policies, discipline investigations and communications with employees. After all, events that are not properly documented didn’t really happen. Sophisticated employees’ and plaintiffs’ counsel have made defending these claims timeconsuming and expensive. According to a recent survey, the average cost for defending an EPL claim is $70,267.11 These claims are often fact-intensive and quite capable of surviving defense summary judgment motions, as witnessed across several circuits.12 The trend only serves to emphasize the need for employers in all industries, but particularly in the healthcare industry, to reassess their liability coverage and, if necessary, engage qualified counsel to perform an audit of their employment practices. 11 12 Id. See Thompson v. Real Estate Mortgage Network, 748 F.3d. 142 (3d Cir. 2014); Lundy v. Catholic Health Sys. Of Long Island, 711 F.3d 106 (2d Cir. 2013); Gonzalez v. Old Lison Restaurant & Bar, 820 F.Supp.2d 1365 (S.D. Fla. 2011). leadingageny.org 16