Blog Topic

Indiana Breast Feeding Law
Posted by: Phil Gibbons
July 01, 2008

Beginning July 1, 2008, a new Indiana law goes into effect that will protect mothers who wish to breastfeed in the workplace.  The law will affect businesses with 25 or more employees, as well as the state and political subdivisions of the state (government employers).

 The new law requires employers to provide a private location, other than a toilet stall, where an employee can pump breast milk in privacy.  In addition, the employer must either provide a refrigerator (or other cold storage space), or allow the employee to provide their own portable cold storage device, for keeping milk that has been pumped until the end of the employee’s work day.

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How Can A Plaintiff's Employment Attorney Help You?
Posted by: Phil Gibbons
December 04, 2007

As an employment lawyer, I spend my days talking to Indiana employees who have disputes with employers.   These disputes include being  fired, demoted, passed over for  jobs or promotions, denied wages or overtime, sued by their employers, harassed, retaliated against, bullied, and just plain treated unfairly.   This list could fill the entire page, but you get the idea.   Most everyone who contacts me  has some type of conflict with an employer.  Can an employment attorney help everyone who has been wronged?  Unfortunately, the answer is no.  But, for a large number of individuals, an employment attorney can help level the playing field.

Employment law remedies should be viewed on two levels: economic and non-economic.  Obviously, if you have been harmed by an employer, you may be entitled to monetary damages.  This is the economic level.  During your initial consultation, a good employment attorney should be able to spot potential issues that may give rise to a legal claim.   Experienced employment attorneys can help you identify whether your legal rights have been violated.  Often, the legal issue that may provide you with a monetary recovery will not be the issue you called to discuss.  For example, your termination of employment may be unfair, but not unlawful.  Nonetheless, your employer may not have paid you properly during your employment and you may have a valid lawsuit for unpaid wages, improper deductions, and/or overtime. 

The second level of employment law remedies- non-economic- are often more important than the economic remedies.  Many times, non-economic remedies can make a difference in your future employment.  These remedies may include negotiating the conversion of a termination to a voluntary resignation, obtaining a neutral letter of reference, removing disciplinary actions from personnel files, agreeing to confidentiality, and agreeing not to provide negative information to  prospective employers.  Non-economic remedies can be as creative as the parties will allow. 

At a minimum, an employment attorney can help you understand your legal rights.  Most employment attorneys will provide a free telephone consultation.  To the extent you believe an employer has violated your rights, pick up the phone.  You may be surprised by what you learn.

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