Employment Law

Employment Attorneys at

Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, S.C.

State and federal law protects employees from discrimination on the basis of protected classifications including discrimination in employment on the basis of age, gender, race, disability, criminal record, and status as members of the armed forces of the United States. Employment laws also guarantee leave from employment for certain family and medical events and for leave for some military service. The attorneys at Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, S.C. have pursued employment claims on behalf of employees in a wide variety of forums, including the state and federal courts. This includes employment claims in the following areas of the law:

Americans with Disabilities Act

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination against a qualified individual with a disability. A failure to make a reasonable accommodation of the disabled person also violates the ADA, unless it would impose an undue hardship upon the employer.

A disabled employee is a person with a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more life activities. It may also include individuals with a record such an impairment, individuals perceived as having such an impairment, or individuals associated with a disabled person. The ADA prohibits all types of discrimination on the basis of disability, including discrimination in hiring, recruitment, advertising, application, transfer, layoff, discipline, promotion, training, job assignment, pay and benefits granting leaves of absence, harassment, and failure to make a reasonable accommodation.

If you have questions about your employee rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act, please contact the attorneys at Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, toll free at 1‑800‑841‑5232, or Disability@Previant.com.

Age Discrimination in Employment Act

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) protects individuals who are 40 years of age or older from employment discrimination based on age. The ADEA's protections apply to both employees and job applicants. Under the ADEA, it is unlawful to discriminate against a person because of his/her age with respect to wages, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, including hiring, firing, promotion, layoff, compensation, benefits, job assignments, and training.

If you have questions about your employee rights under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, please contact the attorneys at Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, toll free at 1‑800‑841‑5232, or Discrimination@Previant.com.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) and the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act (WFEA), Wis. Stat. §111.31 et. seq., prohibit employment discrimination based on the protected characteristics of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Under both Title VII and the WFEA, it is illegal to discriminate on the basis of a protected characteristic in any aspect of employment including hiring and firing, compensation, transfer, promotion, layoff or recall, testing, training, fringe benefits, retirement plans, and other terms and conditions of employment.

Title VII and the WFEA further prohibit harassment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin; retaliation against an individual for filing a charge of discrimination, participating in an investigation, or opposing discriminatory practices; and employment decisions based on stereotypes or assumptions about the abilities, traits, or performance of individuals of a certain sex, race, religion or ethnic group.

If you have questions about your employee rights under Title VII or the WFEA, please contact the attorneys at Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, S.C., toll free at 1‑800‑841‑5232, or Discrimination@Previant.com.

Family and Medical Leave Act

Under the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) 29 U.S.C. §2611, et seq. employers with 50 or more employees must grant eligible employees up to twelve weeks of unpaid leave during a twelve month period for any one or more of the following reasons:

• the birth and care of the newborn child of the employee;
• placement with the employee of a son or daughter for adoption or foster care;
• to care for an immediate family member (spouse, child, or parent) with a serious health condition;
for medical leave for the employee's own serious health condition.

Upon return from FMLA leave, the employer must return the employee to the same position or to an "equivalent position with equivalent benefits, pay, status, and other terms and conditions of employment." During leave, an employee is entitled to maintain health benefits coverage by paying the employee's share (if any) of the premiums.

The Wisconsin Family and Medical Leave Law, Wis. Stat. §103.10, covers employers with fifty or more employees and requires all covered employers to grant employees of either sex up to six (6) weeks of leave in a twelve‑month period for the birth or adoption of a child, up to two (2) weeks of leave in a twelve‑month period for the care of a child, spouse or parent with a serious health condition, up to two (2) weeks of leave in a twelve‑month period for the employee's own serious health condition.

Like the federal FMLA, the Wisconsin statute guarantees an employee, upon conclusion of leave, reinstatement to his former position if it is vacant or to an equivalent position if filled.

If you have questions about your employee rights under the federal or state FMLA laws, please contact the attorneys at Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, S.C., toll free at 1‑800‑841‑5232, or MedicalLeave@Previant.com.

Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)

The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) ensures that employees who are called to active military duty, can return to their jobs without penalty after completing their military obligations. Because of the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, reserve troops are increasingly called to active duty in the military, but many employers are unaware of just how extensive returning veterans' rights are under the USERRA.

USERRA applies to all public and private employers. When the duration of military leave is less than five years, USERRA generally guarantees employees (but not independent contractors) returning from military service the right to their former job while protecting seniority and other rights and benefits. Returning veterans must be reemployed at the wage and with the benefits the employee would have accumulated had he or she not been called to military service. This means that returning employees' wages, benefits packages, seniority and other rights or benefits are restored immediately and at the level the employee would have earned during the duration of the military leave.

If you have questions about your employee rights under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, please contact the attorneys at Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, toll free at 1‑800‑841‑5232, or Veterans@Previant.com.

Employment Law Group:

Matthew R. Robbins, Scott D. Soldon, Marianne Goldstein Robbins, Jill M. Hartley, Nathan D. Eisenberg, Yingtao Ho, and Sara J. Geenen.