Latest News

Apr
05
2023
Retaliation occurs when an employer takes an adverse action against an employee for engaging in or exercising their rights that are protected under the law. Common activities that may incite retaliation include the following:
Mar
14
2023
Claire Howard Elevated to Partner at Madsen Prestley & Parenteau LLC Madsen Prestley & Parenteau LLC, a Connecticut based employee rights law firm dedicated to protecting the rights of all workers, is pleased to announce the promotion of Claire Howard to the position of partner effective January 1, 2023. Claire handles a wide span of […]
Jan
24
2023
Attorney Jacques Parenteau scored a victory recently on the case Donna Duso, et al. v. Town of Groton. The case consisted of several former police officers seeking judgment over a matter of their pensions. The full memorandum of decision can be read here. Case Summary In this case, the plaintiffs ask the court to declare […]
Oct
17
2022
Madsen, Prestley & Parenteau recently secured a victory on an appeal to the Connecticut Supreme Court in a case which provides important guidance in disability discrimination cases involving requests for reasonable accommodations. The Connecticut Supreme Court’s decision in Kovachich v. Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services followed a 2018 trial in which we obtained […]
Oct
11
2022
Madsen, Prestley & Parenteau is pleased to announce that four of its attorneys have been named to the 2022 Connecticut Super Lawyers® and Rising Stars lists in the area of Employment Litigation: Plaintiff. Specifically, William Madsen, Jacques Parenteau, and Todd Steigman have been selected for inclusion on the list of Super Lawyers, while Claire Howard […]
Aug
25
2022
Through a negotiated settlement, MPP has secured a significant recovery for one of its clients, Dr. Nicole Esposito, the Campus CEO of Manchester Community College.
Aug
22
2022
Employers make most wage deductions for taxes, benefits, and other mandatory withholdings. However, in some cases, employers may deduct wages voluntarily as well. For example, an employer may agree to deduct union dues from an employee's wages.
Feb
22
2022
Connecticut employment law firm achieves important victory after a long battle On January 22, 2022, an arbitrator ruled that former men’s basketball coach Kevin Ollie, represented by Madsen, Prestley & Parenteau LLC, had been improperly fired by the University of Connecticut. The arbitrator’s ruling ordered UConn to pay Ollie $11.2 million, an amount that reflects […]
Feb
08
2022
Under federal and state employment law, it is illegal for a Connecticut employer to discriminate against an employee by taking retaliatory measures after he or she flags misconduct or makes a complaint. Employees who do the right thing and report misconduct (sometimes called “whistleblowers”) should not have to pay a price for stepping forward. The […]
Aug
20
2021
What Can Workers Do When Witnessing Workplace Discrimination? Not only is workplace discrimination illegal in Connecticut – but it’s also illegal for an employer to retaliate against an employee who reports it. Yet those who witness workplace discrimination often fail to report it because they are rightly concerned about repercussions if they do. Any employee […]
Jun
29
2021
The Equal Pay Act (EPA), a federal law requiring employers to pay women and men equally for the same job, was passed in 1963. In addition to protecting both men and women from sex-based discrimination in pay rates, the EPA was intended to resolve the significant wage disparity suffered by female workers at the time. […]
Jun
04
2021
Wage theft occurs with shocking frequency in industries across the country. It can take many forms; sometimes, the offense is blatant, and other times the victim may be completely unaware of the violation of their rights. Wage theft can range from a complete refusal to pay for hours worked to a small deduction in pay. […]
Mar
08
2021
Although the United States has come a long way on race, race discrimination in the workplace still occurs and affects hundreds to thousands of workers every year. Fortunately, there are state and federal laws in place that protect workers from being discriminated against because of their race, and workers who are subjected to race discrimination have the right to file a claim and be compensated for their mistreatment.
Dec
10
2020
Several recent high-profile discrimination cases involving university professors highlight the continued disparity in pay between male and female academics.
Sep
22
2020
If you feel your employer is retaliating against you for your involvement in a protected activity, there are three things that you must be able to prove to win your case.
Aug
25
2020
Age discrimination occurs when an employer treats an employee differently because of their age. Unfortunately, age discrimination in the workplace is more common than most Americans would like to think.
Jun
23
2020
The law makes it illegal for an employer to retaliate against you if you engage in an activity protected by a statute. Thus, if an employer is aware that you engaged in a protected activity, you should be protected from acts of retaliation by your employer for that activity.
May
19
2020
If you believe your employment ended for unjust or illegal reasons, you may be wondering whether you have legitimate grounds for a wrongful termination lawsuit.
May
05
2020
If you do not work in an exempt category and believe you are owed unpaid overtime/time-and-a-half wages, you can file a claim within the Connecticut Department of Labor.
Apr
23
2020
On March 27, 2020, Congress passed and the President signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) to provide economic relief in response to the coronavirus pandemic. CARES Act included funding for a Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (“FPUC”).
Apr
21
2020
If you are a member of a protected class and believe you are or have been a victim of illegal discrimination in Connecticut, you can file a complaint with the CHRO at no cost.
Apr
07
2020
Some whistleblower laws allow for compensation to be paid to the whistleblower who comes forward and reports the wrongdoing, under certain conditions.
Mar
19
2020
As we all respond to the Covid-19 virus, Madsen, Prestley & Parenteau remains open for business, and continues to serve its clients.
Aug
29
2019
As part of the Taxpayer First Act of 2019, Congress enacted new protections for whistleblowers who provide information about the failure to pay taxes that should have been paid, or about any conduct that the employee believes is a violation of tax laws or any federal law relating to tax fraud.
Jun
06
2019
The Connecticut General Assembly has passed several significant changes to Connecticut law impacting various areas of employment, which the Governor is expected to sign.
May
23
2018
On Friday, March 16, 2018, Attorney General Sessions decided to terminate the employment of former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, shortly before McCabe would have been eligible to retire with his full pension after more than 21 years of service at the FBI.
May
23
2018
On Friday, March 16, 2018, Attorney General Sessions decided to terminate the employment of former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, shortly before McCabe would have been eligible to retire with his full pension after more than 21 years of service at the FBI.
Mar
19
2018
On Friday, March 16, 2018, Attorney General Sessions decided to terminate the employment of former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, shortly before McCabe would have been eligible to retire with his full pension after more than 21 years of service at the FBI.
Mar
12
2018
In another important decision in the continued evolution of federal law protecting the rights of individuals in the LGBTQ community, a federal appeals Court ruled that Title VII – the federal statute which prohibits discrimination based on “sex” – makes it illegal to discriminate against an employee because they are transgender. The March 7, 2018 […]
Mar
12
2018
The Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) requires that employers provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities and who can perform the essential functions of the job, with or without a reasonable accommodation. While the obligation to provide a reasonable accommodation is clear, the question of whether a particular accommodation is reasonable is often disputed in […]
Mar
06
2018
In an important development in the continued advancement of the law protecting the rights of members of the LGBTQ community, the federal Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, whose decisions are binding on federal courts in Connecticut, New York, and Vermont, ruled that a major federal statute, Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation. The February 26, 2018 decision in Zarda v. Altitude Express, Inc., reversed earlier decisions by that Court and provided an expansive interpretation of Title VII’s prohibition of discrimination based on “sex,” which included sexual orientation discrimination.
Mar
06
2018
In a recent case, Digital Realty Trust, Inc. v. Somers, decided on February 21, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court clarified that the Dodd-Frank Act – passed in 2010 in the wake of the financial crisis – only protects whistleblowers from retaliation if they report violations of securities laws to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Jan
11
2017
According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), in 2015, retaliation claims made up to 45 percent of all private-sector charges filed with the agency.
Jan
11
2017
Walmart is poised to pay millions of dollars to thousands of former and current employees after it agreed to settle a lawsuit claiming the company denied health insurance to same-sex spouses.
Jan
11
2017
On December 5, 2016, Congress enacted S. 795, which permanently extends legal protections to employees of federal contractors, subcontractors, grantees, and others employed by entities that receive federal funds who report waste, fraud, or abuse involving federal funds.
Dec
19
2016
In 2015, the Connecticut Supreme Court issued an important decision protecting the rights of employees to speak out against wrongdoing in the workplace. The case, Trusz v. UBS Realty Investors LLC, 319 Conn. 175 (2015), involved Richard Trusz, a former manager director at UBS who Madsen, Prestley & Parenteau represented from 2008 until 2016, and his former employer.
Sep
06
2016
Federal and state laws prohibit pregnancy discrimination in employment. The prohibition not only protects the pregnant employee from wrongful termination, but from discriminatory treatment in the terms and conditions of employment—such as pay, benefits, work assignments, leaves of absence and discipline.
Sep
01
2016
The Americans with Disabilities Act [ADA] specifies failure to provide a ‘reasonable accommodation’ as illegal discrimination. Under the ADA, a reasonable accommodation is defined as environmental employment changes designed to allow a disable worker to perform essential job functions.
Sep
01
2016
Aug
31
2016
When the town of East Lyme agreed in July to pay Paul Holmes nearly half a million dollars to settle a lawsuit, Holmes was happy to have his ordeal behind him. But the part-time town police officer and area native said he was still missing one thing he’d lost: his reputation. Read the entire article […]
Aug
30
2016
MPP wins $1.3 million verdict for free speech retaliation.
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