About Worker Wisdom
Most people don’t think about employment law until something goes wrong. A paycheck comes up short. A manager denies a leave request. A meeting appears on the calendar with no explanation and HR is already in the room.
When that happens, the information you need is scattered across statutes, agency pages, and law firm sites written for other lawyers. Worker Wisdom exists to close that gap — to explain what the law actually says, in language you can use, before you have to make a decision you can’t undo.
Who’s Behind Worker Wisdom
Worker Wisdom was founded by Alicia Lillegard, an attorney with more than 25 years of experience in employment law, human resources, insurance, and workplace issues.
Over that time she has worked with large blue-chip companies, startups, and nonprofit organizations — which means she has seen how these situations look from both sides of the table. She has sat in on the terminations, written the policies, handled the accommodation requests, and fielded the questions employees were afraid to ask out loud.
That perspective shapes everything on this site. Worker Wisdom isn’t written from a textbook. It’s written from experience with how employers actually behave, where employees typically get tripped up, and which details end up mattering when a situation escalates.
Alicia is the founder and publisher of Worker Wisdom, and also leads New England Human Capital, the company that owns it.
What We Cover
- Employee Rights — labor laws, the ADA and disability accommodations, FMLA and medical leave, discrimination and harassment, workplace privacy, and retaliation and whistleblower protections
- Pay & Benefits — wage and hour rules, payroll and taxes, health insurance, PTO and sick leave, breaks, and wage theft
- Hiring & Careers — job searching, applications, interviews, and career development
- Workplace Issues — difficult managers, coworker conflict, performance reviews, and hostile work environments
- Leaving a Job — resignations, terminations, layoffs, severance, and unemployment benefits
How We Write
Employment law is an area where a confident wrong answer can cost someone their job, their benefits, or their claim. A few commitments shape how articles here get written:
We cite primary sources. Where an article relies on a statute, an agency rule, or a court decision, we name it and link to it — the EEOC, the Department of Labor, and state labor agencies, not someone else’s summary.
We say when it depends on your state. Most employment questions don’t have one national answer. Where the rule varies, we say so plainly and give examples rather than leaving you with a generality that may not apply where you live.
We don’t overstate. “May qualify” and “usually disqualifies you” are not hedging — they’re accurate. Articles that promise certainty about your specific situation are articles you shouldn’t trust.
We update. Laws change, agency guidance is revised, and deadlines shift. Articles are reviewed and revised rather than left to age, and substantive updates are reflected in the page’s date.
We tell you when to get a lawyer. Some situations need advice about your facts, not general information. Where that’s the case, the article says so.
Why This Site Exists
There’s an information gap at work, and it doesn’t favor employees.
Your employer has an HR department, an employee handbook, and usually a lawyer. When a dispute comes up, they know what the rules are and what they can do. Most employees are working it out in real time, often under pressure, sometimes in a meeting they didn’t know was coming.
That asymmetry is why people resign when they could have negotiated, sign agreements they haven’t read, or miss a filing deadline they never knew existed.
Closing that gap doesn’t require becoming an expert. It usually takes knowing one thing: that a resignation can count as a firing, that your final paycheck is governed by state law, that a complaint to HR is legally protected. Worker Wisdom’s mission is to make sure every worker is informed — so you can recognize what’s happening and take the right next step.
Get in Touch
Have a question about something at work? Ask a question — reader questions often become articles, and yours is rarely the only one.
You can also find Worker Wisdom on LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Instagram.
Disclaimer
Worker Wisdom provides general information about employment and workplace issues. It is not legal advice, and reading this site does not create an attorney-client relationship.
Employment laws vary by state and change over time, and the right answer often depends on facts specific to your situation. If you are facing a workplace issue that may have legal consequences, consult a licensed attorney in your state. Please read our Terms and Conditions.
Worker Wisdom℠ is published by New England Human Capital LLC.