2023 was a seismic year for the employment landscape, with changes to state and federal laws that touch on hiring, firing, and just about everything in between. Members of Fenwick’s employment group recently walked through...more
2/1/2024
/ Arbitration Agreements ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
California ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint Employers ,
Labor Reform ,
New Legislation ,
New York ,
NLRB ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Paid Leave ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
State Labor Laws ,
Technology ,
Wage and Hour
Once a startup has properly classified its worker, it should document its relationship with the worker in order to clearly identify the classification, compensation and benefits (e.g., base salary, bonus, commissions, equity,...more
An important part of hiring employees is deciding how to compensate them. Because of limited capital, startups often implement equity-only compensation or deferred compensation arrangements in lieu of regular salaries....more
Hiring workers is an important step for startups. Startups engage two main types of workers—employees and independent contractors. It can be difficult to determine the proper classification of a worker, especially since both...more
Effective August 1, 2023, employers participating in E-Verify in good standing have the option to conduct remote inspections of Form I-9 documents, pursuant to the federal Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) new rule....more
8/7/2023
/ Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
E-Verify ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Form I-9 ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Required Forms ,
USCIS
On July 14, 2023, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced an “investigative sweep” through inquiry letters sent to large California employers. The sweep seeks information on companies’ compliance with the California...more
7/24/2023
/ Board of Directors ,
Business Ownership ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) ,
Covered Business ,
Covered Employer ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Independent Contractors ,
Job Applicants ,
Personal Information ,
Privacy Policy ,
Regulatory Requirements
In May, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced that the Form I-9 flexibilities allowing for remote verification will end on July 31, 2023. DHS regulations...more
7/3/2023
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
E-Verify ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Form I-9 ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Required Forms ,
USCIS
As we reported last month, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) struck down broad confidentiality and non-disparagement provisions in severance agreements in McLaren Macomb, 372 NLRB No. 58, finding such provisions to be...more
On the heels of more than three years of legal challenges (summarized here) to California’s AB 51, which prohibits employers from requiring employees to arbitrate disputes under the state’s Labor Code and Fair Employment and...more
On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced its long-anticipated proposed rule, which if adopted, would essentially ban all noncompete agreements between employers and their workers that restrict such...more
Join Fenwick’s Employment Practices Group for a 90-minute discussion of the legal developments and emerging trends that shaped 2022 then hear about the compliance recommendations, practical takeaways, and perspective on what...more
12/23/2022
/ Continuing Legal Education ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Regulations ,
New Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Webinars ,
Workplace Safety
U.S. Department of Labor Publishes Proposed Rule on Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act -
On October 13, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a proposed rule updating the...more
10/25/2022
/ Arbitration ,
California ,
Cannabis Products ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Data Reporting ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Definition ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Job Ads ,
Marijuana ,
New York ,
Notice Requirements ,
Off-The-Clock ,
Paid Leave ,
Pay Transparency ,
Popular ,
Proposed Rules ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Wage and Hour
Federal contractors who have filed an Employment Information Report (EEO-1) Type 2 Consolidated between 2016-2020 and wish to object to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)...more
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision (Dobbs), several states have already begun outlawing abortions and more states are expected to do so. Some states are also considering...more
7/15/2022
/ Abortion ,
Biden Administration ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Pregnancy ,
Roe v Wade ,
State Labor Laws ,
Travel Reimbursements
[Editor’s Note (01/14/22): In a 6-3 ruling, on January 14, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed the Sixth’s Circuit’s ruling described below, and thereby re-imposed an injunction preventing OSHA from enforcing its Emergency...more
On December 13, 2021, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), citing the Omicron variant and the need for additional protection during the holiday season, issued statewide guidance requiring face masks to be worn...more
[Editor’s Note (12/20/21): The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has lifted the Fifth Circuit’s injunction halting enforcement of the OSHA Standards, and, specifically, the mandate regarding vaccination or weekly...more
Governor Gavin Newsom recently signed a slew of new bills into law at the close of California’s legislative season. Below is a summary of the new employment laws, all of which take effect on January 1, 2022....more
11/10/2021
/ California ,
California Family Rights Act (CFRA) ,
Classification ,
Employee Retention ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Enforcement ,
Governor Newsom ,
Independent Contractors ,
Legislative Agendas ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
State Legislatures ,
Wage Theft ,
Workplace Safety
On November 4, 2021, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its long-awaited emergency standards to implement President Biden’s Vaccine/Testing Mandate for businesses with 100 or more...more
11/9/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Injunctions ,
OSHA ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has issued its long-awaited ruling on the appeal of a California trial court’s injunction that prohibited the State of California from enforcing AB 51,...more
9/21/2021
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
California ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Employment Practices Act ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Injunctions ,
Labor Code ,
New Legislation ,
State Labor Laws
California’s Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board (Cal-OSHA) has released proposed revisions to its COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS). The revisions, key aspects of which are summarized in this alert,...more
6/16/2021
/ Cal-OSHA ,
California ,
CDPH ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Exceptions ,
Governor Newsom ,
Guidance Update ,
Masks ,
Required Documentation ,
Safety Standards ,
State and Local Government ,
Vaccinations
In connection with Santa Clara County’s move into California’s yellow COVID-19 tier, the state’s lowest pandemic restriction level under its tier system, the county’s health officer updated its Health Order, effective May 19,...more
5/24/2021
/ Business Entities ,
California ,
Compliance ,
Contractors ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Independent Contractors ,
Local Ordinance ,
Masks ,
New Regulations ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Required Documentation ,
State and Local Government ,
Subcontractors ,
Vaccinations ,
Vaccine Passports
New ARPA/COBRA Subsidy -
The federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) provides for a 100% subsidy of COBRA premiums for six months from April 1, 2021 through September 30, 2021, for individuals (and their covered...more
4/1/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Biden Administration ,
COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employees ,
Covered Employer ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Governor Cuomo ,
Governor Newsom ,
Health Insurance ,
New Guidance ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Notice Requirements ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Premium Subsidies ,
Relief Measures ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Credits ,
Vaccinations
The California Supreme Court held on January 14, 2021, that its landmark Dynamex decision, which established a rigid standard under California law for companies to classify workers as independent contractors, and later was...more
1/21/2021
/ ABC Test ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Freelance Workers ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Retroactive Application ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws
The rollout of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines in the United States has triggered extensive discussion around the law concerning mandatory vaccine policies in the workplace. This discussion will almost certainly evolve over...more
12/28/2020
/ Cal-OSHA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Moderna Inc. ,
New Guidance ,
OSHA ,
Pfizer ,
Quarantine ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing