On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) voted 3-2 to promulgate a Final Rule that prohibits the use of almost all non-compete clauses in employment contracts. Absent an effective legal challenge delaying or...more
4/26/2024
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
FTC Act ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Trade Secrets
While employers continue to deal with the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, they’re also faced with the economic uncertainty of a probable recession and a tight labor market, among other risks....more
While employers were busy figuring out how to comply with the patchwork of laws stemming from the ongoing pandemic, the state of Illinois passed a number of new and amended laws impacting Illinois workplaces. As the year...more
11/22/2021
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Harassment ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Interviews ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Popular ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws
On September 9, 2021, President Biden announced a six-pronged national strategy to fight COVID-19. The President’s plan includes a rule that is being developed by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) that...more
9/16/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Illinois employers should be aware of legislation that unanimously passed the Illinois General Assembly over Memorial Day weekend and is expected to be signed into law by Governor Pritzker on or before August 30, 2021. This...more
Illinois Enters the “Bridge Phase” -
On May 17, 2021, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker issued Executive Order 2021-10, which provides that, due to the positive/favorable trend in COVID-19 metrics across the state, Illinois...more
On March 18th, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued a publication addressing ongoing legal issues for employers. Not only does this publication provide general guidance for employers, but it also...more
On March 9, 2020, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its "Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19" to instruct employers how best to reduce their employees' risk of exposure to COVID-19 and...more
3/12/2020
/ Best Practices ,
Business Continuity Plans ,
China ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Crisis Management ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Event Cancellation ,
Flexible Work Arrangements ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Public Health ,
Risk Management ,
Sick Leave ,
Telecommuting ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
The EEOC has officially ended its collection of EEO-1 Component 2 reports, pursuant to a February 10, 2020, Court Order by Judge Tanya S. Chutkan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. According to the...more
2/26/2020
/ Data Collection ,
Deregulation ,
EEO-1 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equal Pay ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Pay Data ,
Pay Discrimination ,
Pay Gap ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Wage and Hour
On September 24, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) finally unveiled its long-awaited final rule under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) which officially will increase the minimum salary level for the “white...more
9/26/2019
/ Bonuses ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Final Rules ,
Highly Compensated Employees ,
Incentives ,
Minimum Salary ,
Misclassification ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Obama Administration ,
Over-Time ,
Standard Duties Test ,
Trump Administration ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
As of July 15, 2019, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is equipped to accept 2017 and 2018 Component 2 EEO-1 reports from covered employers. Currently, employers who wish to submit this data now can do so via...more
7/18/2019
/ Data Collection ,
EEO-1 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equal Pay ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Pay Data ,
Pay Discrimination ,
Pay Gap ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Wage and Hour
As the holiday weekend approaches, many employers in Chicago and Cook County find themselves scrambling to prepare for the Chicago and Cook County Paid Sick Leave Ordinances that will take effect this Saturday, July 1, 2017....more
Last week, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas entered an order enjoining the implementation and enforcement of U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) regulations which change the minimum annual salary level...more
On October 5, 2016, the Cook County Board of Commissioners enacted an ordinance that will require employers throughout Cook County, Illinois to provide paid sick leave to employees (the “Cook County Ordinance”). The Cook...more
Last July, we reported that the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) had issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that sought to update the salary level threshold governing the executive, administrative and professional exemptions to...more
Yesterday, President Obama signed into law the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (DTSA). The White House had previously expressed support for this law by stating that “Effective protection of trade secrets promotes innovation...more
5/12/2016
/ Asset Seizure ,
Confidential Information ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Economic Espionage Act ,
Ex Parte ,
Immunity ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Misappropriation ,
New Legislation ,
Private Right of Action ,
Trade Secrets ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies
Chicago is likely to become the next municipality to require employers to provide paid sick leave. On April 13, 2016, the Chicago City Council proposed an amendment to the Chicago Minimum Wage Ordinance that would require...more
The start of the New Year has brought about a flurry of federal administrative agency activity, including guidance from the Department of Labor (DOL) on the joint employer standard to be used for wage and hour matters, as...more
The trend of wage and hour developments facing employers continues in 2015 with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently issuing a proposed rule that would update the regulations governing the white collar exemptions to...more