As November came to an end, federal courts across the country continue to examine and issue preliminary rulings on challenges to various COVID vaccine mandates put in place by the Biden Administration. At the beginning of...more
12/1/2021
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Appeals ,
Biden Administration ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employees ,
Covered Employer ,
Employer Mandates ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Procurement Systems ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Notice and Comment ,
OSHA ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Subcontractors ,
Temporary Regulations ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Employers covered under OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard to Protect Workers from Coronavirus (“ETS”) have a duty to bargain with unions representing employees over certain aspects of the ETS, according to Jennifer Abruzzo,...more
11/12/2021
/ Collective Bargaining ,
Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employer ,
Masks ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
OSHA ,
Temporary Regulations ,
Unions ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
On October 29, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued its final rule outlining the circumstances under which an employer is permitted to take a “tip credit” against its wage obligation to tipped employees, paying...more
On September 9, 2021, President Biden signed executive orders that will require that all federal executive branch workers to be vaccinated for COVID-19 (the “Federal Employee Order”) and that this standard be extended to...more
With a newly minted Democratic majority on the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”), the General Counsel of the NLRB, who directs enforcement of federal labor law, has ordered her staff to seek broad remedies - many of...more
In the past few months, there have been several developments regarding California’s controversial Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) and similar legislation making its way through other states.
PAGA permits workers to...more
On July 27, 2021, the CDC revised its advisory guidance - providing that even the fully vaccinated should wear a mask indoors in public if in an area of “substantial or high transmission.” The CDC has provided a map...more
On April 27, 2021 President Biden signed an Executive Order raising the minimum wage for federal contractors to $15 per hour by the end of March 2022. In response, and to supplement the Executive Order, the U.S. Department of...more
Citing concerns about worker mobility and advocating for increased market competition, President Biden signed Executive Order No. 14036: Promoting Competition in the American Economy, on July 9, 2021. The Order, published in...more
7/15/2021
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Biden Administration ,
Consideration ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Low-Wage Workers ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Statutory Authority ,
Unfair Labor Practices
On June 21, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) introduced a proposed rule which, when effective, would impose increased limitations on when an employer can pay a tipped worker the “tipped minimum wage.” The proposed...more
6/23/2021
/ Comment Period ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Minimum Wage ,
Proposed Rules ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Tip Credit ,
Tipped Employees ,
Tips ,
Wage and Hour
In the past few weeks, federal and state decisions in California regarding various employment-related claims in California, but particularly addressing California’s demanding pay statement requirements, provided helpful and...more
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA), fully vaccinated employees no longer need to wear a mask or physically distance in any...more
On May 5, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor withdrew the pro-business Independent Contractor Final Rule published in the final days of President Trump’s administration. This withdrawal follows the Department of Labor’s...more
5/10/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Wage and Hour
On April 28, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that the application of California’s Assembly Bill 5 (“AB5”) to motor carriers is not preempted by the Federal Aviation Administration...more
On Tuesday, April 27, President Biden signed Executive Order 14025, raising the minimum wage for federal contractors to $15 per hour by the end of March 2022. This marks a sharp 37% increase from the current $10.95 minimum...more
On March 29, 2021, a new law took effect in California requiring most employers to provide supplemental paid sick leave to employees for a variety of COVID-19-related circumstances. The new law, approved by Governor Newsom on...more
4/2/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Governor Newsom ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Retroactive Application ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws ,
Supplemental Benefits ,
Tax Credits ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour
The House of Representatives passed a bill that would overhaul federal labor law with the express purpose of making it easier for unions to organize workers and more difficult for employers to classify them as independent...more
3/12/2021
/ Collective Actions ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Employee Rights ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Pending Legislation ,
Union Elections ,
Unions
On February 19, 2021, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division withdrew its opinion letter that indicated gig economy workers who offer services in a virtual marketplace are independent contractors. The Wage and Hour...more
2/23/2021
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Economic Realities Test ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
Opinion Letter ,
Rescission ,
Virtual Marketplace Companies (VMCs) ,
Wage and Hour
President Joe Biden has nominated Jennifer Abruzzo, a lawyer for the Communication Workers of America union, to be general counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (the “Board”) after forcing out Peter Robb as the head...more
On January 14, 2021, the California Supreme Court in Vasquez v. Jan-Pro Franchise International, Inc. held that the three-part “ABC” test previously set forth in Dynamex Operations West Inc. v. Superior Court also applies...more
On January 14, 2021, the California Supreme Court in Vasquez v. Jan-Pro Franchise International, Inc. held that the three-part “ABC” test previously set forth in Dynamex Operations West Inc. v. Superior Court also applies...more
1/19/2021
/ ABC Test ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Dynamex ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
Retroactive Application ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
On January 13, 2021, Governor Mike DeWine signed into law H.B. 352, overhauling the state’s employment discrimination laws in several significant respects. Most notably, the new law requires that prospective plaintiffs file...more
On January 6, 2021, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) published its final rule clarifying who is an independent contractor, rather than an employee covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA). The factors are the same as...more
On March 31, 2021, and by March 31 of each subsequent year, California employers that employ 100 or more employees and are required to file an annual Employer Information Report (EEO-1) with the Equal Employment Opportunity...more
10/28/2020
/ Bureau of Labor Statistics ,
Cal-OSHA ,
DFEH ,
EEO-1 ,
Equal Pay ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
New Legislation ,
Pay Data ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
On September 22, 2020, President Trump signed a new executive order “On Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping.” The new order applies to federal contractors, federal agencies, and federal grant recipients and bans training that...more
9/29/2020
/ Bias ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Colleges ,
Deregulation ,
Diversity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employee Training ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
OFCCP ,
Race Relations ,
Sexual Stereotyping ,
Title VII ,
Trump Administration ,
Universities