Late this past Friday, December 17, a panel of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals issued an order dissolving the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals' stay that had blocked implementation of OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard...more
Earlier this month, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) issued its “COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing; Emergency Temporary Standard” (the “ETS”) requiring employers of 100 or more employees to implement...more
Today the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) published its “COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing; Emergency Temporary Standard” (the “ETS”) in the Federal Register. The ETS applies to employers with a total of...more
This past Friday, September 24, 2021, the White House “Safer Federal Workforce Task Force” issued Guidance construing President Biden’s September 9 Executive Order concerning required COVID-19 vaccination and other safety...more
9/28/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
Masks ,
Mitigation ,
New Guidance ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Exemption ,
Social Distancing ,
Vaccine Passports ,
Workplace Safety
On Thursday, September 9, 2021, as President Biden announced his new six-pronged plan to combat the continuing spread of COVID-19, he acknowledged, what was readily apparent from his actions and tone, that his “patience is...more
9/14/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Healthcare Workers ,
OSHA ,
Privately Held Corporations ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
In response to the modified COVID-19 recommendations published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on July 27, 2021, on Friday, August 13, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)...more
8/17/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
General Duty Clause ,
Guidance Update ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
OSHA ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
The COVID-19 Delta variant has prompted a u-turn by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) on certain of its previous recommendations. In response, employers should take note that their workplace policies may...more
On June 10, 2021, shortly after issuing its Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”) for healthcare settings, OSHA updated its Guidance on Mitigating and Preventing the Spread of COVID-19 in the Workplace (“Updated OSHA...more
6/14/2021
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Mandates ,
General Duty Clause ,
Guidance Update ,
High Risk Covid Employees ,
Masks ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Social Distancing ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Earlier today, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued its long-awaited guidance concerning the permissibility of employer vaccination incentive programs and, at the same time, provided further guidance...more
6/1/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Confidential Information ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
GINA ,
Incentives ,
New Guidance ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations
On Thursday, May 13, 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) delivered welcome news for vaccinated individuals in the form of revised Interim Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People. The...more
5/17/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disclosure ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
GINA ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Masks ,
OSHA ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Vaccinations ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
Workplace Safety
Yesterday, March 2, 2021, the Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, issued an order lifting his previously-imposed face covering mandate effective March 10. The order also removes certain other COVID-19 mitigation requirements...more
As COVID-19 vaccines become available to broader groups during winter and spring 2021, employers are considering how they can encourage employees to get vaccinated. While the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)...more
1/15/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Final Rules ,
Incentives ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Exemption ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Wellness Programs ,
Workplace Safety
With one pharmaceutical company already receiving emergency use authorization for its COVID-19 vaccine, and a second drug maker apparently on the cusp of receiving authorization, employers, eager to return to normal business...more
12/18/2020
/ ADEA ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Guidance Update ,
OSHA ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Exemption ,
Title VII ,
Undue Hardship ,
Vaccinations
As Election Day approaches, employers nationwide consider the changes that may come with a victory by Senator Joseph Biden in the Presidential race and/or shift in representation in the U.S. Senate. While we cannot be...more
10/30/2020
/ Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equality Act ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Final Rules ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joe Biden ,
Labor Relations ,
NLRB ,
OFCCP ,
OSHA ,
Paycheck Fairness Act ,
Presidential Elections ,
Proposed Rules ,
Union Organizers ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Investigations ,
Workplace Safety
Educational institutions across the nation are grappling with decisions on returning teachers, staff and administrators to work for the academic year 2020-2021 in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Each institution must...more
7/22/2020
/ ADEA ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employment Discrimination ,
NLRB ,
Our Lady of Guadalupe School v Morrissey-Berru ,
Religious Schools ,
SCOTUS ,
Title VII ,
Unfair Labor Practices
On March 18, 2020, President Donald Trump signed into law the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (the “FFCRA”). The FFCRA seeks to assist employees impacted by novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) and applies to employers...more
In the early morning hours of March 14, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (the “House Bill”), which seeks to assist employees impacted by the coronavirus and...more
3/18/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Pending Legislation ,
Public Health ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
Tax Credits ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
Employers across the world are responding to the developing information on the coronavirus (referred to as COVID-19). While there are many considerations, and many fact-specific considerations based on the nature of the...more