On August 7, 2023, the EEOC issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking containing its proposed regulations for implementing the PWFA. The PWFA was signed into law by President Biden on December 29, 2022 and went into effect on...more
On June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court of the United States revisited an employer's obligation to provide religious accommodations under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), heightening the standard employers...more
7/6/2023
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
De Minimus Doctrine ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Groff v DeJoy ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Substantial Burden ,
Title VII ,
Undue Hardship ,
USPS
On December 29, 2022, President Biden signed two bills into law aimed at enhancing protections for pregnant and nursing parents in the workplace: the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) and the Providing Urgent Maternal...more
On December 6, 2021, New York City announced a vaccine mandate for all private-sector employers that will take effect on December 27, 2021. The mandate, which will require all in-person employees who are in a workplace with...more
12/7/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Deadlines ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Mayor de Blasio ,
New York ,
Private Sector ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
State Legislatures ,
Vaccinations
Updates Regarding COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate for Federal Contractors Released November 12, 2021 On November 4, 2021, the White House announced that the deadline for the federal contractor vaccination mandate will be extended...more
11/12/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Compliance ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employer ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Federal Contractors ,
OSHA ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Time Extensions ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On October 25, 2021, as more employers adopt workplace vaccination requirements for their employees, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) updated its guidance concerning requiring COVID-19 vaccinations in...more
10/29/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Exemptions ,
Guidance Update ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Beliefs ,
Religious Exemption ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
On May 28, 2021, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) updated its guidance concerning COVID-19 vaccinations in the employment context. Most significantly, the EEOC offered long-awaited guidance on the...more
6/3/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Documentation ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
GINA ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Incentives ,
New Guidance ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Vaccinations
On March 12, 2021, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law legislation granting public and private employees paid time off to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. The new law immediately requires all New York State...more
On December 16, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued guidance for employers regarding the intersection of employer COVID-19 vaccine policies and various federal equal employment opportunity...more
12/21/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disability ,
Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
GINA ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
The rise in opioid use and addiction in the United States has raised complicated issues for employers. On August 5, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) addressed some of these issues by issuing...more
On March 18, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued a guidance to employers answering several commonly asked questions relating to COVID-19 and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The...more
On June 3, 2019, the United States Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Fort Bend County, Texas vs. Davis that Title VII cases can proceed in federal court even if employees fail to first bring their claims before the U.S....more
6/5/2019
/ Affirmative Defenses ,
Amended Complaints ,
Appeals ,
Charge-Filing Preconditions ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Forfeiture ,
Fort Bend County Texas v Davis ,
Jurisdictional Requirements ,
Mandatory Claim-Processing Rules ,
Reaffirmation ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Retaliation ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Time-Barred Claims ,
Title VII ,
Waiver Rule ,
Wrongful Termination
On July 28, 2017, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (“PWFA”) into law. The PWFA, which will go into effect on April 1, 2018, requires that employers provide reasonable...more
In a landmark decision, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) ruled on Monday that an employee who is fired for testing positive for marijuana due to her lawful off-duty use of medical marijuana can pursue a claim...more
Last week, the Massachusetts House of Representatives unanimously passed the Massachusetts Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (H.3680). If the bill becomes law, it will expand employment protections for pregnant workers in...more
On June 1, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court held, in Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc., that an employer violates federal anti-discrimination law where an applicant’s need for a religious...more
6/4/2015
/ Abercrombie & Fitch ,
Discrimination ,
Dress Codes ,
EEOC v Abercrombie ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Application ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
SCOTUS
On March 25, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court addressed an employer’s obligation to accommodate employees’ pregnancy-related job restrictions. In Young v. United Parcel Service, Inc., the Court recognized that employers who fail...more