Yesterday afternoon (August 20, 2024), the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas blocked the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Final Rule banning most non-competition agreements between employers and...more
8/21/2024
/ Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
FTC Act ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Popular ,
Set-Asides ,
Statutory Authority
The U.S. Department of Labor recently issued a final rule that would increase the required salary thresholds for employees to be exempt from overtime requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The increases to...more
5/7/2024
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Final Rules ,
Highly Compensated Employees ,
Labor Regulations ,
Minimum Salary ,
Over-Time ,
Salaried Employees ,
Threshold Requirements ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
Recently, the Connecticut Supreme Court analyzed the availability of absolute immunity for participants in quasi-judicial proceedings, specifically in relation to the dismissal of a complaint by a Yale University student...more
7/18/2023
/ Absolute Immunity ,
Appeals ,
Class Action ,
Connecticut ,
CT Supreme Court ,
Defamation ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Dismissals ,
Educational Institutions ,
Quasi-Judicial Process ,
Sexual Assault ,
State and Local Government ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Universities ,
Yale
With 2023 underway, employers should be mindful of new federal legislation affecting key provisions in their employment agreements. On December 7, 2022, President Biden signed into law the “Speak Out Act,” which prohibits...more
2/1/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Terms and Conditions
In late 2022, a new Maine law took effect restricting the use and reach of nondisclosure provisions in Maine employment agreements. The new law, Nondisclosure Agreements in Employment, 26 M.R.S. § 599-C, is one of the most...more
2/1/2023
/ Confidentiality Agreements ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Policies ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Separation Agreement ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Severance Agreements ,
State Labor Laws
On Monday, Portland City Councilors took two significant actions that affect employers in Portland, Maine. First, the Council repealed an emergency order from March 2020, eliminating the hazard pay provision set forth in the...more
1/6/2022
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Hazard Pay ,
Masks ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Legislation ,
Popular ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
With the nation’s ongoing focus on COVID-19 vaccinations, you may be hearing information—and misinformation—about your obligations under HIPAA, the federal Health Information Portability and Accountability Act. In this...more
10/25/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Documentation ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare ,
Vaccinations
On September 9, President Biden announced plans to require that federal workers, federal contractors, and employees of employers with 100 or more employees are vaccinated or tested weekly for COVID-19. The Occupational Safety...more
10/5/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Healthcare Workers ,
OSHA ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Congress’s 5593-page Consolidated Appropriations Act, passed by the Senate on December 21, 2020, and signed by the President last night (December 27, 2020), includes an extension of employer tax credits for leave provided...more
12/29/2020
/ Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Extensions ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
IRS ,
Paid Leave ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Credits ,
Trump Administration
Election Day is right around the corner. While many employees may choose to vote by mail, chances are you may have employees requesting time away from the workplace (or a remote work set-up) to vote in person. Now is a better...more
Massachusetts has joined an increasing number of states ordering the closure of non-essential businesses in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak. On March 23, 2020, Governor Charles Baker signed COVID-19 Order No. 13, which...more
Despite the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, business—and hiring—must go on. As the EEOC continues to update its guidance regarding employment practices during the pandemic, here are common questions regarding how to implement...more
Q: I am concerned about employees coming to work with a fever—can I test employees’ temperatures before allowing them to work to avoid spreading the coronavirus?
Verrill’s View: Maybe—but there are many factors to consider....more
3/19/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Medical Examinations ,
NLRA ,
OSHA ,
Virus Testing ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
On Thursday, January 30, members from Verrill's Employment & Labor group, as well as some from the Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation group, conducted a full-day seminar full of employment law related topics that...more
Over the past several years, technology has infiltrated more and more aspects of life—including the employment context. With new consumer and business products and platforms being introduced to the workplace on a daily basis,...more
12/24/2019
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Best Practices ,
Biometric Information ,
Consent ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Facial Recognition Technology ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Interviews ,
Job Applicants ,
Technology Sector
Employee claims of “hostile work environments” continue to make news both in Maine and on a national level, putting potentially embarrassing and damaging workplace and employee interpersonal issues into the public eye. But...more
Governor Mills has signed into law amendments to the existing Workers’ Compensation Act that are the product of a bipartisan effort to avoid a series of proposed legislation that would have had the very real risk of dragging...more
On May 28, 2019, Governor Mills signed into law the nation’s first ever paid leave law requiring leave for any reason. The statute itself is uniquely brief, giving the impression that it is straightforward, but there are a...more
The workers’ compensation landscape is constantly evolving, but don’t worry—we’ve got you covered. In this webinar hosted on April 17, 2019, Verrill Dana attorneys Elizabeth Connellan Smith and Elizabeth Johnston explored the...more
4/29/2019
/ Employee Benefits ,
Employment Litigation ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare Costs ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Pending Legislation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workers Compensation Act ,
Workers' Compensation Claim ,
Workplace Injury
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division recently announced a proposed rule updating regulations governing what items are included in an employee’s regular rate of pay. This constitutes the first update to the...more
We’re halfway through December, which means that the New Year is right around the corner. January 1st always seems to inspire a host of new goals and aspirations for the year ahead, and if you are in human resources, we have...more
12/21/2018
/ Employee Benefits ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Employment Records ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
New Legislation ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Risk Mitigation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
In recent years, “side hustles” have become an increasingly common phenomenon among employees in all industries to supplement income from a “traditional” job. A key attribute of side hustles is that they are self-managed, and...more
12/21/2018
/ Best Practices ,
Confidential Information ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employment Policies ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Independent Contractors ,
Moonlighting ,
Proprietary Information ,
Social Media Policy
The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 was passed to prevent workers from being workers from being seriously harmed at work. Although OSHA compliance should be on your mind all year, the winter season brings with it...more
Employees often take time off around the holidays. In many cases, an employee’s days off might be pursuant to a planned vacation or time with loved ones. However, an employee might request leave for a situation that would...more
The story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer has been a long-time holiday staple, both in film and in song. The gist of the story is that Rudolph was born with a glowing red nose, and because of it, he was made fun of and...more