As Election Day, November 5, 2024, approaches, U.S. businesses must keep in mind voting leave laws in their respective states. Voting leave laws allow for accommodations of employees to vote in elections without fear of a...more
Real World Impact: The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals' recent decision vacating the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) rule regarding tipped employees means the rule is no longer in effect nationwide. This is a major victory...more
Executive Summary: On July 1, 2024, the federal court for the Northern District of Texas issued a decision in Flint Avenue, LLC v. U.S. Department of Labor, denying the plaintiff employer’s request for a nationwide...more
7/3/2024
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Final Rules ,
Highly Compensated Employees ,
Labor Reform ,
Minimum Salary ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Over-Time ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Salaried Employees ,
Unpaid Overtime ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
Real World Implications of Challenges to the Rule: A federal district court in Texas has enjoined the DOL’s 2024 Salary Rule (which takes effect today, July 1, 2024) for employees of the state of Texas, and we anticipate a...more
7/1/2024
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Highly Compensated Employees ,
Minimum Salary ,
Over-Time ,
Salaried Employees ,
Texas ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
Executive Summary: On June 13, 2024, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) ruled in favor of Starbucks, and employers alike, holding that when district courts consider a request for preliminary injunction under...more
Executive Summary: Beginning in January 2024, employers in certain high-hazard industries will be required to submit detailed information regarding recordable workplace injuries and illnesses using OSHA’s new filing system...more
Executive Summary: The National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB’s) recent decision in Atlanta Opera, Case 10– RC–276292 (June 13, 2023), revises the standard the Board will use to determine whether workers are employees or...more
Executive Summary: As discussed in our February 23, 2023 Legal Alert, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) recently held in McLaren Macomb, 372 NLRB No. 58, that an employer violates Section 8(a)(1) of the...more
3/23/2023
/ Confidentiality Agreements ,
Contract Terms ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Guidance Update ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Retroactive Application ,
Section 7 ,
Severance Agreements ,
Unfair Labor Practices
Executive Summary: The National Labor Relations Board (the Board) recently overruled two prior Board decisions and held that overly broad language in non-disparagement and confidentiality clauses included in severance...more
OSHA annually adjusts its penalties for inflation. The adjustments are effective for penalties assessed after January 15, 2023. The new maximum penalty for serious, other-than-serious, and posting requirements is $15,625 per...more
On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would ban employers from imposing noncompetes on their workers. The proposed rule would prohibit employers from...more
1/5/2023
/ Comment Period ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Labor Reform ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
NPRM ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Restrictive Covenants
As Election Day, November 8, 2022, approaches, U.S. businesses must keep in mind voting leave laws in their respective states. Voting leave laws allow for accommodations of employees to vote in elections without fear of a...more
Executive Summary: On September 5, 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed A.B. 257, the Fast Food Accountability Recovery Act or FAST Recovery Act. The law was strongly supported by unions and will impact more than...more
Following the recent trend of state laws prohibiting mandatory arbitration of sexual assault and harassment claims, the United States Senate passed HR 4445, entitled “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual...more
2/16/2022
/ #MeToo ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Pending Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
Note: On January 24, 2022, the DOL removed Fact Sheet #84 from its website. For more information please see our follow-up Alert.
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued Fact Sheet #84 addressing the compensability...more
1/24/2022
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
New Guidance ,
Screening Procedures ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) on January 24, 2022 removed, without explanation, from its website Fact Sheet #84 addressing the compensability of time spent undergoing COVID-19 health screenings, testing, and vaccinations...more
Late Friday, December 17, 2021, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted the government’s motion to lift the stay on the OSHA COVID-19 mandate imposed by the Fifth Circuit on November 6, 2021....more
12/20/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Motion to Dissolve ,
Multidistrict Litigation ,
OSHA ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On October 29, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published its Final Rule related to tipped employees. It is effective December 28, 2021. DOL had issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on June 21, 2021,...more
11/24/2021
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Final Rules ,
Food Service Workers ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Minimum Wage ,
NPRM ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Tip Credit ,
Tipped Employees ,
Tips ,
Wage and Hour
The highly anticipated OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) COVD-19 rule for private-sector workers was announced this week. This ETS impacts approximately 84 million workers nationwide. ...more
11/5/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
New Rules ,
OSHA ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On September 23, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued its latest rule related to tip pooling. The rule modifies and clarifies aspects of a rule previously issued by the Trump administration. ...more
10/4/2021
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Food Service Workers ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Guidance ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Tip Credit ,
Tip-Pooling ,
Tipped Employees ,
Tips ,
Wage and Hour
Executive Summary: Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits disability discrimination in places of public accommodation, which includes businesses (including transit) that are open to the public – like...more
On September 9, 2021, President Biden announced a COVID-19 Action Plan comprised of six main components. This Alert will focus on the “Vaccinating the Unvaccinated” component and its impact on employers....more
9/10/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Health and Safety ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On June 10, 2021, OSHA published on its website a 40+ page Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) limited to employers in the healthcare sector. President Biden issued an executive order in January ordering the Department of...more
On January 21, 2021, President Biden signed an executive order directing the Department of Labor’s launch of a national program to focus OSHA enforcement efforts related to COVID-19 on hazardous conditions that put the...more
On January 29, 2021, OSHA issued stronger, more detailed guidance – Protecting Workers: Guidance on Mitigating and Preventing the Spread of COVID-19 in the Workplace, https://www.osha.gov/coronavirus/safework. President Biden...more