As cases of COVID-19 continue to spike across the country, North Carolinians must abide by more stringent restrictions under a Modified Stay-at-Home Order released yesterday. While the Order continues requirements for face...more
There is no doubt the summer of 2020 has been memorable, but likely not for overseas jaunts or exotic vacations. Although the CDC recently relaxed its COVID-19 guidance regarding quarantine after travel, it still recognizes:...more
9/3/2020
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employment Policies ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Travel ,
Paid Leave ,
Quarantine ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
Sick Employees ,
Travel Restrictions ,
Travelers ,
Traveling Employee ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Summer is almost here, and it is time for employers to focus on heat-related hazards. As Alan Jackson once sang, “that sun is hot and that old clock is moving slow, and so am I.” Employers may be wise to heed Alan’s advice...more
6/4/2020
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
General Duty Clause ,
Health and Safety ,
Heat Exposure ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Risk Management ,
Workplace Safety
Effective Friday, May 29, Virginians aged 10 and older must wear cloth face coverings in public, and employees of essential retail businesses must wear face coverings when working in customer-facing areas. Though many...more
North Carolina’s Stay at Home order expires at 5:00 p.m. on May 8, paving the way for North Carolinians to begin Phase 1 of its Three-Phase Reopening Plan. This phase begins to relax business restrictions, but will require...more
Following rapid depletion of funds available to small businesses under the CARES Act and subsequent Congressional action to refill the well, the Treasury Department today vowed to conduct “full audits” of companies receiving...more
With North Carolina’s Stay at Home order extended through May 8, 2020, leaders focus on testing, tracing, and trends to determine when to re-open the state’s economy. Recognizing that North Carolinians can’t stay home...more
Amid many unanswered questions and high levels of uncertainty, the Minnesota Department of Labor published guidance clarifying certain worker protections and benefits relating to the COVID-19 pandemic. The guidance answers...more
4/21/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Health and Safety ,
Sick Leave ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Unemployment Insurance ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workers' Compensation Claim ,
Workplace Safety
As most North Carolina employers know, Governor Cooper previously issued an Executive Order relaxing certain unemployment eligibility requirements for employees adversely affected by COVID-19 and waiving charges to employer...more
Effective March 30, 2020 at 5:00 p.m., and remaining in effect for 30 days, all North Carolina residents are ordered to “stay home” and limit movements outside of their homes beyond essential needs. Pursuant to Executive...more
Effective March 24, 2020 at 8:00 p.m., all West Virginia residents are ordered to “stay home” and limit movements outside of their homes beyond essential needs. Pursuant to Executive Order 9-20, Governor Jim Justice ordered...more
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper just issued Executive Order No. 120 in a series of continuing efforts to combat the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The Executive Order, issued Monday, March 23rd, has three main components:...more
Mecklenburg County, North Carolina (Charlotte) issued a Shelter-in-Place Order for residents on March 24. The restrictions are effective March 26, 2020, at 8:00. a.m. The Joint Proclamation from the Chairman of the...more
Following the trend of other states, West Virginia Governor Jim Justice issued Executive Order 4-20 on March 19, providing immediate relief to employees adversely affected by COVID-19. Recognizing that the COVID-19 pandemic...more
Following an Executive Order limiting operations of restaurants and bars within the state, Minnesota Governor Tim Waltz issued Emergency Executive Order 20-05 on March 16, providing immediate relief to both employers and...more
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper recently issued Executive Order No. 118 in response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The Executive Order has two main components: (1) it restricts the operations of restaurants and...more
3/19/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Executive Orders ,
Food Service Workers ,
Governor Cooper ,
Health and Safety ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Public Health ,
Restaurant Industry ,
State of Emergency ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Unemployment Insurance ,
Workplace Safety
During the height of the novel coronavirus’ (COVID-19) outbreak in China, the country isolated Wuhan to contain the spread of the virus. As global cases of COVID-19 cases have skyrocketed during the last several weeks, Italy,...more
Perhaps the most shocking aspect of employment-related cases from the 2018-2019 Supreme Court term that just wrapped up was the number of unanimous decisions – seven of the eight rulings – were agreed upon by all of the...more
8/12/2019
/ ADEA ,
Altitude Express Inc v Zarda ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Corporate Counsel ,
EEOC v RG & GR Harris Funeral Homes ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Henry Schein Inc v Archer and White Sales Inc ,
Intel Corp. Investment Policy Committee v. Sulyma ,
Kisor v Wilkie ,
Lamps Plus Inc v Varela ,
Mount Lemmon Fire District v Guido ,
NAACP ,
New Prime v Oliveira ,
Parker Drilling Management Services Ltd v Newton ,
Question of Arbitrability ,
SCOTUS ,
Title VII ,
Yovino v Rizo
North Carolina law requires employers with a workers’ compensation experience rate modifier (“ERM”) of 1.5 or higher to “establish and carry out a safety and health program to reduce or eliminate hazards and to prevent...more
Healthcare industry employers routinely face staffing shortages and scheduling problems. National shortages are well-publicized, and the problem continues to grow as the demand for healthcare workers rises along with the age...more
2/8/2019
/ Appeals ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Dismissals ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Shortage ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Beliefs ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Undue Burden ,
Work Schedules
Late yesterday, President Trump selected Judge Brett Kavanaugh to fill the vacant seat on the Supreme Court (SCOTUS) bench. Assuming he is confirmed by the Senate, Justice Kavanaugh would solidify the pro-business bloc of...more
The changes to MSHA’s workplace examination rule governing metal and nonmetal mines have garnered significant attention. Stakeholders fought back against the original proposed rulemaking, and MSHA delayed implementation three...more
5/22/2018
/ Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health and Safety ,
Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) ,
Mining ,
New Rules ,
Notification Requirements ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Safety Inspections ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Safety
As the old adage goes, the grass is always greener on the other side. Many employees who are required to stand all day for their jobs would like the option to sit. But in recent years, many employees who traditionally sit...more
5/2/2018
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Business Development ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
General Duty Clause ,
Health and Safety ,
Interactive Process ,
OSHA ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Undue Hardship ,
Workplace Safety
Yesterday’s decision is good news for employers. It limits the ability of disgruntled former employees to seek whistleblower protection under the Dodd-Frank Act, and means there is one fewer weapon out there to be used...more
2/22/2018
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Appeals ,
Digital Realty Trust Inc v Somers ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Former Employer ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Internal Reporting ,
Retaliation ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Split of Authority ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
Nearly 2.3 million people in the United States work in jobs that expose them to silica. The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) claims that more than 100,000 of those workers are engaged in “high risk jobs such...more
2/14/2018
/ Appeals ,
Construction Industry ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Health and Safety ,
New Rules ,
Occupational Exposure ,
OSHA ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Shipyard Industry ,
Silica ,
Substantial Evidence ,
Toxic Exposure ,
Unions ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Safety