With the new year just a handful of weeks away, employers should take note of one notable change to the Rhode Island Temporary Caregiver Insurance Program (“TCI”) taking effect in 2023. Beginning January 1, 2023, the maximum...more
On September 7, 2022, the National Labor Relations Board ("NLRB”) published a proposed rule (“Proposed Rule”) rescinding and replacing its current rule for determining joint-employer status under the National Labor Relations...more
Pursuant to the new law legalizing recreational marijuana in Rhode Island, private employers are now prohibited from firing or taking other disciplinary action against an employee for recreational marijuana use outside the...more
The Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training’s (“RIDLT”) much anticipated Proposed Regulations (“Regulations”) to the Rhode Island Pay Equity Law (the “Act”) have arrived. As we previously discussed, on July 6, 2021,...more
6/6/2022
/ Comment Period ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Notice Requirements ,
Pay Discrimination ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Comment ,
Rhode Island ,
Safe Harbors ,
Self-Evaluations ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
It is well known that if a Massachusetts employer terminates an employee, the employer risks being liable for three times the amount of wages owed if payment is not made on the last day of employment. A lesser known corollary...more
On March 24, 2022, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) determined that the Massachusetts independent contractor statute (G. L. c. 149, § 148B) applies within the franchisor-franchisee context and does not...more
4/1/2022
/ 7-Eleven ,
ABC Test ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
FTC Franchise Rule ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
MA Supreme Judicial Court ,
Misclassification
Employers with 100 or more employees can breathe a sigh of relief as the United States Supreme Court has come to the rescue and blocked the Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) put in place by OSHA.
How Did We Get Here?...more
1/20/2022
/ Biden v Missouri ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Lack of Authority ,
Masks ,
National Federation of Independent Business v Department of Labor and OSHA ,
OSHA ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Minimum Wage Increase -
As set forth by legislation passed in 2018, the minimum wage in Massachusetts will increase to $14.25 per hour on January 1, 2022. This amounts to a 75-cent jump from the current minimum wage of...more
On September 9th, the President announced a COVID-19 Action Plan (the "Plan") and released two orders that contain surprisingly broad measures. The Plan will impact many businesses and organizations across the nation....more
9/10/2021
/ Ambulatory Surgery Centers ,
Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Home Healthcare Workers ,
Hospitals ,
Masks ,
Nursing Homes ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On July 6, 2021, Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee signed Pay Equity legislation (the “Act”) (H 5261A, S 0270A) into law. The Act is a broad piece of legislation that applies to all employers. While the Act does not go into...more
7/15/2021
/ Affirmative Defenses ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Enforcement ,
Notice Requirements ,
Pay Discrimination ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Protected Class ,
Safe Harbors ,
Salary/Wage History ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
On May 18, 2021, the Internal Revenue Service published guidance in the form of a series of 86 questions and answers (“FAQ”) that address the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021’s (“ARPA”) continuation health coverage in the...more
On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed into law a $1.9 trillion stimulus bill, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). The reach of the ARPA extends far and wide, including to healthcare coverage available to...more
3/31/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
COBRA ,
Eligibility ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Former Employee ,
Health Insurance ,
Involuntary Reduction in Force ,
Notice Requirements ,
Opt-In ,
Reduction in Hours ,
Tax Credits
In a further attempt to alleviate the adverse economic impact caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, on December 21, 2020, Congress passed a $900 billion stimulus bill, which the President signed into law on December 27, 2020....more
Beginning October 1, 2020, the minimum wage that employers must pay Rhode Island employees increases to $11.50 per hour. All employers must pay this minimum wage regardless of the employers’ size and revenue. Employers should...more
The Department of Labor (“DOL”) published a new temporary rule (“New Rule”) today, September 16, 2020, revising and clarifying its previous April 1, 2020 temporary rule (“Prior Rule”) concerning the Families First Coronavirus...more
Rhode Island and Massachusetts have joined the growing list of states that are enacting orders requiring citizens to quarantine for up to two weeks after traveling to other states. These travel restrictions often prohibit...more
8/27/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Health and Safety ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Quarantine ,
Remote Working ,
Staffing Agencies ,
State Labor Laws ,
Travel Restrictions ,
Vacation Leave ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
A federal court in New York (“Court”) recently struck down a number of important provisions contained within the Final Rule issued by the Department of Labor (“DOL”) interpreting the Families First Coronavirus Relief Act...more
8/12/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Final Rules ,
Health Care Providers ,
Intermittent Leave ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Required Documentation ,
Sick Leave ,
Wage and Hour
In a much-anticipated decision, earlier this month, in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, the U.S. Supreme Court (“Court”) held that an employer who fires an individual merely for being gay or transgender violates Title VII...more
6/26/2020
/ Altitude Express Inc v Zarda ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Civil Rights Act ,
EEOC v RG & GR Harris Funeral Homes ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gender Identity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
LGBTQ ,
SCOTUS ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
COVID Furloughs, Layoffs or Job Modifications May Void Your Existing Non-Competition Agreements -
With Rhode Island and Massachusetts having recently commenced Phase 2 of each of their respective “Reopenings,” more and...more
With more and more individuals taking on the so-called “side hustle” of driving for Uber or even entirely leaving the traditional 9 to 5 work life and opting to make the “gig economy” work as their full time occupation,...more
2/19/2020
/ Arbitration Agreements ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Right to Control ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
On Tuesday, September 24, 2019, the United States Department of Labor (“Department”) announced its much anticipated Final Rule raising the salary threshold necessary to exempt certain executive, administrative, and...more
A year ago, the United States Supreme Court issued its seminal decision in Epic Systems v. Lewis, which confirmed that employers may use mandatory individual arbitration agreements without fear of the National Labor Relations...more
5/21/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Epic Systems Corp v Lewis ,
Ernst & Young v Morris ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Murphy Oil v NLRB ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
Savings Clause ,
SCOTUS
As we indicated in our prior client alerts on the new Massachusetts paid family and medical leave law (“PFML”), while the first phase of the law goes into effect on July 1, the PFML’s procedural requirements and operational...more
The first phase of Massachusetts’ new paid family and medical leave law ("PFML") requires covered employers to provide certain notices to employees and 1099-MISC contractors as of July 1. Specifically, a form of notice is...more
Certain Obligations Take Effect on July 1 - What Employers Need to Know Now -
THE BASICS. Massachusetts has enacted yet another new leave law. Paid Family and Medical Leave (“PFML”) provides employees with job protected...more