On Aug. 2, 2022, a unanimous New Jersey Supreme Court in East Bay Drywall, LLC v. Department of Labor & Workforce Development issued a ruling that provides further guidance on the classification of a New Jersey worker’s...more
Host Megan Monson, partner in Lowenstein’s Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation group, talks to guests Andrew E. Graw, the group’s Chair, and Julie Levinson Werner, partner in the firm’s Employment Counseling &...more
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court officially overturned Roe v. Wade in its consequential decision, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. With federal protection for abortion now dissolved, many employers are...more
6/30/2022
/ Abortion ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Pregnancy Discrimination ,
Roe v Wade ,
SCOTUS ,
Self-Insurance ,
Travel Expenses
Last week the New Jersey Appellate Division affirmed the dismissal of a lawsuit by an employee who alleged she had been wrongfully terminated based on her controversial Facebook post. In so doing, the court held that the...more
Late last week the New York City Council passed an amendment to New York City’s highly anticipated salary disclosure law (which initial law we previously detailed here), which, pending New York City Mayor Eric Adams’...more
Effective May 14, 2022, New York City will require employers with four or more employees to include the minimum and maximum salary for a position in its job postings, including those for promotion and transfer opportunities....more
The rise of artificial intelligence and other computer-based, data-driven decisions may seem attractive to employers looking to parse a deep pool of qualified candidates. But concerns that biases may affect these automated...more
12/16/2021
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Audits ,
Automated Systems ,
Bias ,
Data Collection ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
New York ,
Notice Requirements ,
Penalties ,
Popular ,
Wage and Hour
From time to time, situations arise that prompt an employer to want to review an employee’s emails and other electronic communications. In matters involving internal investigations, concerns about a breach of an employee’s...more
At long last, the United States Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released its emergency temporary standard (ETS) requiring employers with 100 or more employees to take certain...more
11/5/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Documentation ,
Masks ,
OSHA ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Religious Beliefs ,
Remote Working ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
On September 6, 2021, New York state’s commissioner of health designated COVID-19 a highly contagious communicable disease that presents a serious risk of harm to the public health under New York state’s HERO Act (the Act)....more
The fall from grace in the #MeToo era continues; this time, it’s Governor Andrew Cuomo. This past week the New York State Attorney General released a report concluding that Cuomo had sexually harassed multiple women and...more
Initial Compliance Required by August 5, 2021-
As we recently reported in prior alerts (see here and here), Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the HERO Act (the Act) on May 5, 2021, requiring all New York employers to implement a...more
We are writing to update you on anticipated amendments and changes to the New York Hero Act (the “Act”). Recently, as we detailed here, New York enacted the Act requiring New York employers to implement certain safety...more
6/10/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Governor Cuomo ,
Health and Essential Rights (HERO) Act ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Occupational Exposure ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Risk Management ,
Safety Programs ,
State and Local Government ,
Workplace Safety
As of today, the answer to whether a business can lift its COVID-19 workplace restrictions is “maybe”, depending upon what federal, state, or local legal authority ultimately calls the shots on the issue. The good news is the...more
5/19/2021
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Social Distancing ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On May 5, 2021, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the HERO Act (the Act) requiring all New York employers to implement certain safety standards and a written safety plan to protect against the further spread of COVID-19 and other...more
At long last, in a very challenging year, some good news is finally here: the FDA has granted emergency authorization for the use of a COVID-19 vaccine, and the process is now underway to distribute the vaccine to millions of...more
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are among the top corporate buzz words of 2020, perhaps having as much of an impact on race in 2020 as #MeToo had on sexual harassment just a few years ago. But what does DEI mean, and...more
The only constant around the COVID-19 safety compliance rules is that they keep changing. Over the weekend, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a change to the travel restriction rules in New York, differentiating New York from the...more
Effective November 5, 2020, New Jersey employers are required to take additional safety precautions to protect their workforce from COVID-19. As a result of Executive Order 192, New Jersey employers will be required...more
As employers begin to require their employees to return to the workplace, they remain concerned about COVID-19-related litigation. Initially, many were concerned about an anticipated increase in lawsuits alleging that unsafe...more
10/21/2020
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
OSHA ,
Retaliation ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
Virus Testing ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblowers ,
Workplace Safety
New York State is joining the ranks of a growing number of states that mandate employers to provide sick leave to their employees. At a minimum, New York employers will soon have to provide paid or unpaid sick leave as...more
This week, the New Jersey Supreme Court issued a decision clarifying the steps that employers must take to implement arbitration agreements with current employees, even absent affirmative employee consent. Our firm appeared...more
On Monday, June 15, 2020, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects gay and transgender workers from workplace discrimination. Until yesterday's decision, this type of...more
As businesses begin to plan the reopening of their workplaces, there are many factors to consider. Before bringing employees back to work, employers are best advised to follow the guidelines and recommendations that the...more
As employers struggle with the poor economic conditions associated with the COVID-19 crisis, many are considering pay cuts. Naturally, in making this decision, many companies will consider what their peers are doing in order...more