In three long-awaited decisions released on June 29-30, the Supreme Court has altered the legal landscape between an employer and its employees. One decision concerning affirmative action and the use of race-based decision...more
7/3/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Bias ,
Civil Rights Act ,
College Admissions ,
Colleges ,
Diversity ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Harvard University ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Title VI ,
Title VII ,
USPS
In a new memo issued by the General Counsel (GC) for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), “the proffer, maintenance, and enforcement of a non-compete provision” is described as a violation of Section 8 of the National...more
Non-compete agreements have had a target on their back for some time, with several state laws already on the books to prohibit or significantly limit their use. (See laws in California, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Maryland,...more
1/6/2023
/ Competition ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Proposed Rules ,
Recruitment Policies ,
Solicitation ,
State and Local Government ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
On October 13, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published its proposed rule on Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The proposed rule would revert back to the...more
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (“OSHA”) COVID vaccine or test mandate for businesses with at least 100 employees. Thereafter, the Biden Administration...more
2/15/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Biden v Missouri ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
National Federation of Independent Business v Department of Labor and OSHA ,
OSHA ,
Policies and Procedures ,
SCOTUS ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
On Jan. 13, the U.S. Supreme Court issued rulings that impact two important aspects of the Biden Administration’s efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
...more
1/14/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Biden v Missouri ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Lack of Authority ,
National Federation of Independent Business v Department of Labor and OSHA ,
OSHA ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Today, the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) for the healthcare industry. This ETS mandates the development and implementation of a...more
6/11/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Guidance Update ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Masks ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued updated Question and Answer Guidance on COVID-19 vaccinations today. The new guidance clarifies several issues that were making some employers reluctant to provide...more
6/1/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Documentation ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Incentives ,
New Guidance ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Vaccinations
There is no clear guidance on whether employers may treat vaccinated and unvaccinated employees differently. Employers considering changes to their policies that would treat employees differently based on vaccination status,...more
5/17/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Executive Orders ,
Governor Cooper ,
OSHA ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On March 8, 2021, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued new guidance for people who have been vaccinated for COVID-19. (A person becomes “vaccinated” two weeks after receiving the second shot of the...more
The U.S. Department of Labor has announced new rules, effective March 8, 2021, clarifying how to determine if an individual is an employee–entitled to minimum wage, overtime, and other statutory protections—or an independent...more
1/14/2021
/ Classification ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Final Rules ,
Independent Contractors ,
Minimum Salary ,
New Rules ,
Over-Time ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Wage and Hour
Starting Jan. 1, 2021, employers subject to the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) are no longer required to provide employees with COVID-related paid leave, but they may do so in some situations and still...more
12/31/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Family Medical Leave ,
IRS ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Leave ,
Popular ,
Relief Measures ,
Sick Leave ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Credits ,
Trump Administration
On Dec. 16, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released its much-awaited guidance on the COVID-19 vaccine in the workplace. (See section “K. Vaccinations” at this link(link is external) for the full...more
12/17/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Rights ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Health and Safety ,
Interactive Process ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Exemption ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On Friday, Sept. 11, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued revisions to their original regulations on paid leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). These revisions are in response to the Aug....more
9/15/2020
/ Amended Regulation ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Job Duties ,
Operation & Maintenance ,
Paid Leave ,
Service Professionals
On Aug. 8, 2020, President Trump issued a memorandum calling for the Secretary of Treasury to allow for the deferral of payroll tax withholding on the employee portion of certain payroll taxes. This memorandum is separate...more
On Monday, June 15, 2020, the United States Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling in three companion cases that provides much-needed clarity as to the issue of whether Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII)...more
6/19/2020
/ 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
The crisis has not passed, but many employers are reaching out to us about returning their employees to work. Brooks Pierce Labor and Employment attorneys Natalie Sanders and Jessi Thaller-Moran discuss what employers should...more
An employee may have been exposed to COVID-19. What do you do?
This question is becoming more common for essential businesses that continue to operate during quarantines. On April 8, the CDC issued a new Interim Guidance...more
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has posted guidance for employers regarding medical examinations and inquiries during the COVID-19 Pandemic...
The guidance explains why each of the following employer actions...more