Archives of Employment

NLRB FINAL RULE ON JOINT EMPLOYER STATUS

Are you an “employer” under the National Labor Relations Act notwithstanding your engagement with another company (e.g., a staffing firm) to supply workers? As 2023 begins to wrap up, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) is upping their standards for deciding whether an entity meets the definition of a joint employer. The NLRB, which enforces […]

$36 MILLION VERDICT AWARDED IN DISABILITY DISCRIMINATION CASE

Having and abiding by correct non-discrimination policies could be worth tens of millions of dollars. On September 1, 2023, a jury awarded a $36 million verdict against a Nebraska trucking company in EEOC v. Werner Enterprises for failure to hire and failure to accommodate. In 2016, Victor Robinson (“Robinson”), a deaf man, applied for a […]

EMPLOYMENT ALERT: DOL PROPOSED OVERTIME RULE

Now, while it is still early, is the time for employers to consider and prepare for potential increased overtime costs. As it stands today, the salary threshold for workers who can be exempt from overtime pay requirements is $35,568. That means, if all other exemption requirements are satisfied, workers with a salary of at least […]

EEOC RELEASES PROPOSED RULE ENFORCING THE PREGNANT WORKERS’ FAIRNESS ACT

On August 11, 2023, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) released a proposed rule to establish regulations enforcing the Pregnant Workers’ Fairness Act (“PWFA”). The PWFA took effect on June 27, 2023, and requires employers with 15 or more employees to provide certain accommodations to qualified employees with limitations due to pregnancy, childbirth, or other […]

STATUS OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN EMPLOYMENT

Affirmative action and race-conscious decision making have been recent topics of discussion following the Supreme Court’s June ruling that affirmative action and race-conscious decision making in education are violations of the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution. While the decision will have a major impact on higher education, the effects do not yet extend to […]

UPDATED STANDARDS FOR RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATIONS

On June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court issued a decision in Groff v. DeJoy (“Groff”), clarifying employers’ burden to show that a religious accommodation creates an “undue hardship.” Before the decision, an accommodation could cause an undue hardship if it imposed anything more than a de minimis – trifling or minor – cost to the […]

UPDATES FOR FTC’S PROPOSED NON-COMPETE RULE

In March, we published a summary of the Federal Trade Commission’s proposed rule to effectively ban non-compete agreements across almost all industries. Earlier this year, the FTC sent shockwaves throughout the labor market after announcing a new proposed rule that would prevent employers across nearly every industry from entering into any non-compete agreement with an […]

AI IN THE WORKPLACE: WHAT EMPLOYERS NEED TO KNOW

With the rise of ChatGPT and other technology, artificial intelligence (“AI”) is all the rage these days. Although automated systems, with and without AI, certainly can make tasks easier and more efficient, they also have inherent risks. Further, when employers use AI in the workplace, they must ensure compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and […]

UPDATED NOTICE OF RIGHTS UNDER FCRA REQUIRED WITH BACKGROUND CHECKS

On March 24, 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released an updated version of their notice, “A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act” (the “Updated Notice”). Employers who conduct background or credit checks on employees or job applicants are required to provide the Updated Notice under FCRA. The Updated Notice […]

CONFIDENTIALITY AND NON-DISPARAGEMENT TERMS IN SEVERANCE AGREEMENTS

On February 21, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) announced a decision in McClaren McComb, 372 NLRB No. 58 (2023), overturning two Trump-era cases concerning confidentiality and non-disparagement clauses in severance agreements. Thereafter on March 21, 2023, the NLRB’s General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo released a clarifying memorandum in response to inquiries on the McClaren […]