On January 6, 2021, the US Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced its final rule clarifying the standard for employee versus independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The effective date of the final rule is March 8, 2021.The purpose of the new rule is to provide clarity to workers and employers by making it…
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The Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) recently issued emergency use authorizations for COVID-19 vaccines. As the vaccines become widely available, more employers will consider whether to mandate vaccinations for employees. While generally employers may mandate vaccinations, there are some additional considerations with the COVID-19 vaccine. A key consideration is the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”),…
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Throughout the past few months, COVID-19 cases have continued to rise causing several areas of concern for employers across the nation. On November 18, 2020, the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (“Cal OSHA”) proposed emergency regulations containing new workplace protocols that provide employers with more comprehensive guidelines to adequately enforce or modify existing…
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Across the nation, COVID-19 cases continue to rise and so have COVID-related complaints to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”). OSHA has initiated over 1,000 investigations related to COVID, and as of October 22, 2020, OSHA had issued just under 150 COVID-related citations. OSHA has not developed standards specific to COVID-related concerns. Instead, it…
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President Trump recently signed Executive Order 13950, Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping (the “EO”), which seeks to “combat offensive and anti-American race and sex stereotyping and scapegoating,” and end “divisive concepts” covered in some of these workplace trainings. The EO establishes requirements aimed at “promoting unity in the Federal workforce,” by prohibiting messages in workplace…
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The National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) recently addressed the issue of COVID-19 for the first time since the pandemic. The NLRB issued a series of advice memoranda instructing its regional offices to dismiss various COVID-19 related charges against employers. Over the course of five memoranda, the NLRB concluded: (1) an employer is not obligated to…
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Businesses continue to grapple with the realities of working during the COVID-19 pandemic and the quickly evolving legal landscape regarding returning employees to work. A number of new lawsuits related to pregnancy discrimination have been recently filed because COVID-19 can present an elevated immune and respiratory risk to pregnant women. In California, an employee alleged…
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On June 15, 2020, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”) protects gay, lesbian and transgender persons in their employment. Prior to the Supreme Court’s ruling, the law had no specific protection for sexual orientation or gender identity. The Court’s decision has resolved a…
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The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) has clarified a question that has been playing on the minds of employees and employers alike: during the COVID-19 pandemic, how does the ADA apply to workers who do not want to return to the workplace because they are “high risk?” If an employee, who has a medical condition…
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On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”), which is a $2 trillion relief package aimed to help diminish the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Act includes certain provisions particularly relevant to employers. Among many other things, the Act creates a loan program for mid-size companies,…
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