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Employment Law Newsletter: A Monthly Report On Labor Law Issues

Our Monthly Report on Labor Law Issues, also known as the Employment Law Bulletin, is a monthly newsletter that covers a wide range of labor law issues, including affirmative action plans, strikes, OSHA regulations, minimum wage requirements, and more. Other topics covered have included issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic, such as workplace walk-outs and strikes, vaccinations, and employee rights related to positive test results and quarantine. The newsletter also covers issues related to discrimination, such as artificial intelligence and racial bias, and issues related to unions, such as organizing efforts and union successes at companies like Amazon and Starbucks. The newsletter also covers issues related to taxes, immigration, and court cases related to labor law. Stay informed and avoid legal missteps, by subscribing to email updates here.

person staning next to someone in a wheelchair, outdoors
Employers continue to be confused about how to handle absences related to disabilities, as to applying their "no-fault" attendance policies.  No-fault attendance policies do not generally consider the reason for an absence, except for certain statutory exceptions, like FMLA, and consider simply the absence from work as resulting in points under their poin...
person holding up a hand, stop, indoors
The General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), former union lawyer Jennifer Abruzzo, continues to attempt to expand the application of the Labor Act to cover everyday employment policies.  The latest attack comes through an unfair labor practice complaint issued against a spa alleging it illegally made workers sign various contracts, in...
ftc front door
There is relatively recent increased attention from government enforcement authorities of anti-trust issues affecting human resource professionals.  In 2016, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued their Anti-Trust Guidance for Human Resource Professionals.  At the same time, they issued Anti-Trust Red Flags for Emplo...
stylized ai graphic
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC) Strategy Enforcement Plan for 2024-2028 published in the Federal Register last year specifically addresses discriminatory recruitment and hiring practices that involve an employer's use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning to target, recruit, and screen potential applicants or make hirin...
old fashio keys, hanging on a ring, attached to a wood board
We are in a new age of employee dissatisfaction and activism.  There were critical labor shortages during the pandemic, and increased concerns about employer responses, and workers are increasingly asserting their rights and making demands upon their employers.  Public approval of labor organizations is at a new all-time high, and the public is increasing...
a spinning top on a wooden table
Several Federal Reserve Bank surveys have reported that U.S. employers expect to hire less in 2024.  The Federal Reserve data shows that the government's efforts to slow growth and inflation filtered through into the economy.  It appears that the labor supply is coming back into better balance with demand.  The surveys indicate that wage expectations have...
dj playing music, in dark, indoors
According to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, sexually explicit music played in the workplace can create a hostile environment in violation of Title VII.  Harp v. S & S Activewear, LLC, 69 F. 4th 974.  Eight former employees (seven women and one man) charged the warehouse allowed "sexually graphic, violently misogynistic" music to be played loud su...
mini white analog clock being held, indoors
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is more than 80 years old, a legacy of the bricks-and-mortar, pencil-and-paper era.  One wouldn't expect it to hold many surprises.  But in Houston v. St. Luke's Health Systems, 75 F.4th 1175 (8th Cir. 2023), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit invalidated a longstanding regulation condoning rounding, 29 C....
buttefly classification book on a wooden table
On January 10, 2024 the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced a final rule on classifying workers as employees or independent contractors for purposes of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).  These rules have been revised before: the rule just issued by the Biden Administration expressly rescinds the 2021 Independent Contractor Rule implemented during ...
person making a checklis in a notebook, indoors
1. Update employee handbooks, including review of rules the Labor Board may consider overbroad and thus unfair labor practices. 2. Update reasonable accommodation policies, particularly as regards to new pregnancy-related laws and religious accommodation rulings. 3. Make sure appropriate person in each facility is designated to receive FMLA requests and...
wood gavel
An NLRB administrative law judge (ALJ) in late September issued the first bargaining order under the Board's new Cemex standard.   Y.N.S.A., Inc. v. UFCW Local 1445.  While the ALJ ruling can be appealed to the Board, the case sends a clear message to management that a new doctrine has been implemented.  The company had refused to recognize the union, whi...