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June 2015

The Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor must allocate its resources just like other organizations. For many years, it has tried to focus on industries where it believes there is systematic or prevalent problems, and also those industries in which the employees are least likely to complain because of their vulnerability. One casualty is ...
Several recent cases dramatically illustrate the need for careful company drafting of its employment policies, even though some are not related to employee handbooks. Almost every employer, for legal reasons or otherwise, has posted policies dealing with workplace harassment and leave policies under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). In a recent cas...
In a little-noticed NLRB announcement during April, the Labor Board is seeking input on a union fund raising initiative that has long been deemed illegal under federal labor law, at least since 1947. Unions are arguing that they should be allowed to charge non-members fees for handling grievances involving their employer, even though the union is represen...
On March 9, 2015, Gov. Scott Walker signed legislation making Wisconsin the 25th right-to-work state, saying the new law demonstrates that his state is "open for business." Wisconsin joined two other states in enacting a right-to-work law, Indiana and Michigan, as each passed such laws during 2012. Similar bills were introduced in some 20 states last year...
During March, for only the second time in history, both Houses of Congress approved a resolution under the Congressional Review Act disapproving the controversial "quickie" or "ambush" union election rule. The Senate adopted the disapproval resolution of the NLRB action on March 4 by vote of 53-46, and the House passed an additional measure on March 19 by...