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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.

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While Congress could not legislatively repeal or even modify the Affordable Care Act ("ACA"), President Trump is moving to make significant changes in it administratively through the executive power.  The Executive Order issued on October 12, 2017 instructs federal agencies to lay the groundwork for allowing less-expensive insurance plans with fewer benef...
viles of tested liquids
With the growth in the use of medical marijuana and the continuing expansion of synthetic drugs, traditional employer drug-testing policies may need review.  Let’s take the pot issue first.
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Employers often complain about so-called "ambulance chasing" plaintiffs’ lawyers.  In a recent ruling, a federal judge in Pennsylvania chastised a plaintiffs’ law firm about its solicitation efforts and set forth guidelines about accuracy and honesty in efforts to recruit clients to join in a class action as plaintiffs.  Katz v. DNC Servs. Corp., No. 2:16...
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In September, a federal judge ruled that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") must pay an employer almost $2 million in legal fees for pursing class sexual harassment claims against a company that it knew or should have known were frivolous.  EEOC v. SRST Van Expedited, Inc., No. 07-CV-95 (N.D. Iowa, 9/22/17).  The EEOC had claimed that th...
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OSHA released its list in September of the 10 most commonly cited safety violations. 
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In a long-standing saga, Southern auto workers have again rejected the United Auto Workers Union, this time after a 12-year campaign to organize the Nissan plant in Canton, Mississippi.  The vote was 2,244 to 1,307 against the union on August 3-4.  The union supporters thought they had certain demographics in their favor, since 80% of the Nissan workforce...
On August 31, 2017, in Nevada v. U.S. Department of Labor, 2017 WL 3780085 (S.D. Tex.), a federal court in Texas formally nullified the Obama administration's dramatic revisions to the federal overtime rule.  The court held that the previous Administration exceeded the authority Congress gave it when it dramatically expanded the number of people enti...
On September 5, 2017, President Trump announced that he would end the program that protects undocumented immigrants that entered the U.S. as children, while urging Congress to pass broad immigration legislation protecting these persons.  The Obama Administration initiated the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) in 2012 stating that immigrat...
On August 29, 2017, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) informed the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that it is initiating a review and immediate stay of the new pay data collection aspects of the EEO-1 form that was developed during the Obama Administration.  The expanded form would have required employers with 100 or more emplo...
A somewhat interesting situation has resulted from the change in administrations, with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) taking opposite positions in a couple of important pending court cases.  In October, two arguments will be heard in a U.S. Supreme Court case that is actually a consolidation of several c...
USCIS released a revised version of Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, on July 17. Instructions for how to download Form I-9 are available on the Form I-9 page. Employers can use this revised version or continue using Form I-9 with a revision date of 11/14/16 N through Sept. 17. On Sept. 18, employers must use the revised form with a revision ...