The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC) new regulations implementing the Pregnant Workers' Fairness Act (PWFA) went into effect earlier this week, but not for everyone. For a few employers, a Louisiana-based...more
On April 19, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) issued its long-awaited “final rule” broadening and clarifying the scope of Title IX, a federal statute that prohibits sex discrimination in education programs...more
On April 19, 2024, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) published its final rule adopting an expansive view of what counts as a pregnancy-related condition that triggers employer accommodation obligations under...more
Churches and other religious organizations can file petitions to sponsor foreign workers for religious worker (R-1) status in the United States—a status that can last up to five years. However, poor planning and well-meaning...more
“Employee means any individual employed by an employer.” That’s not some sixth grader’s attempt to mask their failure to study for a vocab quiz: It’s what Congress gifted us with 85 years ago in the Fair Labor Standards Act...more
Join Us for Our Complimentary Annual Labor & Employment Seminar!
We recommend our seminar to employers, HR professionals, and inhouse counsel to learn about best practices and the latest updates to Labor & Employment law....more
9/11/2023
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Best Practices ,
Colorado ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Diversity ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) ,
Events ,
Family Medical Leave ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Joint Employers ,
OSHA ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
State Labor Laws ,
Workplace Safety
In a much-anticipated proposed rule, the U.S. Department of Labor announced its intention to raise the minimum salary for workers to be exempt from overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act....more
A federal court of appeals ruled last week that religious businesses may be partially exempt from Title VII — a statute that prohibits workplace discrimination because of sexual orientation, gender identity, and other...more
A recent court decision confirms the complexity of evaluating employee accommodation requests involving service dogs under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). A military veteran who experienced horrific suffering while...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has officially rescinded a controversial 2020 rule that expanded religious exemptions under Executive Order No. 11246 for certain federal government contractors. Although the change may have...more
Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to revisit the threshold for accommodating workers’ religious beliefs or practices that clash with workplace requirements. The current standard doesn’t require employers to...more
In one of Aesop’s fables, a monkey dupes a cat into pulling roasted chestnuts from a hot fire, promising the cat a share of the bounty. The flattered cat complies — burns its paw in the process — only to watch the monkey...more
Our Decades-Old Tradition Returns In Person!
Join us to learn about the latest updates and best practices for employers, in-house counsel, and HR professionals.
Among the topics during this year’s general session are a...more
9/29/2022
/ Best Practices ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employee Monitoring ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Employment Litigation ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Events ,
Foreign Workers ,
Form I-9 ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
NLRB ,
Remote Working ,
State Labor Laws ,
Work Visas
Last summer, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued guidance for employers addressing — among other things — bathroom use and pronouns for transgender workers. A federal court has now blocked the EEOC from...more
In a unanimous decision issued Monday, the Supreme Court refused to reroute an airline cargo loader’s underpayment claims to private arbitration. The case, Southwest Airlines v. Saxon, No. 21-309 (June 6, 2022), is a rare...more
It’s been said that one person’s trash is another person’s treasure. A similar principle applies in employment law, where managers and workers sometimes develop contradictory perceptions about employment decisions. What a...more
By now, many employers have received requests for religious accommodations from COVID-19 policies—primarily vaccination policies. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (“EEOC”) guidance thus far, as reported through...more
Join us for a review of important state-level legal changes and trends affecting employers, including a look back at recent developments you may have missed....more
In one of the more notorious challenges to COVID-19 vaccine mandates, a group of Navy Special Warfare servicemembers filed suit after the Navy denied their requests for religious accommodations. Last week, a federal court...more
1/14/2022
/ Claim Denial Letters ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Exemption ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Title VII ,
U.S. Navy ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
A district court has halted the federal vaccine mandate applicable to millions of workers in Medicare- and Medicaid-certified health care facilities, preventing the mandate from going into effect in ten states. The...more
On October 25, 2021, the EEOC updated—again—its COVID-related “What You Should Know” technical assistance webpage. (See post regarding previous revisions.) This time, the EEOC added a handful of Q&As regarding religious...more
11/1/2021
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Guidance Update ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Beliefs ,
Religious Exemption ,
Title VII ,
Undue Hardship ,
Vaccinations
In the days since Pope Francis issued a statement urging people to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as “an act of love,” numerous Catholic dioceses in the United States have announced they won’t issue letters supporting...more
In Starkey v. Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis, No. 1:19-cv-03153 (S.D. Ind. August 11, 2021), a federal court rejected a Catholic school guidance counselor’s employment discrimination suit, ruling her claims were...more
Sitting en banc, the Seventh Circuit in Demkovich v. St. Andrew the Apostle Parish, No. 19-2142 (July 9, 2021), held that the so-called “ministerial exception” bars hostile work environment claims alleging...more
The EEOC marked the one-year anniversary of Bostock v. Clayton County—the landmark Supreme Court decision holding that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual...more