The Acting Associate General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) recently published a memorandum addressing the types of bargaining obligations under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) that may arise out...more
OSHA’s recently issued Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) on mandating vaccines has caused headaches for many employers and rankled others.
A flurry of lawsuits have been filed, and the Fifth Circuit has temporarily stayed...more
On Monday, October 25, the EEOC issued the much-anticipated update to its COVID-19 guidance (What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEO Laws). The update again addresses how...more
10/26/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Guidance Update ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Beliefs ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Exemption ,
Title VII ,
Undue Hardship ,
Vaccinations
The Biden administration announced this week that it would mandate COVID-19 vaccinations (with exceptions for disabilities and sincerely held religious beliefs) for a staggering number of Americans. The latest mandate – ...more
9/10/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employer ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Healthcare Workers ,
OSHA ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
One of the issues contributing to an increasingly volatile construction space for owners and developers is the cost and availability of insurance during and after construction of a project. As a result of accelerated climate...more
Chicago and Illinois employers should be aware of three recent changes affecting mandated sick leave benefits for employees. In April, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law an amendment to the Employee Sick Leave Act. The...more
The CDC released new guidance last week in an effort to curb the spread of the Delta variant of COVID-19. With cases on the rise, predominantly from the Delta variant, the CDC now recommends that both unvaccinated and...more
Infectious disease experts have a saying: Vaccines don’t save lives, vaccinations do. As vaccinations are now widely available, and with the Biden Administration’s goal of 70% of adults at least initially vaccinated by July 4...more
6/10/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
EEO ,
Employee Incentive Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Health and Safety ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
SB1480 Amends the State’s Equal Pay Act and Business Corporation Act -
Last month, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed SB 1480, which amended the Illinois Human Rights Act... the Illinois Equal Pay Act and the Business...more
4/27/2021
/ Amended Legislation ,
Business Corporation Act ,
EEO-1 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay Act ,
Federal Contractors ,
Filing Requirements ,
Governor Pritzker ,
Human Rights Act ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Earlier this month, President Biden signed into law the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). ARPA extends by another six months, the reimbursement of paid leave offered by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act...more
4/7/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Biden Administration ,
CARES Act ,
COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Reimbursements ,
Relief Measures ,
Tax Credits ,
Unemployment Benefits
Eligible borrower application deadline is March 31, 2021 -
The voluminous, $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) signed into law earlier this month, provides a couple of key modifications to the Paycheck...more
3/23/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Borrowers ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Eligibility ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Lenders ,
Loan Applications ,
Loan Forgiveness ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Relief Measures ,
Small Business
Agency updates religious discrimination for first time in over a decade -
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has updated the section of its Compliance Manual on religious discrimination in the workplace....more
On January 21, 2021, President Biden issued an “Executive Order on Protecting Worker Health and Safety.” The Order, issued on the first full day of the new Biden Administration, was one of many directly addressing COVID-19....more
2/9/2021
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employment Policies ,
Health and Safety ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
Social Distancing ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Illness and Injury Reporting ,
Workplace Safety
With the inauguration of Joseph R. Biden as the President of the United States yesterday, we expect to see a different focus, new guidance and new laws. Some of the major changes that may be delivered in the Biden...more
1/22/2021
/ Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Biden Administration ,
Employee Definition ,
Employee Training ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint Employers ,
Minimum Wage ,
Misclassification ,
Paid Leave ,
Wage and Hour
Infectious disease experts have a saying: Vaccines don’t save lives, vaccinations do. As the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first COVID-19 vaccine, employers eager to get back to normal may want to mandate...more
1/6/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Guidance Update ,
Health and Safety ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
After months of intense negotiations, Congress passed a new relief bill this week. Assuming President Trump signs the bill, or Congress overrides a veto, it delivers change just in time for the new year.
Tucked into the...more
1/4/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Federal Funding ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Loan Applications ,
Loan Forgiveness ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Popular ,
Relief Measures ,
SBA ,
Small Business ,
Small Business Loans ,
Tax Deductions ,
Trump Administration
Last week, Congress passed a $900 billion Appropriations Act. In addition to providing much-needed funding for vaccine distribution, direct payments to the vast majority of Americans, and a renewal of the popular Paycheck...more
12/30/2020
/ Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Relief Measures ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Sick Leave ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Deductions ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Wage and Hour
Four days after the election, an anxious America got the news: Donald Trump would be a one-term president. As administrations shift, so do priorities. How will a Joe Biden-Kamala Harris administration combat COVID-19’s effect...more
Insurers across the nation continue to file motions to dismiss COVID-19 cases brought by policyholders on three primary grounds:
1. there is no” physical loss or damage” to the covered property,
2. there is no “prohibition...more
11/13/2020
/ Business Income ,
Business Interruption ,
Business Losses ,
Civil Authority ,
Commercial Insurance Policies ,
Contract Interpretation ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Denial of Insurance Coverage ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Policy Terms ,
Property Insurance
As we wrote about in a recent article, the trends in insurance coverage for COVID-19 related losses are: 1) so far insurers are winning, and 2) the cases are fact intensive and turn on policy and pleading language. As we...more
The stark effects of the coronavirus pandemic are conspicuously clear in downtown Chicago: Shuttered businesses that once catered to throngs of commuters and office workers loom over bare sidewalks, while trains fly by with a...more
In the midst of furloughs, layoffs, and terminations, companies are still hiring. While the pandemic forces us to change the way we recruit, it also provides an opportunity to make the process a smarter, more efficient, and...more
Employees must feel well to do their jobs well. Since March, one of my amazing partners has reminded me: “On the plane, they tell you to put your mask on first before assisting others.” The same premise can be applied on the...more
8/19/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employee Assistance Programs ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Interactive Process ,
Mental Health ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Remote Working ,
Stress Reduction ,
Telecommuting ,
Workplace Communication
A Career Track through COVID -
How do employees fast forward when the world is on pause?
We have talked about how you get your remote workplace started (communication, training, navigating childcare issues) and how you...more
Do you remember where you were the day the office went away?
Four months have passed since the modern office vanished. It was Friday, March 13, 2020. Like any good scene in a scary movie, it happened quickly – with little...more