Louisiana[1] and Massachusetts[2] recently became the latest two states to pass laws on Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (CROWN Act). CROWN Act laws generally prohibit discrimination based on hairstyles and hair textures that are associated with race or national origin. Currently, eighteen states and numerous municipalities have now enacted laws expanding […]
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Yesterday, November 16, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (the “Panel”) held a lottery to select the federal appeals court to address the 34 petitions seeking review of the COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”). Since the ETS was published on November 5, 34 petitions had been filed in 12 different federal appeals courts […]
On Friday, November 5, Snell & Wilmer published a Legal Alert and blog regarding the provisions and effective dates of the federal OSHA Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (‘ETS”). We noted that legal actions objecting to the enactment and enforcement of the ETS were filed across many jurisdictions on Thursday, November 4 and Friday, November 5. […]
Almost two months after President Biden’s announcement of his administration’s mandatory vaccination plan, yesterday, November 4, 2021, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) published its Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”). The ETS becomes enforceable today, November 5, 2021. Essentially, it requires all employers employing 100 or more employees to draft, adopt and implement a […]
In her first memorandum as General Counsel, Jennifer Abruzzo laid out a clear agenda for the new enforcement priorities of the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”). All unionized and nonunionized private sector employers face the changes that are contemplated in Memorandum GC 21-04, released August 12, 2021. The Memorandum provides a detailed roadmap of the legal […]
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On July 9, 2021, President Biden signed the sweeping Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy, which outlined over 70 wide-ranging initiatives aimed at promoting competition and workers’ interests. One of these initiatives “encouraged” the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) to use its statutory rulemaking authority “to curtail the unfair use of non-compete clauses […]
2020 brought employment law practitioners several federal court decisions that proved to be interesting, instructive and, at times, entertaining. Some decisions were victories for employees, and others were victories for employers. No matter the outcome, however, all the opinions continue to shape the employment landscape. Here are summaries of nine of these key cases, along with […]
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COVID-19 has altered the way nearly every employee performs their work. Videoconferencing and phone calls have largely replaced in-person visits and face-to-face meetings in many workplaces. By extension, many sales employees who used to visit customers in person now do so remotely. While convenient, this practice may compromise their status as exempt employees under federal […]
On August 8, 2020, President Trump issued four executive actions–one executive order and three Presidential Memoranda–aimed at extending various coronavirus relief programs that have already expired, or are set to expire, in the absence of congressional action. These executive actions may be subject to legal challenges, including that the President exceeded his authority by taking […]
On Monday, August 3, 2020, a federal judge in New York ruled that the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) exceeded its authority by limiting employees’ eligibility for paid coronavirus leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). While portions of the DOL’s regulations are out, it is unclear what—if anything—is “in.” Click here to […]
