On March 10, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and its Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2022-02 (FAB). FAB focused on retaliation against employees who assert rights under a broad array of federal laws, including the FLSA, FMLA, the Migrant and Seasonal Workers, various work Visa programs (such as …
U.S. Supreme Court Splits the Baby as It Stays the Private Employer Vaccine or Test Mandate but Keeps the Healthcare Vaccine Mandate in Place
On January 13, 2022, the United States Supreme Court (“Court”) issued two critical decisions: one staying the OSHA ETS vaccine or test mandate, the second allowing the OSHA CMS vaccine mandate for healthcare facilities to move forward. THE OSHA ETS IS STAYED By way of background, the OSHA ETS requires all employers with more than …
Private Employer Vaccine Mandate Moves Forward as Sixth Circuit Dissolves Fifth Circuit’s OSHA ETS Stay
On December 17, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, which was chosen via lottery as the federal appellate court to decide whether the OSHA ETS, i.e., the private employer vaccine mandate, would go into effect, dissolved the stay that the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit had issued, allowing …
The Private Employer COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate is Here: What Employers Need to Know
On Thursday, November 4, 2021, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) rolled out temporary emergency standards (“ETS”) implementing COVID-19 vaccine mandates, which are expected to become effective November 5, 2021. These emergency rules are intended to address the “grave danger of COVID-19 in the workplace.” …
You Said Non-compete Agreements Are Enforceable in Michigan; What Is This Federal Government Announcement I Heard Recently?
A few weeks ago, our All Things HR Blog took time to tackle frequently asked questions about the enforceability of restrictive covenants in Michigan, including employee non-compete restrictions. We decided this would be a good week to expand on that topic. Many readers likely noticed recent headlines blaring out that on July 9, 2021, President …
U.S. Department of Labor Issues New Independent Contractor Rules For March 8, 2021; Will It Take Effect?
Employers are routinely challenged in navigating the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) test to determine independent contractor status of workers under the federal wage and hour laws. Employers regularly retain workers as independent contractors to whom employers are not obligated to pay overtime or minimum wage. As such, those employers would benefit from a clear …
CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) PRECAUTIONS FOR EMPLOYERS
It is now impossible to avoid the reality that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19, the “coronavirus”), is a “public health emergency of international concern,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”).[i] As of publication, the coronavirus is not spreading in the community in the United States.[ii] The CDC reports that the immediate …
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Employers Should Be Aware of Where They Advertise – Social Media Platforms are Being Scrutinized
The internet age has opened up seemingly countless digital platforms for employers and employees to use in seeking to fill, and applying for, open positions. Many employers use Indeed, Quikr, CareerBuilder, Glass Door, LinkedIn – the names are endless – to post jobs and look for employment candidates. Given the prevalence of such platforms, the …
“Well I’m Gone to Detox Mansion”* – What Employers Should be Mindful of When an Employee Asks for Time to Enter Rehabilitation for Substance Abuse
From our perspective we appear to be experiencing an uptick in the reporting of employees testing positive for controlled substances, whether how to address positive tests for cannabis in those states in which it is legal to use either medically or recreationally, or other substances. We cannot quantify this uptick, but we have seen clients …
Employers Always Need to Thoroughly Explore the Smallest of Reasonable Accommodations for a Disability
A recent decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit provides a strong lesson in the need for employers to fully explore an employee’s request for a reasonable accommodation and to when necessary be flexible in applying certain workplace policies. In the matter of EEOC v. Dolgencorp, LLD dba Dollar General Corp., …