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The assessments of President Donald J. Trump’s first year in office have a recurring stormy theme, twisting and turning Washington D.C.’s status quo, metaphorically matching a year of once-in-a-generation natural disasters such as Hurricanes Irma and Harvey, wildfires and floods. These disruptive events were not limited to the U.S. domestic policy shorelines; indeed, global trade …
Continue reading “Workforce Mobility at Risk under a NAFTA Renegotiation”
On April 2, 2018, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) should again be open for business for a flood of H-1B petition filings, which are subject to the annual cap. Employers are required to pay the higher of the actual or prevailing wage for the area of intended employment to sponsor an H-1B specialty occupation …
Continue reading “Interagency Cooperation: Raising the Bar for Immigration Compliance”
Buried under the news of tax reform and deep within an annual bulletin, the IRS has announced reduced fees for corrections made pursuant to its Voluntary Correction Program (“VCP”). However, fees will not be lower in every circumstance. The EPCRS Program Plan sponsors that make mistakes with respect to the operation or documentation of their …
In late June 2017, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) announced it would be reinstating Opinion Letters issued by its Wage and Hour Division, which was a practice that had ceased back in 2010. This announcement is significant from both the procedural and substantive basis. From 2010 to July 2017, Opinion Letters were replaced by …
One of the most significant developments in employment law in 2017 was a federal district court in Texas declaring invalid the Obama Administration’s controversial new overtime rule that would have more than doubled the minimum salary level required to qualify for certain overtime exemptions under the FLSA. Although the business community won this battle, employers …
Continue reading “What to Watch for in 2018: The New Overtime Rule, Take Two”
On December 22, 2017, President Trump signed H.R. 1 (formerly, the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (the “Act”)) into law. While the Act was primarily focused on business tax cuts and individual tax reform, the Act includes several provisions that have implications for employee benefits and executive compensation. 1. Compensation Deduction Limits for Publicly Traded …
Continue reading “Tax Reform: The Five Big Changes Affecting Employee Benefits”
In addition to the long lines, weather delays, expensive travel tickets, and the list of other travel headaches during the holiday season, certain foreign nationals holding Trade NAFTA (TN) status may also have to deal with increased scrutiny as to whether they remain eligible for the visa classification previously granted to them due to new …
Employers often want to provide extra benefits or security to key employees amidst the uncertainty caused by a change of control. These arrangements are often referred to as “golden parachute payments” because they help key employees land safely in a sale, merger, change in management or other corporate transaction. Examples of change of control agreements …
Continue reading “Change of Control Agreements Can Trigger Parachute Payment Penalties”
With the end of 2017 right around the corner, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) issued a duo of pro-employer decisions that continue to chip away at and erase its jurisprudence during the Obama Administration. The first decision, Boeing Company and Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace, IFPTE Local 2001, took on …
Who doesn’t enjoy the annual company Holiday Party? Do any of these remind you of an event that you have attended? Employees, relieved of normal workplace stresses and worries, exuberantly extolling a year’s worth of hard-won achievements and desired esprit de corps; Happy workers collectively celebrating year-end bonuses and time off from work, eschewing business …
Continue reading “The Year End/Holiday Celebration in the Era of Reckoning”