Empowering HR leaders with insightful content.
With the 2024 election quickly approaching, employers should expect an increase in political conversation and activity in the workplace. It is essential during political seasons for both employers and employees to understand how to navigate political speech and activity to maintain positive working relationships and overall productivity. Generally, public-sector employers have little flexibility to govern …
Continue reading “The Freedom—and Limits—of Political Speech in the Workplace”
Periodically, the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) lets us know what to watch out for. On September 21, the EEOC released its Strategic Enforcement Plan for years 2024-2028 (“SEP”), which tells us where the federal government is prioritizing its employment dollars. The EEOC has more work than it can timely handle. Thus, it prioritizes the …
Continue reading “Is Your HR Department Aware of the Latest EEOC Priorities?”
The Federal Government has updated some standard forms employers are probably used to seeing. In this two-part blog series, we will identify the changes in these new forms, starting first with the EEOC’s addition of a gender marker option to its voluntary self-identification process and passport applications. Next week, we will discuss the changes to …
Continue reading “UPDATED FEDERAL FORMS PART 1: EEOC Additional Gender Marker Option”
Protection against unlawful treatment in the workplace is a goal shared by employers and employees alike. Employers that may have relaxed their compliance with federal employment and discrimination laws during the pandemic take note: the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has been ramping up its enforcement activities; meaning employers should refocus on their internal …
This fall, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (the “EEOC”) filed a lawsuit against a San Antonio-based workplace experience and facility management company, alleging that the defendant company unlawfully denied its employee’s request to work from home to protect herself from COVID-19. This suit, which is the EEOC’s first of its kind, is a reminder to …
With two COVID-19 vaccines set to receive federal approval in the United States in the upcoming weeks, the next question is whether employers can make employees receive the vaccine. The short answer is…yes. And while the typical lawyer answer to any question is “it depends,” that concise “yes” does come with a few caveats. So, …
Continue reading “Can Employers Make Employees Get the COVID-19 Vaccine?”
On August 3, 2020, the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that it will resume issuing charge closure documents. The EEOC had suspended issuing charge closure documents on March 21, 2020 due to the pandemic, unless a charging party requested closing charge documents be issued. Although the EEOC has continued to investigate cases, …
Continue reading “EEOC RESUMES ISSUANCE OF CHARGE CLOSURE DOCUMENTS”
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 …
The patchwork of state employment laws just got a few more patches. On July 12th and August 12th (Senate Bill S6577), Governor Cuomo signed two employment-focused laws that added a number of updates to the New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL). The first law, which took effect on July 12 on signature by the …
Every employer wants to hire qualified, motivated employees. Yet, the hiring process at many companies tends to be inconsistent and often results in engaging employees that fail to excel, or to even perform within acceptable parameters. Even worse, poor practices in the hiring process can result in costly litigation from discrimination claims, not only from …