On June 2, 2023, Governor Jared Polis signed into law Senate Bill (SB) 23-017, which expands the qualifying reasons an employee may take leave under the Colorado Healthy Families and Workplaces Act (HFWA).
The Beltway Buzz is a weekly update summarizing labor and employment news from inside the Beltway and clarifying how what’s happening in Washington, D.C., could impact your business.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently added some small clarity to the murky jurisdictional border between the Mine Safety and Health Administration and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The much-anticipated release of the Biden administration’s final revisions to the regulations implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 will be delayed to October 2023, the U.S. Department of Education recently announced.
On June 1, 2023, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) does not preempt an employer’s state court tort claims alleging a union intentionally destroyed the employer’s property during a strike. The ruling is significant for employers in that it could open the door for lawsuits against unions to protect their interests and recover the value of property destroyed during increasingly contentious labor disputes.
On May 31, 2023, the California Senate passed Senate Bill (SB) No. 553 by a vote of 29–8. The legislation would establish new workplace violence prevention standards in California.
Complying with the various legal and practical requirements of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and its regulations is an ongoing challenge for employers, particularly when it comes to questions about when an employee qualifies for leave. Here are some key points regarding the FMLA that employers may want to consider.
On May 27, 2023, Governor Greg Abbott signed into law the CROWN Act (House Bill No. 567), making Texas the twenty-first state to ban racial discrimination based on hair texture or hairstyle in schools, employment, and housing.
A putative class action recently filed in Seattle, Washington, against a solar energy equipment company could be the first lawsuit to test the bounds of the state’s relatively new restrictions on noncompetition agreements for lower-wage employees.
On May 24, 2023, Governor Tim Walz signed Senate File No. 3035, which, among other provisions, amends the Packinghouse Workers Bill of Rights (Minn. Stat. § 179.86), creates new meatpacking workplace safety requirements with the Safe Workplaces for Meat and Poultry Processing Workers Act, and limits the use of quotas in the “Warehouse Distribution Worker Safety” law.
The National Labor Relations Board General Counsel (GC) issued a memorandum on May 30, 2023, declaring her opinion that the “proffer, maintenance, and enforcement’ of noncompete agreements in employment contracts and severance agreements violate the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) “except in limited circumstances.”
On May 24, 2023, Governor Tim Walz signed into law legislation that further expands protections for nursing and pregnant employees in Minnesota. The amendment, included in Senate File 3035, builds on the changes that became effective in January 2022 to Minnesota’s nursing mothers and pregnancy accommodations law (Minn. Stat. § 181.939).
Although marijuana has been legalized for medicinal or recreational use, or both, in thirty-eight states, it is still illegal under federal law, and drug testing is required to comply with a number of federal laws, including the Motor Carrier Safety Act. In addition, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration does not prohibit workplace safety incentive programs or post-incident drug testing.
The world’s first artificial intelligence (AI) regulatory framework is “a step closer” to becoming law, the European Parliament recently announced.
Employers in Washington will soon be prohibited from making hiring decisions based on preemployment testing for off-the-job cannabis use or test results showing nonpsychoactive cannabis metabolites in an applicant’s hair, blood, urine, or other bodily fluids. Washington’s new law, Senate Bill 5123, signed by Governor Jay Inslee on May 9, 2023, takes effect on January 1, 2024.
On May 24, 2023, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed into law a sweeping omnibus jobs and economic development and labor funding bill that will invest $500 million in a fund to match federal investments in infrastructure and large-scale development projects. This bill also fundamentally changes several areas of Minnesota employment law, including instituting a ban on employer-employee noncompete agreements signed after July 1, 2023, establishing new paid sick leave entitlements, providing employees with additional pregnancy and nursing accommodations, and adding new worker safety protections.
On May 26, 2023, the U.S. Department of State announced the delay of the implementation of the final rule raising nonimmigrant visa application processing fees and the fee for a Border Crossing Card for Mexican citizens age fifteen and older. The effective date has been delayed from May 30, 2023, to June 17, 2023.
The Beltway Buzz is a weekly update summarizing labor and employment news from inside the Beltway and clarifying how what’s happening in Washington, D.C., could impact your business.
In a unanimous opinion, the Supreme Court of California concluded that an employee’s disclosure about suspected violations of the law to the employer or a government agency is protected whistleblowing activity under California’s Labor Code, even when the disclosure relates to information already known by the employer or a government agency.
On May 19, 2023, Governor Tim Walz signed into law House File No. 782, establishing the Minnesota Secure Choice retirement program. Minnesota has now joined California, Colorado, Oregon, Illinois, and other states in creating a state-run retirement savings program for employees working with small employers without their own retirement plans.
In yet another effort to speed up the processing of cases, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) general counsel on May 22, 2023, issued a memorandum instructing Regional Offices to speed up compliance with Board-ordered remedies in labor cases.
The Americans with Disabilities Act protects most job applicants and employees from discrimination, harassment, or retaliation based on disability. While employers are likely familiar with many of the physical and mental conditions that are commonly considered disabilities, one gaining more and more attention is obesity.
The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs has released the June 2023 Visa Bulletin and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed that it will accept employment-based I-485 adjustment of status applications per the bulletin’s Final Action Dates chart.
The Minnesota Legislature sent a recreational marijuana bill, House File 100, to Governor Tim Walz’s desk for his signature. Subject to various restrictions, the bill, allows individuals twenty-one years old and older to possess and transport various levels of cannabis products, consume cannabis in private/public areas, and grow it. Governor Walz is expected to sign the bill into law.
On May 18, 2023, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued the latest federal guidance on employer use of artificial intelligence (AI) and automated decision-making tools. The new guidance reinforces the EEOC’s ongoing focus on the use of AI in the workplace and serves as an important reminder to employers of potential legal compliance issues associated with the use of such tools.
On May 19, 2023, in Clark v. A&L Home Care and Training Center, LLC., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit rejected the familiar two-step certification procedure in collective actions under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), instead requiring lead plaintiffs to demonstrate a “strong likelihood” that other employees they seek to represent are “similarly situated” to the original plaintiffs. In so ruling, the Sixth Circuit became just the second circuit court to expressly reject the familiar two-step certification procedure in FLSA collective actions.
Under the law of Mexico, companies must distribute profit-sharing (PTU) payments to employees by May 30 of each year. This article addresses several frequently asked questions about the PTU requirements.
As part of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs’ (OFCCP) continued focus on the construction industry amid the Biden administration’s infrastructure push, the agency is honing in on major construction projects funded by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).
On May 19, 2023, in San Diego, California, the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board (OSHSB) received public comment regarding the proposed Indoor Heat Standard. The board took public comment and discussed the regulation on the closing day of the forty-five-day comment period.
Employers may find it useful to have an understanding of the H-1B, L-1A, and L-1B maximum periods of stay. As a reminder, H-1B status is granted for certain specialty occupations and fashion models, L-1A status is granted for intracompany transfers of executives and managers, and L-1B status is granted for intracompany transfers of employees with specialized knowledge. Understanding the relevant periods of stay helps employers to timely initiate an employment-based green card process on behalf of an employee. It also allows employers to proactively plan their immigration policies to ensure business continuity and to reduce costs.
