In a win for organized labor, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) reinstated a union-friendly standard under which both temporary and permanent employees may collectively bargain as a single unit without employer consent. On July 11, 2016, the NLRB’s 3-1 decision in Miller & Anderson, Inc., 364 NLRB No. 39 (2016), made it easier
OSHA Releases Final Rule Requiring Employers to Electronically Report Injuries and Illnesses
Rule Also Has Potential Ramifications for Employers’ Post-Accident Drug-Testing Policies
OSHA recently released its Final Rule on the electronic recording and submission of injury and illness records. The Rule has several important provisions of which employers need to be aware, as well as some potential ramifications to long-standing employer practices.
Here are the basic requirements
EEOC Issues Final Rules on Wellness Programs
On May 16, 2016, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued final regulations regarding employers’ use of wellness programs. Such programs seek to promote healthy behavior by employees, often through financial incentives such as reduced healthcare benefits premiums or reduced gym membership costs. The EEOC rules amend existing regulations under the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act
White House to Release New Overtime Rule Today: What it Means to Employers
After months of waiting and speculation, the White House later today will release a new rule that could make more than four million Americans eligible for overtime pay. The rule will become effective in December, and will do the following:
- Immediately double the minimum salary threshold for most white collar exempt classifications to $47,476 per
Release of Final Overtime Rules Imminent
Based upon information received from a number of sources, it now appears that the Department of Labor’s controversial changes to the rules governing the white collar exemptions under the Fair Labor Standards Act will be finalized and published in the coming weeks – potentially as early as next week. Once published, it is expected that
Final Rules on Persuader Activity Published
The Department of Labor’s Office of Labor Management Standards (“OLMS”) has released its long-anticipated revisions to its interpretation of the rules for the reporting of employer engagements with third parties to provide services designed to influence employees’ choices of collective bargaining representation. This is known as “persuader activity.” Employers who enter an agreement with an
EEOC Proposes Addition of Pay Data to EEO-1 Reports
On January 29, 2016, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) published a proposed revision to the Employer Information Report (EEO-1). The proposed revision to the EEO-1 would require employers to report data on the EEO-1 regarding their employees’ W-2 earnings and hours worked.
Currently, employers report on the EEO-1 their employees’ race, ethnicity and sex
EEOC Releases Draft Proposed Enforcement Guidance on Claims of Retaliation
On January 21, 2016, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued proposed enforcement guidance concerning retaliation claims. This guidance is intended to replace the 1998 Compliance Manual on Retaliation, and, not surprisingly, the guidance takes a broader view than many of the cases that have been decided since then.
The guidance makes clear that the
OSHA Given Green Light to Increase Penalties
On November 2, 2015, President Obama signed the Bipartisan Budget Act (the “Act”) of 2015 into law. P.L. 114-74. The Act changes the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, enacted at 28 U.S.C. §2461. These little-noticed changes have huge ramifications because they specifically remove OSHA from the list of agencies that are exempt
Department of Labor Issues Proposed Rules Increasing Salary Threshold for Overtime
On June 30, 2015, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued proposed rules that will significantly increase the minimum salary threshold required for an employee to be classified as exempt for purposes of overtime pay under federal law. It is expected that nearly 5 million additional workers will become eligible for overtime pay within the first