January 11, 2012
|
Employers cannot require employees to surrender their right to pursue employment class actions, the National Labor Relations Board ("NLRB") recently ruled in a two-member decision. The decision follows closely on the heels of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling protecting class action waivers.
|
January 9, 2012
|
President Obama named Sharon Block, Terence Flynn, and Richard Griffin as recess appointments to the NLRB. The legality of the President's recess appointments will likely draw legal challenges. Those who rely upon the Board's decisions and regulations will rightfully be concerned that any actions taken by this Board between now and the resolution of those legal challenges may be overturned.
|
December 27, 2011
|
Faced with a request from the federal court in Washington, D.C. hearing one of the legal challenges to the rule, the NLRB has agreed to postpone, again, its planned implementation of the rule requiring almost all private employers, unionized and non-unionized, to post a notice of employee rights under the National Labor Relations Act, until April 30, 2012. Postponing its implementation of the rule, the NLRB says, will facilitate resolving the pending legal challenges.
|
December 22, 2011
|
Presently, a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) final rule will require almost all private employers, unionized and non-unionized, beginning January 31, 2012, to post a notice of employee rights under the National Labor Relations Act. Specifically, the required posted notice must advise employees of their rights to engage in union organizing, bargain collectively and engage in other protected concerted activities. Failure to comply could result in an unfair labor practice charge against an employer by the NLRB. However, two pending lawsuits could impact this ruling.
|
October 2011
|
In a press release issued on October 5, the NLRB announced that the posting requirement (originally announced on August 30, 2011) will be delayed until January 31, 2012 to afford the NLRB the opportunity to engage in "education and outreach" to small and medium sized businesses that may erroneously believe themselves exempt from the notice posting requirement.
|
September 2011
|
On August 30, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is publishing in The Federal Register a new final rule requiring nearly all private employers, union or non-union, to post a notice of employee rights under The National Labor Relations Act. The Rule will be effective November 14, 2011, and posting must be visible to employees on that date.
|
July 1, 2011
|
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has published new and updated Q&As regarding I-9 completion and compliance issues. Of particular note is guidance for employers seeking to conduct self audits of their I-9s.
|
June 24, 2011
|
Recently, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon vetoed Senate Bill 188, legislation that would have made it more difficult for employees suing their employers to win in court and would have limited the remedies available to such employees.
|
June 22, 2011
|
On June 22, the National Labor Relations Board published sweeping proposed regulations in the Federal Register aimed at implementing changes long-sought by unions, such as faster representation hearing deadlines and streamlined pre- and post-election procedures.
|
June 20, 2011
|
On June 20, 2011, the Supreme Court of the United States held that a sex-discrimination class-action lawsuit against Wal-Mart, which could have included more than one million female workers, could not move forward. The Supreme Court's recent decisions may create more scrutiny of plaintiffs using other class devices – such as collective and class actions in Fair Labor Standards Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, and Family and Medical Leave Act cases – against their current or former employers.
|
March 30, 2011
|
The Fair Labor Standards Act’s (“FLSA”) anti-retaliation provision prohibits employers from retaliating against an employee who makes certain reports regarding alleged wage and hour violations. The United States Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics broadens these anti-retaliatory protections for employees, thus becoming even more dangerous for employers.
|
March 25, 2011
|
On Friday, March 25, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) published its final regulations implementing the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 (“ADAAA”) in the Federal Register.
|
February 1, 2011
|
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has submitted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, proposing a rule to require private-sector employers under its jurisdiction to display a new poster in conspicuous locations in their workplaces notifying employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), including the right to form and join a union. Failure to post the proposed information could result in monetary fines to employers for non-compliance. In addition, the Acting General Counsel issued a new GC Memorandum instructing regional offices to expand the use of extraordinary remedies against employers found to have violated the NLRA in the context of organizing campaigns. These two NLRB initiatives will make it easier for unions to organize employees.
|
January 28, 2011
|
In a unanimous 8-0 decision, the United States Supreme Court today issued an important opinion for employees and employers alike in Thompson v. North American Stainless, LP, creating a cause of action for third-party retaliation for persons who did not themselves engage in activity protected by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”). The court’s decision exposes employers to a new risk: retaliation claims by employees who did not themselves make a complaint or file a charge of discrimination. Employers must keep the court’s ruling in mind and add it to the list of considerations they analyze before making employment decisions.
|
January 25, 2011
|
Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, blogs, chat rooms and text messaging. Many businesses are increasing their use of these social media and other “wired” sources of communication as marketing or publicity tools, while others still fear the issues that may arise from this new form of media. Regardless of whether a business chooses to participate actively in this “wired” world, it is imperative that organizations understand their use and abuse—and what can and cannot be controlled.
|
January 11, 2011
|
Over the past year, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has embarked on a game-changing type of enforcement strategy. Under this new guidance, the criminal prosecution of employers is considered a priority of ICE’s worksite enforcement strategy. ICE is now fully committed to targeting employers, owners, corporate managers, supervisors and others in the management structure for criminal prosecution.
|
January 3, 2011
|
On behalf on the entire Labor & Employment Practice group at Polsinelli Shughart PC, we are very pleased to welcome the talents of Jeff Bell. Jeff will provide a much-needed service to our clients dealing with immigration, compliance and enforcement issues. Jeff has focused his practice on immigration law for 18 years, and he brings a wealth of knowledge that will directly impact our Labor and Employment practice, as well as our Corporate, Health Care, Employment, Tax, and International practices.
|
October 2010
|
Last week, an Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”) for the Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a long-anticipated ruling addressing the issue of whether a health care provider’s participation in TRICARE (see note below) rendered it a federal subcontractor subject to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance (“OFCCP”) jurisdiction. In upholding an earlier ruling, the ALJ held that a Florida hospital is a federal subcontractor because it participates in a health care provider network established by Humana Military Healthcare Services, Inc. (“HMHS”), which has a federal contract with the Department of Defense (“DOD”) to provide medical services to individuals eligible for TRICARE coverage.
|
July 20, 2010
|
Could the The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) be considering a move to an electronic voting platform? Could electronic voting lead to more victories for organized labor unions? And how might it impact the employers' opportunities to get their message out to employees?
|
July 2010
|
The definition of son or daughter includes a biological, adopted or foster child, a stepchild, a legal ward or a child of a person standing in loco parentis. The DOL issued the Administrator’s Interpretation to assist employers in determining what constitutes an “in loco parentis” relationship sufficient to trigger FMLA coverage.
|
June 11, 2010
|
The DOL and IRS have hired hundreds of investigators with the specific duty of auditing whether independent contractors should be reclassified as employees, and whether employees designated as exempt from overtime requirements should be reclassified as non-exempt. The implications of employee misclassification as an independent contractor can be far-reaching and expensive for employers.
|
June 7, 2010
|
Prompted by a recent CBS News report on inadvertent disclosures of personal information stored on copy machine hard drives, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has begun contacting copier manufacturers and resellers to determine whether they are warning customers of potential data security vulnerabilities and providing options for secure copying. While the FTC may be investigating copier manufacturers and resellers, companies that own, lease or use copiers or similar multifunction printers need to be aware of the relevant data security issues in order to take proper steps to avoid an inadvertent security breach.
|
May, 2010
|
The recently enacted Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 ("PPACA") earlier this year, it amended the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA") to place certain health insurance obligations on employers. These changes, labeled the Nursing Mothers Amendment and found in section 4207 of the PPACA, require employers to provide reasonable breaks for nursing mothers. Federal law did not previously require employers to provide any breaks to employees. These new requirements are effective immediately and thus employers must take prompt action to bring their policies and practices into compliance.
|
May, 2010
|
On July 1, 2010, a new law takes effect in Kansas that bans smoking in all public buildings and indoor places of employment. The law includes some very specific requirements for employers.
|
April, 2010
|
On March 24, 2010, the United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) withdrew two prior opinion letters regarding the exempt status of mortgage loan officers under the administrative exemption, and announced that the DOL no longer considers mortgage loan officers as bona fide administrative employees under 29 U.S.C. § 213(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), thus making them non-exempt employees entitled to overtime.
|
October 1, 2009
|
On September 23, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) proposed new regulations implementing the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 (“the Act”). Both the Act, which overturned two prior Supreme Court decisions, and the proposed regulations, if finalized, shift the focus from whether an individual has a disability to whether an employer has complied with its ADA obligations. The EEOC anticipates employers will incur some, but – by its analysis – not “significant” costs to implement changes that may be brought about by its proposed regulations. Certainly, employers should audit their policies, practices and procedures to maximize compliance with the Act. To the extent an employer has not begun auditing its policies, practices and procedures following the Act’s January 1 effective date, it should begin that process as soon as practicable and monitor the finalization process of these proposed regulations.
|
July 16, 2009
|
This e-alert details the changes in the federal minimum wage, effective July 24, 2009. The minimum wage for non-exempt employees, under the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA") will increase from $6.55 to $7.25 per hour.
|
July 14, 2009
|
The future of the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) is uncertain, leading to discussions of a compromise version (also known as "EFCA Lite"). This e-blast contains the latest information on the status of this bill.
|