Andrew Karter on Employer Liability Issues

The Era Of The Non-Compete Agreement Is Ending – Or Is it?

The wait is over, but the fight is just beginning. Will U.S. employers need to break up with non-compete agreements forever? The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted “yes” earlier this week in pushing through a Final Rule...more

4/24/2024 / Competition , Confidential Information , Contract Terms , Employer Liability Issues , Employment Contract , Federal Labor Laws , Federal Trade Commission (FTC) , Final Rules , Hiring & Firing , Intellectual Property Protection , Labor Reform , Non-Compete Agreements , Popular , Restrictive Covenants

The Secret Is Out: Updates to New York’s Non-Disclosure Law

New York is closing out 2023 by ushering in sweeping amendments to its law governing non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in certain settlement agreements. The amendments represent the next step in New York’s ongoing effort to...more

12/27/2023 / Employees , Employer Liability Issues , Employment Contract , Hiring & Firing , Intellectual Property Protection , Labor Reform , New York , Non-Disclosure Agreement , State Labor Laws

Public Health Emergency No More: Pitfalls Employers Should Avoid While Easing Their COVID-Era Policies

After more than three years, both the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HSS) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have ended their classification of COVID-19 as a public/global health emergency. In conjunction...more

6/6/2023 / Coronavirus/COVID-19 , Employer Liability Issues , Employer Responsibilities , Employment Policies , Health and Safety , Infectious Diseases , OSHA , Public Health , Workplace Safety

Temporary Workers’ Bill of Rights: New Jersey Enacts Trailblazing Protections

Temporary Workers’ Bill of Rights: New Jersey Enacts Trailblazing Protections - New Jersey has recently trailblazed a path in the temporary staffing market by enacting a “Temporary Workers’ Bill of Rights.”...more

3/14/2023 / Employee Rights , Employer Liability Issues , Labor Reform , New Jersey , Skilled Laborers , State Labor Laws , Temporary Employees , Wage and Hour

Silenced No More: The Speak Out Act Set To Curb Nondisclosure Agreements For Victims Of Sexual Misconduct

Employers who have made use of pre-dispute nondisclosure and nondisparagement agreements will now have to change those practices and reevaluate their existing agreements thanks to the “Speak Out Act” (the “Act”) – a...more

12/13/2022 / #MeToo , Anti-Harassment Policies , Biden Administration , Complaint Procedures , Employer Liability Issues , Employment Contract , Labor Reform , New Legislation , Non-Disclosure Agreement , Non-Disparagement Provisions , Sexual Assault , Sexual Harassment , Unenforceable Contract Terms

Born Under a Bad Sign: Avoiding Electronic Signature Blues

When Albert King sang “Born Under a Bad Sign,” he was not referring to a document containing an invalid electronic signature. Nevertheless, in a post-COVID world with large numbers of remote workers, employers can take...more

9/13/2022 / E-SIGN , E-Signatures , Electronic Agreements , Employees , Employer Liability Issues , Employment Contract , UETA , Uniform Commercial Code (UCC)

Sweeping Expansions to New York’s Whistleblower Protections Take Effect

New York employers, take heed: sweeping expansions to New York Labor Law (NYLL) Section 740 have fundamentally redefined the protections afforded to whistleblowers within the state. The revised law took effect on January 26,...more

2/7/2022 / Adverse Employment Action , Anti-Retaliation Provisions , Civil Monetary Penalty , Corporate Misconduct , Employee Definition , Employer Liability Issues , Internal Reporting , Labor Reform , Labor Regulations , New York , Punitive Damages , Retaliation , State Labor Laws , Whistleblower Protection Policies , Whistleblowers

Biden Administration Unveils Long-Awaited COVID-19 Rules For Large Employers and Healthcare Workers

The wait is over for employers seeking clarity on the details of the Biden Administration’s vaccine and testing rules for private employers, first announced by President Biden in early September and now slated to take effect...more

11/5/2021 / Biden Administration , Coronavirus/COVID-19 , Emergency Management Plans , Employer Liability Issues , Employer Mandates , Essential Workers , Health and Safety , Healthcare Workers , Infectious Diseases , New Rules , OSHA , Public Health Emergency , Vaccinations , Virus Testing , Workplace Safety

Mandatory Versus Voluntary Vaccinations: An Employer Guide

With COVID-19 vaccines now available to every adult in the United States, employers are starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel after a year of uncertainty. But for employers whose workforces spent a year away from...more

4/27/2021 / Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) , Coronavirus/COVID-19 , Employer Liability Issues , Employment Policies , Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) , Infectious Diseases , Reasonable Accommodation , Vaccinations , Workplace Safety

Preparing for 2021: What New York Employers Can Expect in the New Year

2021 is here, and with the new year comes changes for New York employers seeking to ensure full compliance with newly effective laws, or changes to the law, throughout the State. Employers are well-advised to review the...more

12/31/2020 / Employer Liability Issues , Fast-Food Industry , Hiring & Firing , Just Cause , Labor Regulations , Minimum Wage , Sick Leave , State and Local Government , State Labor Laws , Tip Credit , Tipped Employees , Tips , Wage and Hour

Common Sense Finally Prevails: Employers No Longer have to Tolerate Abusive and Offensive Conduct in the Workplace

Your employee has just cursed at you, calling you every racist and/or sexist name in the book. Naturally, that employee must go! Just as you are ready to sign off on the termination, a thought occurs to you: “Uh-oh. He was...more

8/18/2020 / Employee Rights , Employer Liability Issues , Employment Policies , General Motors , NLRA , NLRB , Offensive Language , Protected Concerted Activity , Section 7 , Wright Line Test

What Employers Need to Know about Coronavirus

Although there have only been a handful of confirmed cases of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV or the “coronavirus”) within the United States so far, employers are nevertheless well-advised to take affirmative steps to...more

New York City Expands Independent Contractor Rights Amidst a Budding National Trend

Last month, New York City joined an emerging national trend toward increased protections for independent contractors and freelance workers, adopting a new law, Int. 136-A, extending to independent contractors and freelancers...more

11/25/2019 / ABC Test , Complaint Procedures , Employee Definition , Employee Rights , Employer Liability Issues , Freelance Workers , Gig Economy , Hiring & Firing , Independent Contractors , Labor Regulations , Local Ordinance , Misclassification , NYCHRL , State and Local Government , Wage and Hour

New York State Approves Expanded Protections For Employees And Applicants

New York State is on its way to enacting comprehensive reforms to broaden the scope of its discrimination and harassment laws, including one of the most robust anti-harassment bills in the #MeToo era, amendments to the...more

7/3/2019 / Anti-Discrimination Policies , Anti-Harassment Policies , Attorney's Fees , Employer Liability Issues , Employment Discrimination , Employment Policies , Mandatory Arbitration , Non-Disclosure Agreement , Punitive Damages , Salary/Wage History , Sexual Harassment , State Labor Laws , Statute of Limitations

New York State Approves Broadly Expanded Protections for Employees and Applicants