In its September 13, 2024 decision in Bodge et al. v. Commonwealth et al., SJC-13567 (2024), the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) ruled that an employer’s policy of denying the accrual of certain benefits to...more
9/19/2024
/ Employee Benefits ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
MA Supreme Judicial Court ,
Medical Leave ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Leave ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
On July 31, 2024, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healy, in an effort to increase transparency in pay, signed into law wage equity legislation that imposes new disclosure requirements on Massachusetts-based employers. The...more
8/9/2024
/ Disclosure Requirements ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Filing Requirements ,
Job Ads ,
Job Applicants ,
Labor Reform ,
New Legislation ,
New Regulations ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
On November 22, 2023, New York City’s law banning discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of an individual’s height and/or weight went into effect. The law, signed on May 26, 2023 by...more
11/29/2023
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
City of New York ,
Discrimination ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Job Applicants ,
Labor Reform ,
New Legislation ,
New Regulations ,
New York ,
State and Local Government
On September 14, 2023, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed a new law (A.836) that prohibits employers from requesting or requiring that employees or job applicants disclose the log-in information to their personal social...more
On July 5, 2023, the New York Department of Consumer and Workplace Protection (“DCWP”) will begin enforcing NYC Law 144, which regulates the use of AI-driven hiring tools, referred to as Automated Employment Decision Tools...more
On December 29, 2022, President Biden signed two bills into law aimed at enhancing protections for pregnant and nursing parents in the workplace: the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) and the Providing Urgent Maternal...more
On December 21, 2022, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed a statewide pay transparency measure into law. The new law, which goes into effect on September 18, 2023, requires covered employers and employment agencies to list...more
1/3/2023
/ Disclosure Requirements ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Ads ,
Job Descriptions ,
Job Promotions ,
New Legislation ,
New York ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Salary/Wage History ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
New York has passed a new law intended to ensure that workers are permitted to take lawful absences from work without being penalized. The new measure amends Section 215 of the New York Labor Law to prohibit an employer from...more
On July 26, 2022, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed into law the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (“CROWN”) Act. Among other things, the law prohibits discrimination based on “traits...more
On January 15, 2022, New York City passed Local Law 32 of 2022, which requires employers in New York City to post the “minimum and maximum salary” for “advertisements” in a “job, promotion or transfer opportunity.” This...more
4/6/2022
/ Disclosure Requirements ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Job Ads ,
Job Applicants ,
New Legislation ,
New Regulations ,
Pay Transparency ,
Salaried Employees ,
State and Local Government ,
Wage and Hour
On March 3, 2022, President Biden signed the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (the “Act”) into law. The Act amends the Federal Arbitration Act to prohibit employers from mandating...more
As technological advances have given employers artificial intelligence (AI) based tools to assist them in the hiring process, New York City has taken note. Recently, New York City adopted a new measure restricting the use of...more
On November 8, 2021, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law a bill requiring employers to provide written notice to and obtain employee acknowledgments from new hires before they may engage in electronic monitoring of...more
On May 28, 2021, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed into law legislation requiring all Massachusetts employers to provide emergency paid sick leave to employees who are unable to work for certain reasons relating to...more
6/4/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Full-Time Employees ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Sick Leave Act ,
Part-Time Employees ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws
On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (the “ARPA”) into law. In addition to providing nearly $2 trillion of monetary relief for individuals and business sectors impacted by the...more
4/1/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Biden Administration ,
CARES Act ,
COBRA ,
Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
Relief Measures ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
Subsidies ,
Tax Credits ,
Unemployment Benefits
On March 12, 2021, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law legislation granting public and private employees paid time off to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. The new law immediately requires all New York State...more
On January 29, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) issued detailed health and safety guidance to inform employers and employees of recommended strategies to mitigate the risk of exposure to...more
2/2/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Orders ,
Health and Safety ,
New Guidance ,
New Legislation ,
OSHA ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Workplace Safety
On January 21, 2021, President Joe Biden used his first full day in office to issue an Executive Order focused on increased COVID-19 protections for the nation’s workers, including the most vulnerable essential employees. As...more
1/26/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Orders ,
Health and Safety ,
New Guidance ,
New Legislation ,
OSHA ,
Workplace Safety
Earlier this week, as millions of Americans were being urged to self-quarantine to curb the spread of COVID-19, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a new paid sick leave bill into law. The law is designed, among other...more
On the evening of Wednesday, March 18, 2020 the President signed into law the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which provides various forms of emergency relief to directly address the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic....more
On June 11, 2019, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, Senate President Karen Spilka, and House Speaker Robert DeLeo announced that they agreed to delay the required contributions to the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical...more
On July 28, 2017, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (“PWFA”) into law. The PWFA, which will go into effect on April 1, 2018, requires that employers provide reasonable...more
Earlier this month, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio signed a bill prohibiting employers from asking job candidates about their salary history. The new law will go into effect on October 31, 2017....more
Last week, the Massachusetts House of Representatives unanimously passed the Massachusetts Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (H.3680). If the bill becomes law, it will expand employment protections for pregnant workers in...more