Each week, FP Weekly members receive a practical and cutting-edge checklist of issues to consider, action steps to take, and goals to accomplish to ensure you remain on the top of your game when it comes to workplace...more
Employers may be able to revise their COVID-19 protocols now that the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has updated the definition of “close contact” for isolation and quarantine purposes. Over the summer, the...more
Despite the swirling economic volatility around the country, more than 40% of employers plan on growing their workforce in 2022 – and one in four businesses will pick up the pace this year and hire more employees than they...more
A new law set to take effect on August 6 will require hotels in the City of Los Angeles to implement new protections for certain hotel workers and raises the minimum wage at more hotels in the City of Los Angeles. Similar...more
7/12/2022
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hotels ,
Local Ordinance ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Over-Time ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
California public health officials recently revised the definitions of “close contact” and “infectious period” that appear in the state’s pandemic-related rules – and the new broader standards might catch some employers by...more
Many California employers were hopeful there was an end in sight for COVID-19 requirements – but recent activity from state workplace safety officials means that you will most likely need to comply with pandemic rules for at...more
With the Consumer Price Index recently showing the largest spike in 30 years, California employers need to brace themselves and prepare for the minimum-wage hikes going into effect in several cities across the state on July...more
Employers can benefit from using software programs to streamline their hiring process, but federal agencies just sent a stern warning that relying on algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI) to make staffing decisions...more
5/17/2022
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Bias ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Job Applicants ,
Reasonable Accommodation
After the news yesterday that a federal court judge struck down the CDC’s mask mandate for airplanes, mass transportation, and transit hubs, many employers immediately wondered what it might mean for their business. Though...more
4/19/2022
/ Airlines ,
Business Travel ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Health and Safety ,
Masks ,
Public Health ,
Transportation Industry ,
Traveling Employee ,
Workplace Safety
In the surest sign that COVID-19 restrictions are moving to the rearview mirror once and for all, California has just relaxed its face covering requirements, regardless of vaccination status in most settings – and for most...more
3/2/2022
/ Cal-OSHA ,
CDPH ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Executive Orders ,
Governor Newsom ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
Public Health ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Since we first explained the CMS vaccine mandate (the Interim Final Rule (IFR) from the Centers from Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that requires COVID-19 vaccinations for all staff at covered facilities), the mandate has...more
Responding to pressure from labor amidst the Omicron variant, California lawmakers and Governor Newsom are on the cusp of enacting new COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave (SPSL) that could go into effect in a matter of...more
California voters may have another opportunity to categorize gig workers in a certain profession as independent contractors when Election Day rolls around this November – but this time it won’t be delivery or ride-share...more
The Supreme Court blocked OSHA from enforcing the vaccine mandate-or-test ETS and the agency responded Tuesday by shelving the emergency rule altogether. In some ways, these two developments mean that the pathway for...more
On the heels of the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC’s) updated isolation and quarantine guidance reducing the length of time an individual must isolate after contracting COVID-19 and the quarantine period for those exposed...more
1/5/2022
/ Cal-OSHA ,
CDPH ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
Quarantine ,
Sick Employees ,
Social Distancing ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
In one of the more shocking developments in a year full of surprises, a federal appeals court breathed new life into the Biden administration’s mandate-or-test emergency vaccine rule with a stunning Friday afternoon decision....more
“The Court ORDERS that Defendants are ENJOINED, during the pendency of this action or until further order of this Court, from enforcing the vaccine mandate for federal contractors and subcontractors in all covered contracts...more
As a result of a somewhat surprising ruling from a federal court judge in Kentucky Tuesday, the federal government is currently blocked from enforcing the vaccine mandate for federal contractors and subcontractors in all...more
Federal workplace safety officials just released the mandate-or-test workplace vaccine emergency rule, and employers are sure to have questions. The Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) developed by the Occupational Safety and...more
11/5/2021
/ Best Practices ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employer ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Contractors ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Joint Employers ,
OSHA ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Remote Working ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Unions ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Illness and Injury Reporting ,
Workplace Safety
As employers implement their own internal COVID-19 protocols and procedures, many have the additional burden of complying with third-party vaccine policies or enforcing their own vaccine policies upon non-employees such as...more
10/27/2021
/ Confidential Information ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Customers ,
Documentation ,
Employee Privacy Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Public Accommodation ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Temporary Employees ,
Vaccinations ,
Vendors ,
Visitors ,
Workplace Safety
With many current COVID-19 safety protocols dependent on vaccination status, verification and vaccine mandates continue to raise unique confidentiality and privacy considerations for employers. Here are some important points...more
Not long after West Hollywood issued an Emergency Order requiring vaccine verification and a vaccine mandate for certain businesses, Los Angeles County followed suit with its own vaccine mandate for many hospitality...more
10/6/2021
/ Bars ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Distilleries ,
Employer Mandates ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Nightclubs ,
Public Gatherings ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Vaccinations ,
Verification Requirements ,
Virus Testing ,
Wineries
California was one of the first states to pass a pandemic paid sick leave requirement for employers – but now that the leave obligations are about to expire, employers are bound to have questions. SB 95 went into effect on...more
The Safer Federal Workforce Task Force just issued new COVID-19 Workplace Safety Guidance for Federal Contractors and Subcontractors, which provides further detail and guidance on the vaccine mandate and COVID-19 safety...more
9/28/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Federal Contractors ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Social Distancing ,
Subcontractors ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
The Biden Administration’s recent “Path Out of the Pandemic” expands the COVID-19 vaccine mandate covering nursing home workers and will soon reach 17 million healthcare workers at Medicare and Medicaid-certified facilities....more
9/15/2021
/ Ambulatory Surgery Centers ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Home Health Agencies ,
Home Health Care ,
Home Healthcare Workers ,
Hospitals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Nursing Homes ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety