You’ve digested the detailed FAQs on OSHA’s mandate-or-test vaccine ETS, you’ve read about the rule being blocked by a court order, and you know that a conservative appeals court now controls the fate of the rule (for now)....more
As expected, Governor Brian Kemp issued a detailed executive order to begin to re-open businesses throughout the state in the hopes that the worst of the COVID-19 crisis has passed.
[Ed. Note: The initial guidelines and...more
Fisher Phillips has assembled a cross-disciplinary taskforce of attorneys across the country to address the many employment-related issues facing employers in the wake of the COVID-19 coronavirus – especially now that the...more
3/3/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Best Practices ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Policies ,
Foreign Workers ,
Global Workforce ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Labor Relations ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Public Health ,
Risk Management ,
Sick Leave ,
Traveling Employee ,
Wage and Hour ,
WARN Act ,
Workplace Safety
UPDATED February 3, 2020. As we stated in our January 27th Alert, employers must continue monitoring and responding to developments and acting accordingly to protect their employees, assets, and brand. The general approach...more
Although news outlets may be preoccupied with alarming updates about the spread of coronavirus – including several cases identified in the United States – employers don’t need to panic quite yet. As of today, the Centers for...more
Although the cases have slowed in some areas, we still expect a heavy flu season. According to the CDC’s January 18 FLUVIEW, we’re up to 15-million U.S. flu illnesses, 140,000 hospitalizations, and 8,200 deaths, especially...more
After 35 years of practice, certain issues keep me awake at night. One concern is about contractors working onsite or embedded in a working plant or other facility. Examples include year-round or shutdown work at power...more
To almost everyone’s delight, OSHA has filled the vital position of the Director of the Directorate of Construction (DOC). The DOC Director position is always challenging to fill. It requires a high degree of construction...more
I recently talked to a group of managers about misusing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and the resulting safety and performance problems. Issues raised, included...
• Employees justifying bad judgment by claiming...more
The first full documentary on the fall of film mogul Harvey Weinstein premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival, and it can provide employers with an important reminder about the need to rid workplaces of sexual...more
2/20/2019
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Employee Misconduct ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Workplace Safety
Until the 1950s, tuberculosis terrified people in both developed and undeveloped countries, causing thousands of sanitariums to “isolate” patients. No real cure existed. Partly in response to the 400 percent increase in TB in...more
Since I watched The American Factory and Untouchable (first Weinstein #METOO documentary) at the Sundance Film Festival, I’ve been sensitive to the workplace lessons presented by well made films.
Last night I watched the...more
Oct. 9, 2018 We've waited for over a year to learn if the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals would uphold an earlier court decision saying that OSHA could not expand an injury-based inspection by arguing that injury records and an...more
10/10/2018
/ Chemicals ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Manufacturers ,
Motions to Quash ,
OSHA ,
Probable Cause ,
Safety Inspections ,
Search Warrant ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Injury ,
Workplace Safety
We regularly remind employers that third parties, such as unions, and social justice and environmental groups, will use safety as a club to embarrass and bring pressure on a company. Sometimes, these third parties use...more
I handled my first combustible dust case in the late 80s and long before I worked at the Imperial Sugar plant event, I had learned about the fickle and never-to-be-taken lightly risks associated with combustible dust....more
7/13/2018
/ Combustible Dust ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fires ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Manufacturers ,
Manufacturing Facilities ,
OSHA ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Safety Data Sheets ,
Safety Inspections ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Safety
As the old adage goes, the grass is always greener on the other side. Many employees who are required to stand all day for their jobs would like the option to sit. But in recent years, many employees who traditionally sit...more
5/2/2018
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Business Development ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
General Duty Clause ,
Health and Safety ,
Interactive Process ,
OSHA ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Undue Hardship ,
Workplace Safety
Mercifully, this has not been a week of big OSHA developments, so we focus on practical observations on safety compliance and on managing OSHA inspections.
Because safety professionals in particular, and managers in general,...more
2/6/2018
/ Best Practices ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Government Investigations ,
Influenza ,
Job Applicants ,
OSHA ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Supervisors ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wellness Programs ,
Witness Statements ,
Workplace Safety
We’ve separated Saturday’s Weekly Roundup into two posts for more easy consumption. This section includes comments from two nationally recognized professionals in our industry who commented on safety, employment law, and...more
Thanks for the input on topics you’d like to see and on your own observations to reference in the weekly Update. In order to keep this report short, we’re shifting most book, movie and certain other categories to the full...more
1/29/2018
/ Budget Reconciliation ,
Catastrophic Events ,
DACA ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Immigration Reform ,
Influenza ,
OFCCP ,
OSHA ,
School Districts ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Trump Administration ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety ,
Workplace Violence
I started these posts after my partner Travis Vance and I realized that our clients and Firm friends are eager for information in areas other than labor, OSHA, and employment law. A number of nationally renowned thought...more
1/22/2018
/ Bureau of Labor Statistics ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Government Shutdown ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hotels ,
Local Ordinance ,
NLRB ,
Nominations ,
OSHA ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Senate Committees ,
Unions ,
Workplace Injury ,
Workplace Safety
If Congress cannot approve a budget by this Friday at midnight, the federal government will shut down. What will this mean for employers across the country? A look back at the most recent government shutdown will provide...more
1/18/2018
/ Budget Reconciliation ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
E-Verify ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Government Shutdown ,
Green Cards ,
Labor Relations ,
NLRB ,
OSHA ,
PERM ,
Small Business ,
Trump Administration ,
US State Departments ,
USCIS ,
Visas ,
Wage and Hour ,
Work Visas ,
Workplace Safety
Folks who follow my writing know that of the many groups to which I speak, the AGC National Safety Committee is my favorite. I love the industry and I value the clients and contacts who have become friends, even Bob Emmerich,...more
1/15/2018
/ Best Practices ,
Emergency Response ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
OSHA ,
Risk Management ,
Safety Equipment ,
Safety Precautions ,
Safety Training ,
Silica ,
Workplace Safety
Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a one-page memorandum on December 4th, rescinding Obama-era guidance that had allowed states to legalize medical and recreational marijuana with marginal federal interference, eliminating...more
1/8/2018
/ Attorney General ,
Best Practices ,
Cole Memorandum ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dispensaries ,
Drug Possession ,
Drug Testing ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Rescission ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration ,
Workplace Safety
The long awaited nominee for Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA, Scott Mugno, finally received his Senate Labor Committee hearing on December 5, and passed through without controversy on a party line vote. Unfortunately,...more
12/22/2017
/ Delivery Drivers ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Electronic Filing ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Budget ,
Motor Vehicles ,
Nominations ,
OSHA ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Safety Precautions ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Silica ,
Workplace Illness and Injury Reporting ,
Workplace Injury ,
Workplace Safety
People who do not regularly deal with the local, state and federal government may not realize that there is a huge difference between a “Bureaucrat” and a “Civil Servant.” OSHA has more civil servants than bureaucrats and we...more