On June 12, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in A. J. T. v. Osseo Area Schools, No. 24-249, holding that discrimination claims brought under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Title II of...more
6/18/2025
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
AJT v Osseo Area Schools Independent School District No 279 ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Bad Faith ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employment Litigation ,
Failure to Accommodate ,
IDEA ,
Judicial Authority ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Rehabilitation Act ,
School Districts ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 504 ,
Standard of Proof ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Students ,
Title II
In response to taxpayer and state government requests, including a 2024 letter from governors of nine states imploring the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to clarify the federal tax treatment of premiums and benefits under...more
1/30/2025
/ Employee Benefits ,
Employee Contributions ,
Employment Tax ,
Excise Tax ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Paid Family Leave Insurance Program ,
Paid Leave ,
Self-Insurance ,
State Labor Laws ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Planning ,
Taxable Income
Each year, the New York State Department of Financial Services announces changes to the employee contribution rate and benefit amounts under the New York Paid Family Leave Law (NY PFL) effective the next year. It has...more
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued final regulations and Interpretative Guidance to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA). The PWFA went into effect on June 27, 2023. The PWFA requires...more
It has been almost exactly four years since the COVID-19 pandemic changed the American working landscape. Many of us followed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) through multiple changes and guidance,...more
On August 11, 2023, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) formally published proposed regulations to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA). In a matter of just under 9 months, since the law was...more
8/14/2023
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Comment Period ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Essential Functions ,
Lactation Accommodation ,
Pregnancy ,
Pregnant Workers Fairness Act ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Title VII ,
Undue Hardship
On May 15, 2023, in response to the end of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Declaration, the EEOC updated its COVID-19 technical assistance: “What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and...more
The U.S. COVID-19 Public Health Emergency will end on May 11, 2023, one week after the World Health Organization determined that COVID-19 is no longer a Public Health Emergency of International Concern....more
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued guidance on the application of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to employees who telework from home or from another location away from...more
On Friday, January 13, 2022, a New York State Supreme Court Judge for Onondaga County struck down the New York State Department of Health regulation mandating certain healthcare professionals be “fully vaccinated” against...more
On November 30, 2022, the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) updated its Advisory on Return-to-Work Protocols for Healthcare Personnel with SARS-CoV-2 Infection or Exposure to Sars-CoV-2. This new guidance...more
On November 21, 2022, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed a law clarifying that it is unlawful for an employer to penalize an employee for any absence protected under federal, state or local law. (S.1958/A.8092). The law...more
On December 31, 2022, Cal/OSHA’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) finally sunset. However, the Standards Board has been working to pass a permanent standard to ensure it is in place before the expiration of the...more
Beginning November 1, 2022, New York City private sector employees will no longer be subject to the COVID-19 vaccination mandate.
Mayor Eric Adams announced on September 20, 2022, that private employers in New York City...more
In an effort to streamline its guidance and reflect the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued updated guidance that focuses on individual responsibility and is...more
Monkeypox (MPV) is the latest virus to catch wide attention. But it is important for employers to keep in mind that MPV is not COVID-19. Nevertheless, there are steps employers can take....more
As the pandemic continues to evolve, so does the EEOC’s guidance. On July 12, 2022, the EEOC once again updated its COVID-19 guidance: What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEO...more
7/21/2022
/ ADEA ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Documentation ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Guidance Update ,
High Risk Covid Employees ,
Rehabilitation Act ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
The New York State Commissioner of Health rescinded the designation of COVID-19 as a “highly contagious communicable disease that presents a serious risk of harm to the public health under the HERO Act” (Health and Essential...more
As the number of employees requesting flexible work arrangements increases, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has released a new technical assistance document, “The COVID-19 Pandemic and Caregiver...more
In a 6-3 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court has granted a temporary stay of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS).
The Court described the standard as a “blunt...more
1/14/2022
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
General Duty Clause ,
Lack of Authority ,
National Federation of Independent Business v Department of Labor and OSHA ,
OSHA ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has announced that it is withdrawing most of the Emergency Temporary Standard for healthcare employers (Healthcare ETS) it promulgated more than six months ago...more
The CDC announced today that it is updating its quarantine and isolation guidance. For people with COVID-19, the isolation period was reduced from ten days to five days as long as the individual has no symptoms or their...more
More than six months after the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) promulgated an Emergency Temporary Standard for healthcare employers (Healthcare ETS), OSHA announced its intentions to propose an infectious...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has lifted the Fifth Circuit’s stay of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) on COVID-19 vaccination and testing for...more
Following her announcement of a broad COVID-19 mask mandate for New York businesses effective December 13, 2021, Health Commissioner Mary Bassett has published an order and frequently asked questions clarifying certain...more