On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted 3-2 to adopt a final rule broadly banning post-employment noncompete agreements. This federal ban prohibits for-profit employers from entering into noncompete...more
4/29/2024
/ Chamber of Commerce ,
Corporate Executives ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Exceptions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
Former Employee ,
Model Forms ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Notice Requirements ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Unfair Competition
2023 was a seismic year for the employment landscape, with changes to state and federal laws that touch on hiring, firing, and just about everything in between. Members of Fenwick’s employment group recently walked through...more
2/1/2024
/ Arbitration Agreements ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
California ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint Employers ,
Labor Reform ,
New Legislation ,
New York ,
NLRB ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Paid Leave ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
State Labor Laws ,
Technology ,
Wage and Hour
On January 10, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor released its final rule for determining worker classification under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The final rule returns to the economic reality test historically...more
1/30/2024
/ ABC Test ,
Classification ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Final Rules ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
New Rules ,
Wage and Hour
On December 22, 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul vetoed legislation passed by New York lawmakers this past summer, which sought to ban nearly all non-competition agreements state-wide (as previously reported here). In a memo...more
1/10/2024
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Governor Vetoes ,
Legislative Agendas ,
New York ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
State and Local Government ,
State Bans ,
State Labor Laws ,
State Legislatures ,
Wage and Hour
Once a startup has properly classified its worker, it should document its relationship with the worker in order to clearly identify the classification, compensation and benefits (e.g., base salary, bonus, commissions, equity,...more
On September 1, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law SB 699, which amends California Business & Professions Code Section 16600 to prohibit employers from entering into, or attempting to enforce,...more
An important part of hiring employees is deciding how to compensate them. Because of limited capital, startups often implement equity-only compensation or deferred compensation arrangements in lieu of regular salaries....more
The New York State Senate and New York State Assembly recently passed legislation (Bill S3100A and Bill A1278A) that would prohibit the use of non-competition agreements entirely. If the legislation is signed into law by...more
On February 21, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) held that including broad confidentiality and non-disparagement clauses in severance agreements violates the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA)...more
3/1/2023
/ Confidentiality Agreements ,
Contract Terms ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Former Employee ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Reform ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Section 7 ,
Severance Agreements
Join Fenwick’s Employment Practices Group for a 90-minute discussion of the legal developments and emerging trends that shaped 2022 then hear about the compliance recommendations, practical takeaways, and perspective on what...more
12/23/2022
/ Continuing Legal Education ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Regulations ,
New Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Webinars ,
Workplace Safety
U.S. Department of Labor Publishes Proposed Rule on Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act -
On October 13, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a proposed rule updating the...more
10/25/2022
/ Arbitration ,
California ,
Cannabis Products ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Data Reporting ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Definition ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Job Ads ,
Marijuana ,
New York ,
Notice Requirements ,
Off-The-Clock ,
Paid Leave ,
Pay Transparency ,
Popular ,
Proposed Rules ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Wage and Hour
On September 27, 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law SB 1162, which expands California’s existing pay transparency and employee data reporting laws. California joins New York and Colorado, which have...more
10/10/2022
/ California ,
Data Reporting ,
EEO-1 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Governor Newsom ,
Job Applicants ,
New Legislation ,
Pay Data ,
Pay Transparency ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Wage and Hour
On March 3, 2022, President Biden signed into law the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (the Act), which amends the Federal Arbitration Act (the FAA) and prohibits employers from requiring...more
3/24/2022
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Biden Administration ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
New Legislation ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
On December 13, 2021, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), citing the Omicron variant and the need for additional protection during the holiday season, issued statewide guidance requiring face masks to be worn...more
[Editor’s Note (12/20/21): The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has lifted the Fifth Circuit’s injunction halting enforcement of the OSHA Standards, and, specifically, the mandate regarding vaccination or weekly...more
[Editor's Note (12/07/21): A second court―the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia―has issued an injunction halting enforcement of the federal contractor vaccine mandate on a nationwide basis. The district...more
12/8/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Injunctions ,
Multidistrict Litigation ,
OSHA ,
State and Local Government ,
Stays ,
Subcontractors ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
On November 4, 2021, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its long-awaited emergency standards to implement President Biden’s Vaccine/Testing Mandate for businesses with 100 or more...more
11/9/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Injunctions ,
OSHA ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
California Significantly Expands Family Rights Act -
California Governor Gavin Newsom recently signed into law SB 1383, which significantly expands the coverage and scope of the California Family Rights Act (CFRA). CFRA,...more
10/21/2020
/ California Family Rights Act (CFRA) ,
Classification ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Diversity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equity ,
Executive Orders ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Governor Newsom ,
Independent Contractors ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Parental Leave ,
Pay Data ,
Proposed Rules ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sick Leave ,
Small Business ,
Training ,
Trump Administration ,
Workplace Outbreaks
Fenwick’s employment practices group has compiled the following checklist setting forth key considerations and emerging best practices that businesses should take into account when formulating a plan for employees’ return to...more
6/23/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
New Guidance ,
OSHA ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Remote Working ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
Screening Procedures ,
Sick Employees ,
Workplace Decontamination
As outlined in our prior alert, a multitude of changes in New York employment law have either gone into effect or will be in effect soon. We encourage employers with New York operations to review our prior guidance,...more
New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo on August 12 signed into law new legislation expanding employee protections against discrimination and harassment. Among the key provisions are a lower standard for proving harassment,...more
8/14/2019
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Pay ,
Faragher/Ellerth defense ,
Governor Cuomo ,
Hairstyle Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Notice Requirements ,
Protected Class ,
Punitive Damages ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Wage and Hour