As Arizona employers prepare for 2020, key minimum wages and exempt salary levels under city, state, and federal law will go into effect. Additionally, employers will want to remain aware of potential legislation and/or voter...more
12/19/2019
/ Citizen Initiative Campaigns ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Dispensaries ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Minimum Wage ,
Municipalities ,
SEIU ,
State Labor Laws ,
Surprise Medical Bills ,
Wage and Hour
Employment litigation settlement agreements often include a mutually negotiated “no-rehire” provision by which the departing employee agrees not to seek employment with the company in the future. A recently enacted California...more
On October 8, 2019, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral argument on one core question: does the prohibition on discrimination “because of...sex” in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 include...more
10/11/2019
/ Altitude Express Inc v Zarda ,
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Dress Codes ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
LGBTQ ,
Oral Argument ,
SCOTUS ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Split of Authority ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
On April 3, 2019, New Mexico governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed into law two bills related to criminal background checks that may affect employers operating in the state. The first is a ban-the-box law that prohibits...more
Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Equality Act, a bill that would amend federal law (including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964) to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and...more
5/23/2019
/ Best Practices ,
Chamber of Commerce ,
Civil Rights Act ,
EEOC v RG & GR Harris Funeral Homes ,
Employment Discrimination ,
ENDA ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equality Act ,
Gender Identity ,
LGBTQ ,
Pending Legislation ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
In recent months, the New Mexico Legislature enacted legislation expanding employment protections for medical marijuana users. Recent changes to the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act, New Mexico’s medical marijuana law,...more
On March 22, 2019, Governor Doug Ducey signed Arizona House Bill (HB) 2230 into law. As described in detail in our recent article, HB 2230 allows judgment creditors to serve writs of garnishment by certified mail, return...more
In recent months, the New Mexico legislature enacted legislation expanding employment protections for nurses. The Safe Harbor for Nurses Act allows registered and licensed practical nurses to refuse assignments under certain...more
The Arizona legislature recently passed a bill that would amend Arizona Revised Statutes Section 12-1574 to change how writs of garnishments can be issued and served on garnishees, including employers. House Bill (HB) 2230...more
Given the litigious environment in California, employers operating in the state are in great need of enforceable general release terms in severance and settlement agreements. California employers entering into severance or...more
Winslow, Arizona, is well known to every fan of the Eagles based on the band’s hit debut single, “Take it Easy,” released in 1972. Winslow again hit the radio and news media when its city council passed Ordinance No. 1327 on...more
An estimated 9 million adults in the United States are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. Eighty-seven percent of U.S. residents report knowing someone who is lesbian or gay, and half report having a close lesbian or gay...more
10/11/2018
/ Appeals ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Gender Discrimination ,
LGBTQ ,
Obergefell v. Hodges ,
OSHA ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Sexual Stereotyping ,
Split of Authority ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
On June 4, 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States settled a controversy stemming from a bakery’s refusal to make a cake for a same-sex couple’s wedding reception. Justice Kennedy, writing for the majority, ruled that...more
6/5/2018
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
First Amendment ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Free Speech ,
LGBTQ ,
Masterpiece Cakeshop Ltd v Colorado Civil Rights Commission ,
Private Sector ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Reversal ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
SCOTUS
Navigating employee leave issues can be a daunting feat for in-house counsel and human resources departments. One challenging and oft-overlooked situation rife with the potential for legal issues involves contact between...more
On June 30, 2017—the day before Arizona’s new paid sick leave law went into effect——the Industrial Commission of Arizona (ICA) issued 18 pages of new frequently asked questions (FAQs). Some of the FAQs merely restate the...more
On June 27, 2017, the Industrial Commission of Arizona (ICA) issued supplemental draft regulations. The supplemental regulations tweak some of the draft regulations the ICA issued on May 5, 2017. Some supplemental regulations...more
Arizona’s new paid sick leave law—Proposition 206 or The Fair Wages and Healthy Families Act—will go into effect on July 1, 2017. Since the law passed, the Industrial Commission of Arizona (ICA) has crafted proposed...more
Arizona’s new paid sick leave law—Proposition 206 or The Fair Wages and Healthy Families Act—will go into effect on July 1, 2017. While we previously explained key components of the law, the Act left many important questions...more
Since passage last November of Proposition 206, Arizona’s new paid sick leave law, officially titled The Fair Wages and Healthy Families Act, employers have been scrambling to prepare for its implementation on July 1, 2017....more
THE EVOLVING DEFINITION OF SEX(UAL ORIENTATION) UNDER TITLE VII -
On April 4, 2017, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals issued its highly anticipated decision in Hively v. Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana, making...more
6/6/2017
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Disability ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
LGBTQ ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Sick Leave ,
Title VII
The Industrial Commission of Arizona (ICA) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on May 5, 2017, containing the ICA’s much-anticipated draft regulations on Arizona's new paid sick time law, which goes into effect on July 1,...more
On April 4, 2017, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals issued its highly anticipated en banc decision in Hively v. Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana, making the Seventh Circuit the first federal appellate court to find...more
On June 9, 2015, several federal agencies jointly issued a policy statement on standards that companies could use to assess their diversity policies and practices, particularly for entities regulated by more than one agency....more
Legislation prohibiting discrimination on the basis of gender identity is popping up all around the country. From California’s Senate Bill 703 prohibiting state agencies from entering into certain contracts with contractors...more
On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States answered the two questions it posed in the consolidated same-sex case, Obergefell v. Hodges, No. 14-556 (June 26, 2015). The consolidated case arose from challenges to...more
6/29/2015
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Due Process ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Protection ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Marriage ,
Marriage Equality ,
Obergefell v. Hodges ,
OFCCP ,
Popular ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
SCOTUS ,
Title VII ,
USCIS