After several weeks of tense negotiations and legislative twists and turns, President Biden’s latest COVID-19 stimulus package – the American Rescue Plan – has been passed by Congress and will become law once the president...more
3/10/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Minimum Wage ,
Multiemployer Plan ,
Pensions ,
Popular ,
Relief Measures ,
Small Business ,
Tax Credits ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Unions ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour
Contending that he could not be forced to be a “human guinea pig,” a New Mexico detention center officer has filed a federal lawsuit challenging the right of his employer to require first responders to receive the COVID-19...more
In the early morning hours of Saturday, February 27, the U.S. House of Representatives passed President Biden’s $1.9 trillion latest COVID-19 stimulus bill, containing a slew of employment-related initiatives that could have...more
3/1/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Minimum Wage ,
Multiemployer Plan ,
Pensions ,
Popular ,
Relief Measures ,
Small Business ,
Tax Credits ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Unions ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour
The new administration’s efforts to reverse course on many of the gains that gig economy businesses achieved under previous White House leadership took another step friday as the Department of Labor (DOL) withdrew a guidance...more
The vast majority of employers are not considering mandating their employees receive the COVID-19 vaccine, instead choosing to encourage the shot – but a significant number of businesses remain confused and uncertain on...more
A federal appeals court just resurrected a pivotal gig economy battle that at one time seemed to be the center of the legal universe – but for a variety of reasons seems much less important these days. The 9th Circuit Court...more
Joe Biden made no secret about his position on the gig economy when he was in campaign mode. “Employer misclassification of ‘gig economy’ workers as independent contractors deprives these workers of legally mandated benefits...more
Now that a COVID-19 vaccine is becoming increasingly available, how can employers encourage employees to receive it? Beyond requiring the shots as a mandatory condition of employment – which is not an option many employers...more
1/27/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employee Incentive Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wellness Programs ,
Workplace Safety
President-elect Biden has unveiled an ambitious legislative package that would serve to not only provide a third wave of economic stimulus relief to address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic but also transform the American...more
1/21/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employment Policies ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Minimum Wage ,
Paid Leave ,
Relief Measures ,
Small Business ,
Tax Credits ,
Unemployment Insurance ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
Just two months after 58% of Californians voted it into effect and not even one month after it became law of the state, a group of workers and a major union have filed suit to overturn the results of Proposition 22, the...more
1/15/2021
/ Ballot Measures ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Employee Definition ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Ridesharing ,
SEIU ,
State Constitutions ,
State Labor Laws
Given the tumultuous news that occupied all of our attentions last week, you may have missed the announcement that President-elect Biden has nominated Boston Mayor Marty Walsh to be the next Secretary of Labor – the first...more
1/11/2021
/ Affirmative Action ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Equal Pay ,
Foreign Workers ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint Employers ,
Paid Leave ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Presidential Nominations ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
If it had been released at some other point in time and under different circumstances, perhaps gig economy businesses would be celebrating the release of a federal rule that makes it easier to classify workers as independent...more
The Labor Department finalized a new rule yesterday that aims to make it easier for businesses to classify workers as independent contractors – but the rule faces a very uncertain future given that the Biden administration...more
It’s typical as the year winds down to turn our attention to the upcoming new year to try to figure out what’s in store for us. And like no other time in most of our lives, we’re looking forward to putting the past year in...more
With only a few weeks left in 2020 and a new administration set to take control of the Department of Labor a few weeks later, companies that rely upon a gig economy business model may be in store for a nice gift this...more
Employers now have clarification that they will be able mandate the COVID-19 vaccine among their workers in certain circumstances without running afoul of key federal anti-discrimination laws, according to updated guidance...more
12/17/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Interactive Process ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
The news this week that a Manhattan-based state lawmaker wants to require most New York residents to receive the COVID-19 vaccine brought renewed interest to an issue that has crept into the consciousness of just about every...more
Delivery and rideshare drivers who work in the gig economy should get priority access to the COVID-19 vaccine, according to Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. In a December 10 letter sent to governors in all 50 states, Khosrowshahi...more
With just weeks to go before the expiration of many stimulus programs aimed at stemming the pain of the pandemic, federal lawmakers are hurriedly working on a compromise legislative proposal to provide another round of...more
In a recent op-ed penned in Business Insider, DoorDash co-founder and CEO Tony Xu laid out a three-step plan necessary to ensure that our nation’s workplace laws stay current to address the ever-growing gig economy by...more
The federal government has taken another step to further incentivize highly skilled workers to join the gig economy: it has proposed rules that would permit publicly held gig companies to offer equity compensation to their...more
12/2/2020
/ Comment Period ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Equity Compensation ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Skilled Laborers ,
Stocks ,
Wage and Hour
The federal agency charged with enforcing the nation’s main workplace discrimination laws just announced that it recovered over $535 million from employers on behalf of aggrieved workers and applicants this past fiscal year,...more
Smaller employers are in far greater danger of being the targets of COVID-19 workplace litigation, as are healthcare employers and other businesses requiring an in-person workforce –Fisher Phillips uncovered in its latest...more
The dust is beginning to settle after California voters overwhelmingly approved a new test for determining whether app-based rideshare and delivery drivers are considered employees or independent contractors, essentially...more
Now that all major media outlets have projected Joe Biden to be our next president, it is natural to begin to wonder what the next four years might look like for the gig economy. Our firm published a detailed assessment about...more