Earlier today (June 10, 2021), OSHA issued COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) Subpart U applicable to healthcare settings. While OSHA has indicated that future guidance may be provided for other industries, today’s...more
6/11/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Training ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Guidance Update ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Screening Procedures ,
Social Distancing ,
Vaccinations
As many readers know, on May 28, 2021, An Act Providing for Massachusetts COVID-19 Emergency Paid Sick Leave was passed. The Act creates a fund for the Commonwealth to reimburse eligible employers who provide employees with...more
Last week, the EEOC provided updated COVID-19 guidance to employers on vaccines and vaccine incentives in the employment realm. One area, however, in which the agencies has been silent is in the public accommodation space and...more
6/7/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Exceptions ,
GINA ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Title II ,
Title III ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations
Those responsible for employee onboarding can breathe a sigh of relief after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement last week announced that they would extend flexibilities that were instituted last year as a result of...more
DOL Scraps Trump-era Interpretative Letters and 60,000 U.K. Uber Drivers Entitled to Worker Benefits -
It has been a big day for changes on the worker classification front. In the last 24 hours, Britain’s highest court...more
Congress’s 5593-page Consolidated Appropriations Act, passed by the Senate on December 21, 2020, and signed by the President last night (December 27, 2020), includes an extension of employer tax credits for leave provided...more
12/29/2020
/ Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Extensions ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
IRS ,
Paid Leave ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Credits ,
Trump Administration
Starting today, Friday, November 19, certain Maine businesses will be required to close their doors at 9:00PM each day, through Sunday, December 6. With increasing numbers of positive COVID-19 cases and holiday gatherings...more
This is the eighth post in a 12-part series on how companies can show support for the Black Lives Matter movement by changing company policies and practices. This post focuses on educating senior leadership about the...more
This is the seventh post in a 12-part series on how companies can show support for the Black Lives Matter movement by changing company policies and practices. This post focuses on creating effective affinity groups to assist...more
Navigating the ins and outs of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) can be difficult for employers. This animation seeks to illustrate some of the most important takeaways...more
As flu season approaches, employers are searching for answers on how to deal with viruses spreading throughout the workplace. The question is, “Can I mandate employees receive the flu vaccine?” Are there standards in place?...more
10/5/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Influenza ,
NLRA ,
Right to Privacy ,
Title VII ,
Workers' Compensation Claim ,
Workplace Safety
On January 1, 2021, LD 369, An Act Authorizing Earned Employee Leave takes effect for Maine employers. Passed by the Legislature in 2019, Maine employers have been patiently waiting for clarification as to the...more
Summer is coming to end, but not all students are heading back to the classroom. Many parents are facing the decision of whether to send their children to school in-person, enroll them in remote classes, change to a...more
This is the sixth post in a 12-part series on how companies can show support for the Black Lives Matter movement by changing company policies and practices. This post focuses on the importance of updating grooming/personal...more
This is the fifth post in a 12-part series on how companies can show support for the Black Lives Matter movement by changing company policies and practices. This post focuses on the importance of third-party intervention...more
OSHA has published Guidance on Returning to Work to assist employers in understanding their obligations under OSHA as they continue the process of re-opening and returning employees to work. Employers should review this...more
6/22/2020
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
New Guidance ,
OSHA ,
Pre-Employment Health Screenings ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
This is the fourth post in a 12-part series on how companies can show support for the black lives matter (BLM) movement by changing company policies and practices. This post focuses on implicit bias and the effect it has on...more
This is the third post in a 12-part series on how companies can support the Black Lives Matter movement through changes in company policies and practices. Our last post focused on reviewing and updating your EEO Policies. In...more
This is the second post in a 12-part series on how companies can show true support for the Black Lives Matter movement by changing company policies and practices. The focus of this post is to understand the role that a...more
Statements of inclusion and solidarity with the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement by companies are important, but not enough. What are some steps that you as a business owner or HR leader can do to change and implement...more
Your return to work plan is going to be dependent on your industry, your work culture, whether you completely shut down or decreased operations during the pandemic, and the design of your workplace. At the same time, there...more
On April 23, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) published guidance in response to this question and the agency’s answer was yes—“an employer may choose to administer COVID-19 testing to employees before...more
Despite the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, business—and hiring—must go on. As the EEOC continues to update its guidance regarding employment practices during the pandemic, here are common questions regarding how to implement...more
Q: I am concerned about employees coming to work with a fever—can I test employees’ temperatures before allowing them to work to avoid spreading the coronavirus?
Verrill’s View: Maybe—but there are many factors to consider....more
3/19/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Medical Examinations ,
NLRA ,
OSHA ,
Virus Testing ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
On Thursday, January 30, members of Verrill’s Labor & Employment Group and Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Group conducted a full-day seminar on employment law topics to prepare HR professionals, managers, and...more
2/20/2020
/ Analytics ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Automation Systems ,
Biometric Information ,
Biometric Information Privacy Act ,
Blockchain ,
Code of Conduct ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Ethics ,
General Wellness Devices ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Privacy Laws ,
Risk Assessment ,
Risk Management ,
Transparency ,
Wearable Technology