January 2020 was a busy month for New Jersey’s executive branch. Governor Phil Murphy signed into law at least five workplace-related bills, one of which revised the New Jersey mini-WARN Act, one granting state regulators...more
1/29/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Labor Regulations ,
Layoff Notices ,
Layoffs ,
Misclassification ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Part-Time Employees ,
Penalties ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Severance Agreements ,
Severance Pay ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Stop Work Orders ,
Wage and Hour ,
WARN Act
The U.S. Supreme Court recently declined to review a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that held that the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to nongovernmental entity websites that have a nexus to their...more
10/18/2019
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Dominos ,
Mobile Apps ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Public Accommodation ,
Regulatory Standards ,
SCOTUS ,
Title III ,
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) ,
Website Accessibility ,
Website Owner Liability ,
Websites
The California Supreme Court recently issued a ruling in White v. Square, Inc. that suggested standing to assert claims against websites for violations of the Unruh Civil Rights Act will be interpreted very broadly. In a case...more
9/11/2019
/ Accessibility Rules ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Article III ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Public Accommodation ,
Standing ,
Title III ,
Unruh Civil Rights Act ,
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) ,
Website Accessibility ,
Website Owner Liability ,
Websites
Evolving case law regarding website accessibility under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and comparable state laws continues to impact companies across the country. In the past, courts have required plaintiffs to...more
8/20/2019
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Article III ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Dismissals ,
Public Accommodation ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Standing ,
Title III ,
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) ,
Website Accessibility ,
Website Owner Liability ,
Websites
Companies, universities and other organizations around the country continue to face an onslaught of lawsuits brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) alleging that commercial websites cannot be appropriately...more
6/13/2019
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Kroger ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Public Accommodation ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Title III ,
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) ,
Website Accessibility ,
Website Owner Liability ,
Websites
Q. An employee has requested that he be allowed to bring his Labradoodle to work with him. Do we have to accommodate this request?...more
On Jan. 25, 2019, the Republican-led National Labor Relations Board affirmed the acting regional director’s decision that drivers of a shared airport ride service were independent contractors, not employees, and therefore not...more
Any company doing business on the West Coast must be aware of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) and how it applies to their website. Now, following a flurry (if not frenzy) of cases...more
Q. Are there any limitations on my company’s ability to require employees to submit to drug and alcohol testing after an accident?
A. In May 2016, OSHA published a final rule that, among other things, amended the...more
11/21/2018
/ Amended Rules ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Drug Testing ,
Final Rules ,
Incentives ,
Obama Administration ,
OSH Act ,
OSHA ,
Post-Accident Investigations ,
Trump Administration ,
Workplace Illness and Injury Reporting ,
Workplace Safety
Q. Is there anything I should look out for in documenting my legitimate business reason for terminating an employee?
A. The United States Appeals Court for the Seventh Circuit (covering Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin)...more
Q: My company is headquartered in Massachusetts. Does the new Massachusetts law on non-competes change how I structure non-compete agreements with employees?
...more
8/28/2018
/ Confidential Information ,
Contract Terms ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Garden Leave ,
Hiring & Firing ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Popular ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws
Q. Are there any laws related to settlement of sex harassment claims in Maryland that I should be aware of?
A. In response to the many high-profile scandals in the news, several jurisdictions have enacted anti-sexual...more
Q: Can public employees, who are not members of a union, be forced to pay union dues?
A: No. On June 27, 2018, in a 5-4 opinion, the United States Supreme Court overturned more than 40 years of precedent, ruling that it is...more
7/23/2018
/ Appeals ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Fair Share Contribution ,
First Amendment ,
Janus v AFSCME ,
Non-Union ,
Payroll Deductions ,
Public Sector Unions ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Stare Decisis ,
Union Dues
This checklist identifies issues for counsel to consider when assisting employers in determining whether they may use applicant salary history information in setting wages or salaries.
Originally published in Bloomberg Law...more
Q: Can an employer discriminate against members of the LGBT community on the basis of the employer’s religious beliefs?
...more
6/28/2018
/ Administrative Agencies ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Free Speech ,
LGBTQ ,
Masterpiece Cakeshop Ltd v Colorado Civil Rights Commission ,
Private Sector ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Reversal ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
SCOTUS
On May 21, in a 5-4 opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that arbitration agreements in which an employee waives the right to pursue his or her employment claims in a class or collective action are enforceable under the...more
5/30/2018
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Epic Systems Corp v Lewis ,
Ernst & Young v Morris ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Murphy Oil v NLRB ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
Savings Clause ,
SCOTUS
Q. Do I need to provide paid sick leave to employees in New Jersey?
A. Last week, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed into law the New Jersey Paid Sick Leave Act, mandating paid sick leave for full and part-time...more
In a ruling that could provide a roadmap for challenging salary history bans in other jurisdictions, a Philadelphia federal judge issued an opinion on April 30 invalidating a major element of the Philadelphia salary history...more
5/2/2018
/ Constitutional Challenges ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Pay ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Local Ordinance ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Salary/Wage History ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Q. Are there any Equal Pay Acts that apply specifically to employers in Massachusetts and New Jersey?
A. On July 1, 2018, an updated equal pay law becomes effective in Massachusetts, referred to as “MEPA” (Massachusetts...more
4/23/2018
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay ,
Equal Pay Act ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Glass Ceiling ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Gap ,
Popular ,
Proposed Legislation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Despite the Equal Pay Act being enacted more than 50 years ago, women still earn only 80 percent of what men earn for equivalent jobs. This pay disparity is perpetuated when a woman is paid less than her male co-worker...more
Q. I heard that the U.S. Supreme Court just issued a ruling finding that auto service workers are exempt from overtime pay. My company is not in the automobile industry. Will this opinion apply to us?...more
4/10/2018
/ Appeals ,
Automotive Industry ,
Car Dealerships ,
Congressional Intent ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Legislative History ,
Navarro v Encino Motorcars ,
Over-Time ,
Reversal ,
Salespersons ,
SCOTUS ,
Service Advisors ,
Statutory Construction Test ,
Wage and Hour
The gig economy — companies that hire workers for specific projects or “gigs” — is on the rise. Gig companies use technology to provide goods and services to consumers on demand. The companies hire workers who access and...more
2/15/2018
/ Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gig Economy ,
GrubHub ,
Independent Contractors ,
Minimum Wage ,
Misclassification ,
On-Demand Services ,
Sharing Economy ,
Uber ,
Wage and Hour
Q. Has the #MeToo Movement led to any changes on how companies settle harassment complaints?
A. While there are numerous legislative initiatives on the horizon intended to change how employers handle harassment...more
2/13/2018
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Corporate Culture ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hostile Environment ,
New Legislation ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Reform ,
Title VII
Q. My company wants to target on-line recruitment ads for certain jobs to specific age groups. Is that legal?
A. In most circumstances, the answer is no. Unless an employee’s age is a bona fide occupational qualification...more
Q. I am the HR Manager for a non-union workplace and we are investigating an issue involving employee misconduct. One of the employees whom I want to interview has requested that a coworker attend the interview as his...more