On May 9, 2023, the Washington state governor signed a law that will make it unlawful for employers to discriminate against hiring a person based on their marijuana usage, making Washington the latest state to become a...more
On April 11, 2023, the New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) finalized updates to the state’s “Sexual Harassment Model Policy” that provides employers a template to aid their compliance with New York State laws...more
4/18/2023
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Model Rules ,
Online Platforms ,
Remote Working ,
Retaliation ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws
The shrieks of rubber-soled sneakers, blasts of air horns, whooshes of nets, and screams of fans are permeating arenas all over the country. It can only mean one thing — March Madness is once again upon us. ...more
On February 22, 2022, the Superior Court of New Jersey Appellate Division ruled that a hospital employee discharged for disciplinary reasons was not entitled to payment of accrued paid time off (PTO) because the hospital had...more
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has identified violence in healthcare settings as a significant occupational risk, and a new workplace violence standard for the healthcare industry could be on the...more
On February 15, 2023, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked a 2020 California law that attempted to prohibit employers from requiring employees and job applicants to agree to arbitration as a condition of employment. The...more
2/17/2023
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Preemption ,
State Labor Laws ,
Unenforceable Contract Terms
On February 2, 2023, the Supreme Court of the State of Illinois ruled that all claims under Section 15 of the state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act (Privacy Act or BIPA) have a five year statute of limitations.
The...more
2/6/2023
/ Appeals ,
Biometric Information ,
Biometric Information Privacy Act ,
Consent ,
Damages ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Fingerprints ,
Former Employee ,
IL Supreme Court ,
Privacy Laws ,
State Privacy Laws ,
Statute of Limitations
New York Governor Kathy Hochul recently signed a law that expands breastfeeding accommodations, bringing the standards for private employers in line with those for public employers in the state. The law, signed on December 9,...more
On November 8, 2022, voters in Maryland and Missouri overwhelmingly approved ballot measures to legalize recreational marijuana, becoming the 20th and 21st states to do so. And, as part of the ballot initiative in Missouri,...more
On November 8, 2022, voters in Colorado passed a ballot initiative to decriminalize possession of and legalize limited use of psychedelic mushrooms and other plant- and fungi-derived psychedelic drugs by those 21 years of age...more
11/16/2022
/ Ballot Measures ,
Controlled Substances ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Election Results ,
Employment Policies ,
General Elections ,
Mental Health ,
Preemption ,
PTSD ,
Recreational Use
Millions of workers across the United States will be headed to the polls on Tuesday, November 8, 2022, for the midterm elections. With control of Congress up for grabs for the final two years of President Joe Biden’s...more
A professional sports team head coach recently found himself in hot water over a romantic relationship with another employee of the franchise. The team’s management suspended him for an entire season for purported...more
California employers may soon be barred from discharging employees or refusing to hire individuals based on their off-duty use of marijuana, under a new bill headed to the governor’s desk. On August 30, 2022, the...more
9/7/2022
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Drug Testing ,
Employee Rights ,
Employment Policies ,
FEHA ,
Governor Newsom ,
Marijuana ,
Off-Duty Employees ,
Pending Legislation ,
Recreational Use ,
Screening Procedures
On August 26, 2022, Chief U.S. District Judge Matthew Brann for the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania dismissed a putative class action representing approximately 100 healthcare...more
9/2/2022
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Dismissal With Prejudice ,
Dismissals ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Legalization of medical and recreational marijuana use continues to spread across the United States despite the drug remaining a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law. This comes as respondents to Ogletree...more
Recent social and political controversies, such as rulings from the Supreme Court of the United States, international conflicts, and mass shootings, are likely to cause more employees to voice their opinions and frustrations...more
6/30/2022
/ Employee Assistance Programs ,
Employment Policies ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Political Expression ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Protests ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Social Justice Issues ,
Unpaid Leave ,
Workplace Safety