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First Amendment › Employer Liability Issues › State Labor Laws

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the government from making laws respecting the establishment of religion, prohibiting the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech... more +
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the government from making laws respecting the establishment of religion, prohibiting the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech or the press, preventing citizens from peacefully assembling, or interfering with citizens' ability to petition the government for redress of their grievances. The First Amendment is one of the most sacred aspects of the American legal tradition and has spawned a vast body of jurisprudence and commentary. less -
Ice Miller

Parades, Protests, and Politics: Managing Off-Duty Conduct in the Workplace

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As the nation prepares to celebrate the Fourth of July with parades, fireworks, and barbeques, many employers may find themselves faced with a challenging issue—how to manage employee conduct that occurs off the clock,...more

Tucker Arensberg, P.C.

Federal Court Refuses to Dismiss Claims Brought Under Pennsylvania’s Criminal History Record Information Act (“CHRIA”)

Tucker Arensberg, P.C. on

Deivert v. Zartman and Borough of Northumberland, 2025 WL 83747 (M.D.Pa. 2025) - (Neither a municipality nor a municipal manager had immunity under the Pennsylvania Political Subdivision Tort Claims Act (“PPSTCA”) for the...more

Oppenheimer Investigations Group

MAGA Hats and Pronoun Disputes Test Workplace Speech Boundaries

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The line between protected political speech and workplace disruption depends largely on who signs your paycheck. Public employees enjoy First Amendment protections that private sector workers lack, but even government...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

The intersection of partisan political speech and employee rights. Look both ways before crossing.

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Considering the barrage of vitriolic campaign ads that invaded our homes on a nightly basis during the past year, you might think that political debate in America had reached a new low. Think again....more

Weintraub Tobin

Lawsuit Filed by CA Chamber of Commerce: Challenging Senate Bill 399

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This is a follow-up to our recent blog post regarding Senate Bill 399 (“SB 399”) and its prohibition on an employer’s right to take adverse action against an employee who refuses to attend meetings related to “political...more

Ervin Cohen & Jessup LLP

California Employers Prohibited from Mandatory Religious or Political Meetings

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California has a habit of finding creative ways to protect employees from potential instances of discrimination or retaliation, no matter how remote.  ...more

White and Williams LLP

Talking Politics Can Lead to Employer Liability

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This episode of The Employment Law Counselor Hosted by Jeff Stewart in collaboration with the Professional Liability Underwriting Society (PLUS), features guest John Baker, Director of Labor Relations, Del Lago Resort and...more

Littler

Illinois Makes Move to Ban Employer-Sponsored Meetings

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For over 75 years, the National Labor Relations Board and courts (including the U.S. Supreme Court) have held the right of employees to make informed choices about unions is best served when employers share competing...more

Littler

Hawaii's New “Captive Audience” Law: What Employers Need to Know

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Under current federal law, employers may legally require workers to attend meetings during working hours that concern the employer’s views on politics, religion and similar matters. Hawaii recently joined several states,...more

Littler

Two Utah Laws Related to Religious Expression in the Workplace Take Effect

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The Utah legislature wrapped up its seven-week legislative session on March 1, 2024.  In addition to passing a #MeToo-inspired law prohibiting confidentiality clauses regarding sexual misconduct, the legislature also passed...more

Littler

Strike Two… Eleventh Circuit Upholds Injunction Against Florida “Stop-WOKE” Law; Confirms the Law Violates First Amendment

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Strike One… In 2021 Florida passed a unique law known as the Individual Freedom Act (IFA), or “Stop-WOKE” law (the state’s acronym for “Stop Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees”). The IFA contains two parts, one directed to...more

Littler

New York District Court Enjoins Enforcement of Law Limiting Employer Speech During Organizing Campaigns

Littler on

A federal judge in New York recently cast doubt on the validity of state laws that seek to restrict employer speech in connection with union organizing. In New York State Vegetable Growers Association, Inc. v. Letitia James,...more

Littler

Inching Forward Toward Potential Clarification of Florida’s Individual Freedom Act (the “Stop-W.O.K.E.” Law)

Littler on

On August 24, 2023, over a year after Florida’s Individual Freedom Act (IFA) (commonly referred to as the “Stop-W.O.K.E.” law) went into effect, and about one year after a Florida federal court partially enjoined the new law,...more

Epstein Becker & Green

Second Circuit Permits Challenge to New York Reproductive Decision-Making Law

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The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a decision in Slattery v. Hochul, reversing the dismissal of a First Amendment challenge to New York Labor Law §203-e (also referred to as the “Boss Bill”). The Boss...more

Epstein Becker & Green

New York Law Prohibiting Discrimination Based on Reproductive Decision-Making Faces Scrutiny in the Second Circuit

Epstein Becker & Green on

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a decision in Slattery v. Hochul, reversing the dismissal of a First Amendment challenge to New York Labor Law §203-e (also referred to as the “Boss Bill”). The Boss...more

Littler

“Stop-WOKE” Takes Aim at Florida’s Colleges and Universities

Littler on

Florida’s most recent anti-“WOKE” legislation places diversity-related work and diversity-focused positions on state campuses under threat. House Bill 999 (Postsecondary Educational Institutions), which was approved in a...more

Robinson & Cole LLP

Important Considerations for Connecticut Employers in Anticipation of Election Day

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The 2022 midterm elections in the United States are just around the corner, on November 8. Midterm elections generally decide which political party controls the United States Congress as well as state legislatures and...more

Morrison & Foerster LLP - Left Coast Appeals

This Week at the Ninth: Is This Speech?

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This week, the Ninth Circuit grapples with a challenge to California’s law for classifying workers as a content-based regulation of speech. The Court holds that plaintiffs’ First Amendment challenge to California’s...more

Bowditch & Dewey

Federal Court Partially Blocks Florida from Enforcing ‘Stop WOKE Act’ – What This Means for Employers

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On August 18, 2022, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida partially enjoined Florida’s Individual Freedom Act (“IFA”), also known as the Stop Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees (WOKE) Act. The law, which...more

FordHarrison

Federal Court Grants Preliminary Injunction to Halt Enforcement of Florida's Stop WOKE Act

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On August 18, 2022, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida entered a preliminary injunction ordering state officials in Florida to take no steps to enforce HB7, or the “Stop WOKE Act,” while the...more

Littler

Connecticut Set to Enact Ban on Employer-Sponsored Meetings

Littler on

On April 29, 2022, organized labor achieved a long-sought political objective when the Connecticut House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 163, “An Act Protecting Employee Freedom of Speech and Conscience.” Effective July...more

Proskauer - California Employment Law

California Employment Law Notes - July 2021

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Board of Directors Quota Law May Be Unconstitutional - Meland v. Weber, 2021 WL 2521615 (9th Cir. 2021) - n 2018, the California Legislature enacted Senate Bill 826, which requires all corporations headquartered in...more

Perkins Coie

Challenge to Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act Will Have Important (and Costly) Implications for Employers

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Colorado’s Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, SB19-085 (the Equal Pay Act), went into effect on January 1, 2021. Colorado’s new law follows a string of laws in other states seeking to expand the protections related to equal pay,...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Employer “Dislike” Button—Disciplining Employees For Noxious Social Media Posts

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Seyfarth Synopsis: With the most contentious election of our lifetimes fast approaching, we might expect employees to engage in political conduct and share strong, controversial opinions while off duty, especially on social...more

Shook, Hardy & Bacon L.L.P.

National Employment Perspective: Focus on Philadelphia

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Pay Equity: Philadelphia’s Salary History Ban Upheld by Third Circuit - The Third Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a First Amendment challenge by the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce to a city ordinance that...more

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