Employment
Viewpoints
Filter by:
Ontario Introduces Sixth Set of Employment Changes: What Employers Should Know
December 2, 2024 | Blog | By Mitch Frazer, Brad Tartick, Patrick Denroche, Luke Jeagal
Ontario introduced Bill 229, Working for Workers Six Act, 2024 on November 27, 2024, the latest in a series of legislation amending employment laws in Ontario. If Bill 229 is passed as is, here are some of the key changes that will affect Ontario businesses.
SCOTUS Takes Up Reverse Discrimination Framework Under Title VII
November 21, 2024 | Blog | By Jennifer Rubin, Talia Weseley
The U.S. Supreme Court recently granted cert in a hotly contested case addressing the standards of proof applicable to reverse discrimination claims under Title VII. The case comes on the heels of the court’s decision last term in Muldrow v. City of St. Louis, Mo., where it lowered the standard to prove that an employee suffered an adverse employment action (now, employees need only show that they suffered “some harm respecting an identifiable term or condition of employment”). In the next term, in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services, SCOTUS will turn its attention to so-called “reverse” discrimination and whether members of a majority group will be required to meet a heightened pleading standard to prove their claims.
More Ontario Employment Changes: What Employers Need to Know
November 20, 2024 | Blog | By Mitch Frazer, Brad Tartick, Patrick Denroche
Ontario recently passed Bill 190, Working for Workers Five Act, 2024, on October 28, 2024, building on earlier legislation of the same series and making further changes to employment rules in Ontario. Below are some of the key developments that employers with personnel in Ontario should be aware of.
Fertility Related Loss To Be Covered Under the Massachusetts Earned Sick Time Act
November 13, 2024 | Blog | By Andrew Matzkin, Danielle Dillon
Effective November 21, 2024, Massachusetts employees may take earned sick time to “address the employee’s own physical and mental health needs, and those of their spouse, if the employee or the employee’s spouse experiences pregnancy loss or a failed assisted reproduction, adoption, or surrogacy.”
Closing the Wage Act Door on Contingent Bonuses?: Massachusetts Court Holds Contingent Retention Bonus Not a “Wage” Under Massachusetts Wage Act
October 29, 2024 | Blog | By Andrew Matzkin
Earlier this year, we highlighted that the Massachusetts Wage Act (the “Wage Act”), while providing powerful protections to Massachusetts workers, does not apply to a profit-sharing arrangement tied to an employer’s overall profits. Now, another Massachusetts court—this time the District Court’s Appellate Division—has imposed an additional limitation in holding that the Wage Act does not apply to contingent retention bonuses.
New Year, New Laws: California Employment Law Updates for 2025
October 9, 2024 | Blog | By Jennifer Rubin, Kevin Kim
It’s that time of year again—California employers need to prepare for a raft of new laws that become effective in the new year. Below is a brief overview of some of those laws and how employers should prepare for them. All of the laws discussed below become effective on January 1, 2025.
Hiring Across the 49th Parallel: Traps for the Unwary for Cross-Border US-Canada Hires (Part II)
October 8, 2024 | Blog | By David Lagasse, Brad Tartick, Patrick Denroche, Dina Sebrow
The United States and Canada are each other’s largest trade partners with nearly C$3.6 billion/US$2.7 billion worth of goods and services crossing the border each day in 2023. The United States is the single greatest investor in Canada and Canada was the largest source of foreign direct investment in the United States at the end of 2022.[1] As commerce in general and employee mobility in particular increases, employers with operations in the United States and Canada may consider a “one-size-fits all” approach to employment, benefits and compensation arrangements. However, despite many similarities, employers should take heed of possible discrepancies across the two countries’ employment landscapes. In this Part II of our series on cross-border hiring, we discuss health benefits and retirement benefits.
EEOC Initiates Initial String of Lawsuits Under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
October 3, 2024 | Blog | By Delaney Busch, Andrew Matzkin
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has initiated enforcement of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) following the release of its final rule and interpretative guidance in April 2024
Sixth Circuit Explicitly Sidesteps the NLRB’s McLaren Macomb Decision
September 24, 2024 | Blog | By Delaney Busch, Evan Piercey, Michael Arnold
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals recently declined to comment on the National Labor Relations Board’s (the “Board”) McLaren Macomb decision which took aim at overbroad non-disparagement and non-disclosure agreements.
Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave: “Topping Off” Benefits is Determined by Employer Policy
September 18, 2024 | Blog | By Natalie C. Groot, Kathryn Droumbakis
Effective November 1, 2023, the Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave (the “Department”) required employers to permit an employee, in the employee’s sole discretion, to supplement or “top off” their Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave (“MA PFML”) benefit with any accrued paid leave (e.g., vacation, sick time, or other available paid time off) (together, “PTO”) so the employee could receive 100% of their regular wages during the MA PFML leave. This required employers whose Private Plans under MA PFML did not permit “topping off” to revise their plans accordingly. We wrote about it here.
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Clarifies Rules on Benefit Accrual During PFML
September 18, 2024 | Blog | By Natalie C. Groot, Emma Follansbee
On September 13, 2024, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (the “SJC”) ruled that the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (the “Act”) does not guarantee the accrual of benefits such as sick leave, vacation leave and length-of-service credit during a period of paid family or medical leave (“PFML”). Instead, the Act mandates only that employees return from leave to the same or equivalent position that they held at the commencement of leave.
Caveat Employer: An Employee’s Off-Duty Social Media Posts Can Constitute Workplace Harassment
September 16, 2024 | Blog | By Paul Huston, Kevin Kim
As the workplace continues to take a new shape, the distinction between “workplace conduct” and “off duty” conduct continues to fade for many. After a recent Ninth Circuit ruling, employers must be more vigilant than ever in monitoring and responding to employee social media postings, even when they are personal and “off duty.”
Practical Policies for Politics: Some Guidelines for Managing Political Conflict in the Workplace
September 4, 2024 | Blog | By Jennifer Rubin, Talia Weseley
Political conflicts in the workplace will only grow as we near election day, and this means human resources professionals and in house counsel need to hone their conflict resolution skills. Resolving political conflict in the workplace is a bit more nuanced than resolving ordinary workplace slights, requiring legally compliant de-escalation. We thought a few guidelines – tested against some real-life scenarios – would be a useful campaign stop for those charged with managing these issues. Here’s a teaser: you learn a company supervisor has just invited the supervisor’s entire team to a weekend rally for [insert any candidate’s name here]. What if anything do you do that doesn’t place you (and the company) squarely within the bullseye of our sharply divided political environment?
After Months of Uncertainty, a Federal Court Has Blocked the FTC’s Non-Compete Rule on a Nationwide Basis
August 21, 2024 | Blog | By Michael Arnold, Corbin Carter, Talia Weseley
A judge in the Northern District of Texas issued an order setting aside the Federal Trade Commission’s rule banning non-compete agreements and ordered that the rule shall not be enforced or otherwise take effect on September 4, 2024. This much-awaited decision comes after the judge already issued a limited preliminary injunction in the same case in early July as to the named plaintiffs there (discussed here). Although multiple other courts have recently weighed in on the issue to mixed results, including federal courts in Pennsylvania and Florida (see here), the Texas judge’s ruling has resulted in the first nationwide prohibition on the FTC’s enforcement of the rule. Accordingly, barring any intervening appellate activity, the FTC’s rule will no longer go into effect on September 4, 2024 (the original effective date), employers will not be required to void employees’ existing non-competes covered by the rule, and employers are no longer required to send employees notices regarding the status of any non-competes.
Federal Court in Florida Issues Another Limited Preliminary Injunction Against the FTC’s Non-Compete Rule
August 19, 2024 | Blog | By Michael Arnold, Corbin Carter, Talia Weseley
On August 14th, a second federal judge, this time out of the Middle District of Florida, temporarily blocked the FTC’s rule banning non-compete agreements, but only as to the named plaintiff in that case.
Employer FAQ: Massachusetts’s New Pay Transparency And Pay Data Reporting Requirements
August 7, 2024 | Blog | By Natalie C. Groot, Delaney Busch
Massachusetts has passed into law An Act Relative to Salary Range Transparency (the “Act”), which means that pay transparency and pay data reporting requirements will soon become official. In advance of the effective dates in 2025, covered businesses must understand and prepare for new compliance obligations.
We previously wrote about this Act in its legislation phase here. In addition, information regarding other jurisdictions requiring wage transparency, such as California, New York, and Washington, are available in our previous articles here and here.
A New Chapter in California’s Ongoing PAGA is Lava Saga: PAGA Reform
July 3, 2024 | Blog | By Jennifer Rubin, Paul Huston, Kevin Kim
Major changes to PAGA are now official. Most importantly:
- Employees must have experienced each of the alleged violations to have standing to sue;
- Employers can correct inaccuracies on paystubs without penalty; and
- Employers who take specific steps to prevent Labor Code violations will be able to substantially reduce liability.
Maryland Employers: Amended Pay Transparency Law Requires Wage Range Disclosure in Job Postings
July 1, 2024 | Blog | By David Barmak, Danielle Bereznay
Maryland was one of the first states to implement a pay transparency law in 2020, and now it joins several states in broadening that law to require employers to disclose a wage range for open positions (Washington, D.C.’s pay transparency law, for example, which we wrote about here will become effective on June 30, 2024). Since 2020, employers in Maryland have been required to provide, when requested by an applicant, the wage range for the position to which the applicant applied. Maryland will now require employers to proactively disclose in their public and internal job postings the wage range for the position. Maryland’s new law will go into effect on October 1, 2024.
New York State Now Requires Paid Lactation Breaks
June 28, 2024 | Blog | By Talia Weseley, Evan Piercey
A New Dawn (Maybe) for California Employers: State and Business Groups Strike Deal on PAGA Reform
June 20, 2024 | Blog | By Jennifer Rubin, Paul Huston, Mike Flesuras
On June 18, 2024, Governor Newsom, in collaboration with legislative leaders, unveiled a landmark agreement to reform the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA).
Explore Other Viewpoints:
- AI: The Washington Report
- Antitrust
- Appellate
- Arbitration, Mediation & Alternate Dispute Resolution
- Artificial Intelligence
- Awards
- Bankruptcy & Restructuring
- California Land Use
- Cannabis
- Class Action
- Complex Commercial Litigation
- Construction
- Consumer Product Safety
- Corporate Governance (ESG)
- Cross-Border Asset Recovery
- Debt Financing
- Direct Investing (M&A)
- Diversity
- EB-5 Financing
- Education & Nonprofits
- Employment
- Energy & Sustainability
- Environmental (ESG)
- Environmental Enforcement Defense
- Environmental Law
- Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG)
- FDA Regulatory
- False Claims Act
- Federal Circuit Appeals
- Financial Institution Litigation
- Government Law
- Growth Equity
- Health Care
- Health Care Compliance, Fraud and Abuse, & Regulatory Counseling
- Health Care Enforcement & Investigations
- Health Care Transactions
- Health Information Privacy & Security
- IP Due Diligence
- IPRs & Other Post Grant Proceedings
- Immigration
- Impacts of a New US Administration
- Insolvency & Creditor Rights Litigation
- Institutional Investor Class Action Recovery
- Insurance & Financial Services
- Insurance Consulting & Risk Management
- Insurance and Reinsurance Problem-Solving & Dispute Resolution
- Intellectual Property
- Investment Funds
- Israel
- Licensing & Technology Transactions
- Life Sciences
- Litigation & Investigations
- M&A Litigation
- ML Strategies
- Medicare, Medicaid and Commercial Coverage & Reimbursement
- Mergers & Acquisitions
- Patent Litigation
- Patent Prosecution & Strategic Counseling
- Pharmacy Benefits and PBM Contracting
- Portfolio Companies
- Privacy & Cybersecurity
- Private Client
- Private Equity
- Pro Bono
- Probate & Fiduciary Litigation
- Products Liability & Complex Tort
- Projects & Infrastructure
- Public Finance
- Real Estate Litigation
- Real Estate Transactions
- Real Estate, Construction & Infrastructure
- Retail & Consumer Products
- Securities & Capital Markets
- Securities Litigation
- Social (ESG)
- Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPACs)
- Sports & Entertainment
- State Attorneys General
- Strategic IP Monetization & Licensing
- Tax
- Technology
- Technology, Communications & Media
- Technology, Communications & Media Litigation
- Trade Secrets
- Trademark & Copyright
- Trademark Litigation
- Value-Based Care
- Venture Capital & Emerging Companies
- White Collar Defense & Government Investigations
- Women's Health and Technology