Are PhD students at a private university who also teach courses and grade papers – tasks that are a part of their development but also certainly assist the university – employees who can unionize? The NLRB said yes for a second time. This trend that allows unionization of employees who were once thought to be
If the NLRB finds that you have committed an unfair labor practice (and maybe more than once), just what can it do? In Noah’s Ark Processors, a three-member panel of the board recently took an opportunity to pronounce available punishments for repeat labor offenders, and it was not shy. An administrative law judge determined
Most of us know that when an employee or visitor to a place of public accommodation requests a reasonable accommodation, the ADA requires an interactive process to make an individualized determination. But what about a request from a nursing intern to bring her service dog… to a hospital… around patients? Could this qualify as a
In Glacier Northwest, Inc. v. Int’l Brotherhood of Teamsters Local Union 174, the Washington Supreme Court addressed the issue of whether a union is responsible for property damage incident to a strike. How does that issue arise? Let’s just suppose that your company is involved in a bitter labor negotiation with the unionized workforce.
With historically low unemployment rates, attracting and retaining top talent can be a challenge for employers. To distinguish themselves from the pack, many companies are considering tuition assistance programs to both develop their workforce and as a benefit to attract and retain talented employees. Although the offer of student loan assistance might give you a
Questions about COVID-19 vaccines are hard, particularly if you contract or want to contract with the federal government. The scenario is familiar: You run a business that has or seeks to contract with the federal government. You read about the Biden administration’s Executive Order mandating that your employees be fully vaccinated for you to qualify
When a company faces a Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) collective action there are two main components to address: (1)
whether it will be a collective action or class action versus an individual action and (2) a trial of the merits on whether the FLSA was actually violated. One federal district court decided No. 2
Does your company use fingerprinting or some facial recognition scanner as part of its clock-in, clock-out process? If your company has facilities or even some contacts with Illinois (and maybe other states in the future) you should pay heed to Illinois’s Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) that is the subject of a new class action
Do you typically include a “no rehire” clause in your settlements with soon to be former employees? How about agreements with other companies that you will not “poach” each other’s employees? If your answer to either of those questions is yes, you should keep an eye on some New York legislation that could impact those
With the new Biden administration now in place, the Department of Labor (DOL) has withdrawn a Trump era measure on guidance documents. Following a recent Executive Order, the DOL issued a final rule on January 27 to rescind the Trump DOL’s prior rule. The result will likely be less public involvement in DOL guidance.