10 Things You Should Know About the EEOC’s COVID-19 Guidance

The EEOC has been regularly updating its Technical Assistance Questions and Answers entitled “What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEO Laws.” This guidance is only valid during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, and was most recently updated on September 8, 2020. While the full guidance is worth a thorough read by HR professionals and attorneys, the following summarizes ten key highlights from the EEOC’s guidance:  Read More ›

California Expands Coronavirus Paid Sick Leave with the Enactment of AB 1867

The federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”) generally requires employers with fewer than 500 employees to provide up to 80 hours of paid sick leave to eligible employees for qualifying reasons related to COVID-19. On September 9, 2020, California’s Governor Newsom signed AB 1867. This law expands access to paid sick leave (“Coronavirus PSL”) to California workers employed by entities with 500 or more employees in the United States. Read More ›

U.S. Department of Labor Issues Revised Regulations Implementing FFCRA Leaves Following New York Court’s Decision

We reported last month on a decision by a New York federal court that rejected portions of the Department of Labor regulations implementing the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”) leaves signed into law earlier this year. The FFCRA created rights for employees of employers with fewer than 500 employees, and all public employers, to take up to 10 days of paid sick leave under the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (“EPSLA”) for various COVID-19 related reasons, and another 10 weeks of paid leave under the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (“EFMLEA”) for leaves necessitated by COVID-19 related school and day care closures. The court held that the following FFCRA rules were improper: Read More ›

What Employers Need to Know About Michigan’s Latest Executive Order Protecting Workers

On August 27, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer released Executive Order 2020-172, entitled “Protecting workers who stay home, stay safe when they or their close contacts are sick,” which replaces Executive Order 2020-166. The new executive order is nearly identical to the one it replaces, with two important differences. First, the new order recognizes that an employee’s symptoms could be explained by other medical conditions, which should not prevent an employee from reporting to work. Second, the new order recognizes that an employee should not be required to stay home simply because he or she displays one of the more innocuous symptoms of COVID-19 on its own. Read More ›

Working Hard for The Money: Department of Labor Issues Guidance on Tracking and Paying for Remote Work Hours

On August 24th, the Department of Labor issued a Field Assistance Bulletin ("FAB"), available at https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/fab_2020_5.pdf, regarding “Employers’ obligation to exercise reasonable diligence in tracking teleworking employees' hours of work." While FABs are not  legally binding authority, they provide guidance on the WHD’s enforcement positions and policies. This recent FAB is useful in suggesting best practices for those charged with ensuring that employees are paid for all hours worked—a task that has been made much more difficult by the current remote work environment. Read More ›

Are Parts of Paid COVID-19 Leave Regulations in Jeopardy? Federal Court Rejects Parts DOL’s FFCRA Regulations, Employers Brace for Possible Fallout

On Monday, August 3, 2020, a New York federal judge issued a decision invalidating portions of the DOL’s regulations implementing the Families First Coronavirus Relief Act (“FFCRA”). The decision’s impact changes the legal landscape employers confront as they strive to comply with the FFCRA—a landscape that is unstable as the DOL and the courts sort out the legality of the disputed regulations. Read More ›

National “Strike for Black Lives” Planned for Monday, July 20

Will your employees be walking off the job on Monday?

A few unions (primarily the SEIU) and a coalition of social justice advocacy groups (primarily the Movement for Black Lives) are encouraging workers to engage in a nationwide job walk-off for eight minutes and 46 seconds this coming Monday, July 20th. It appears that longer, more formal protests will also be held that day. The action is referred to as a “Strike for Black Lives,” but coalition members are also advocating for a $15 minimum wage. Read More ›

Presidential Proclamation Extends Ban on Entry of Immigrants; Adds H-1B, L-1 and J-1 Visa Holders

Following up on Dykema’s alert from June 18, 2020, President Trump signed a Proclamation that extends his April 22, 2020, 60-day ban on immigrant workers entering the United States until December 31, 2020. In addition, it also added those with H-1B, H-2B, L-1 and J-1 visas and any foreign national accompanying them to this ban. The Proclamation states this was done to address, in part, high unemployment levels due to the coronavirus pandemic. Read More ›

U.S. Supreme Court Makes Pride Month History by Holding That Title VII Bars Job Discrimination Against LGBT+ Workers

Unexpectedly siding with the liberal wing of the Court, Justice Neil Gorsuch penned a 6-3 decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, holding that Title VII’s prohibition on sex-based discrimination also covers sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination. The Court’s decision dealt a historic victory for proponents of expanding gay and trans protections for workers under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It is clear that this decision will have wide reaching implications for employers. Read More ›

USCIS To Resume Premium Processing

In a move that will improve the time for obtaining application approvals, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced today it plans on resuming premium processing for Form I-129 (non-immigrant worker) and Form I-140 (immigrant worker) petitions in phases throughout June. Read More ›