March 2023

Many moons ago, when the ink was barely dry on my law school degree, I assisted a company with a compliance review by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs. (In case you’re not familiar with the OFCCP, they enforce the affirmative action requirements for companies with federal contract and subcontracts). The company had engaged in some conversations with the OFCCP before they decided to call counsel (NEVER a good idea in a government investigation). And one of the warehouse managers made *that* comment to the OFCCP investigator. (Yikes!) Continue Reading “I just didn’t see women working in the warehouse…”

As has been widely reported, including in our February E-Update, the National Labor Relations Board recently asserted that severance agreements may not contain general non-disparagement or confidentiality/non-disclosure clauses, based on its premise that such clauses violate the rights of employees under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act to engage in concerted activity for their mutual aid or protection (i.e. “protected concerted activity”). This ruling was troubling for unionized and non-union employers alike. General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo has now issued a memo expressing her views regarding the practical impact of this ruling. Continue Reading NLRB General Counsel Provides (Some) Clarification on Severance Agreement Non-Disparagement and Confidentiality Provisions

In repurposing an always-popular topic (and, as we have done with last year’s March Madness tournament) we offer employers some guidance on March Madness at work, this time with some improvements and updates on gambling and productivity, and a brand new drug and alcohol section. Continue Reading A Revised Updated Employer’s Guide to March Madness

When I was first practicing law, I quickly learned that the answer to many legal questions under National Labor Relations Act depends on which Board’s decision you pick. If the Board has a majority of Members (the name for those people who issue decisions) appointed by a Republican President, I was likely to find an answer that would please my management clients (and the partner who asked me to do the research). By contrast, if the Board’s majority was comprised of appointees named by a Democrat President, the outcome would vex my clients. In other words, the “rules of the game” shift with administrations.Continue Reading Say What? NLRB Rules Employees May Tape Record Others in Violation of State Law.