The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) made the inevitable official when it recently held that employee attendance at employer-mandated meetings where employers express their views on potential unionization– often referred to as “captive-audience meetings” – violate the National Labor Relations Act. The decision overturns a 1948 Board decision and renders unlawful conduct that had been deemed lawful by the Board for more than 75 years.Continue Reading The NLRB Overturns Decades-Old Precedent by Banning Captive-Audience Meetings
NLRB GC to Seek Broad Remedies for Non-Compete and Stay-or-Pay Provisions – Part II
As we noted in Part I of this special two-part blog, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo issued an important policy memorandum last month. In GC Memorandum 25-01, Abruzzo attacked as unlawful both “stay-or-pay” provisions (where workers agree to repay their employer for certain benefits if the employee prematurely leaves employment) and non-compete agreements. Part I covered the remedies proposed by the GC for employees subject to non-compete provisions found unlawful by the Board. Here, Part II addresses stay-or-pay provisions, the GC’s legal position that such provisions are presumptively unlawful, and the remedies she will seek for employees subject to stay-or-pay provisions.Continue Reading NLRB GC to Seek Broad Remedies for Non-Compete and Stay-or-Pay Provisions – Part II
Sick Leave for Pets?
Over the years, I’ve mentioned my adorable dog many times in connection with blog posts on employment-related topics like pet bereavement leave, paw-ternity leave (i.e. pet parental leave), and Take Your Dog to Work Day. (And here he is, dressed up for Halloween – as sushi!) In addition, I’ve blogged several times about sick leave for service animals (here and here) – each time noting that there is nothing that requires employers to allow employees to take sick leave for pets. Until now?Continue Reading Sick Leave for Pets?
Maryland’s Proposed FAMLI Regulations Are Finally Here – What Do They Say?
On October 18, 2024, the Maryland Department of Labor (MDOL) finally issued its proposed regulations to implement Maryland’s paid family and medical leave insurance (FAMLI) law. Applicable to all employers with Maryland employees and starting July 1, 2026, the FAMLI law will provide most employees in Maryland with 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave, with the possibility of an additional 12 weeks of paid parental leave, as we have previously detailed in our E-lerts from April 12, 2023 and April 12, 2022. Continue Reading Maryland’s Proposed FAMLI Regulations Are Finally Here – What Do They Say?
US Department of Labor Reissues and Expands on Its AI Guidance for Employers
On October 16, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) released an updated Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) resource for employers, as well as developers, to assist them in avoiding potential harms to workers due to the use of AI and other technology. The document details practices and principles that employers may use to avoid concerns that could arise through the use of AI, and ways to avoid discriminatory or unfair treatment of employees.Continue Reading US Department of Labor Reissues and Expands on Its AI Guidance for Employers
NLRB GC to Seek Broad Remedies for Non-Compete and Stay-or-Pay Provisions – Part I
National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo issued an important policy memorandum this week. In GC Memorandum 25-01, Abruzzo asserts that most “stay-or-pay” provisions, where workers agree to repay their employer for certain benefits if the employee prematurely leaves employment, should be found unlawful unless narrowly tailored. The memo also sets forth broad remedies GC Abruzzo intends to seek if such provisions are held unlawful. In addition, following up on her memo that most non-compete agreements are unlawful, GC Abruzzo laid out the remedies she will seek from the Board where it holds that an employer has unlawfully enforced or applied a non-compete agreement.
This special two-part blog will cover both subjects. In this edition, we will cover the remedies proposed by the GC for employees subject to non-compete provisions found unlawful by the Board. Next week, Part II of this blog will address stay-or-pay provisions, the GC’s legal position that such provisions are presumptively unlawful, and the remedies she will seek for employees subject to stay-or-pay provisions.Continue Reading NLRB GC to Seek Broad Remedies for Non-Compete and Stay-or-Pay Provisions – Part I
Maryland DOL Releases Updated FAQs on Paid Family and Medical Leave
As we await the proposed regulations to implement the forthcoming paid family and medical leave insurance (FAMLI) program in Maryland, the state Department of Labor previously issued resources for employers, including FAQs, to assist them in preparing for compliance, as we discussed in our May 2024 E-Update. And now the MDOL has updated and vastly expanded those FAQs to offer additional clarification.Continue Reading Maryland DOL Releases Updated FAQs on Paid Family and Medical Leave
Maryland Department of Labor Issues Highly-Anticipated Guidance on New Wage Transparency and Paystub Notice Obligations
As most employers with Maryland employees (hopefully) know, starting October 1, 2024, they are subject to new wage range posting and paystub notice obligations, as detailed in our April 10, 2024 E-lert on new Maryland employment laws. The Maryland Department of Labor promised to release guidance to help employers in complying with these new obligations, for which employers have been waiting with bated breath. And it is finally here! The MDOL has included this information, along with other information on existing wage laws, on a new Wage and Hour webpage.Continue Reading Maryland Department of Labor Issues Highly-Anticipated Guidance on New Wage Transparency and Paystub Notice Obligations
No Discrimination Against… Fox Hunters?
As an employment attorney, I am, of course, deeply interested in which personal characteristics are protected from discrimination under law, and it is fascinating to see which new characteristics are deemed to warrant such protections. In recent years, CROWN (Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair) Acts have seen success in many states. This past year, Maryland and New Mexico added military status to their respective lists of protected characteristics. But a recent attempt to expand discrimination protections in Britain certainly caught my attention – fox hunters??!!Continue Reading No Discrimination Against… Fox Hunters?
Federal Court Finds FTC Non-Compete Rule Unlawful
On August 20, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas set aside the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Non-Compete Rule. As discussed in our prior e-lert on July 5, 2024, the FTC Non-Compete Rule would essentially ban all non-compete agreements in the United States and require employers to notify employees currently subject to non-competes that the restrictions were void. The Texas court previously preliminarily enjoined the Rule as to only the parties in the case, as we noted in our prior e-lert. The court’s August 20 decision set aside the Rule, meaning the Rule will not be enforced or take effect on September 4, 2024.Continue Reading Federal Court Finds FTC Non-Compete Rule Unlawful