In an unsurprising decision applicable to both unionized and non-union employers, the National Labor Relations Board changed its standard for assessing whether seemingly neutral work rules violate the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The Board’s decision in Stericycle, Inc. applies to challenges to an employer’s maintenance of work rules that do not expressly apply to employees’ protected activity. (Note: This decision does not alter Board law concerning the analysis of rules that explicitly restrict activities protected by Section 7 of the NLRA, or rules enacted in response to activities protected by the NLRA, such as union organizing.)

On June 29, 2023, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court ruled that religious accommodations under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act must be provided to employees or prospective employees unless the employer is able to demonstrate that the burden is substantial. The Court rejected the “de minimus” standard as a misreading of the Court’s precedent in TWA v. Hardison.

On June 29, 2023, a divided U.S. Supreme Court ruled that affirmative action in student admissions decisions at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. What does the Court’s holding mean for employers?

When an employer receives a complaint of workplace misconduct, they often must conduct an investigation that may include interviewing employees.  Interviewing an employee is not as simple as one may assume. Employees may have legal rights and protections that restrict an employer’s ability to interview them. Navigating those rights and protections is essential in insulating employers from possible civil and criminal liabilities.