From our Capital Thinking blog, here are the latest federal employment law developments in in the legislative and executive branches during the week of August 23, 2021. *** This is a weekly post spotlighting labor topics in focus by the US legislative and executive branches during the previous week. In this issue, we cover: COVID-19 Updates Biden … Continue Reading
From our Capital Thinking blog, here are the latest federal employment law developments in in the legislative and executive branches during the week of July 26, 2021. *** This is a weekly post spotlighting labor topics in focus by the US legislative and executive branches during the previous week. In this issue, we cover: US Economy Update … Continue Reading
From our Capital Thinking blog, here are the latest federal employment law developments in in the legislative and executive branches during the week of June 28, 2021. *** This is a weekly post spotlighting labor topics in focus by the US legislative and executive branches during the previous week. In this issue, we cover: June Jobs Report … Continue Reading
Late last year, we reported that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) had released a proposed rule modifying the mandatory conciliation process the EEOC must follow before it can file a lawsuit in its own name against an employer. Under long-standing anti-discrimination statutes, before the EEOC can commence litigation against an employer for employment discrimination … Continue Reading
Squire Patton Boggs Summer Associate Taylor Hamel summarizes guidance recently released by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission relating to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Discrimination. On June 15, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, holding that the prohibition against sex discrimination in Title VII of the … Continue Reading
Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration had limited itself to issuing general guidance concerning COVID-19, as opposed to specific rules or standards. On Thursday, however, OSHA announced that it will issue its first standard specific to COVID-19 for healthcare workers. Although the standard is temporary, it creates significant obligations for … Continue Reading
From our Capital Thinking blog, here are the latest federal employment law developments in in the legislative and executive branches during the week of May 31, 2021. *** This is a weekly post spotlighting labor topics in focus by the US legislative and executive branches during the previous week. In this issue, we cover: May Jobs Report … Continue Reading
On May 28, 2021, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated its ongoing guidance on COVID-19 issues in the workplace to cover additional topics relating to vaccination of employees. This updated guidance addresses a number of questions that have been arising now that a majority of the adult US population has been fully vaccinated … Continue Reading
From our Capital Thinking blog, here are the latest federal employment law developments in in the legislative and executive branches during the week of May 17. *** This is a weekly post spotlighting labor topics in focus by the US legislative and executive branches during the previous week. In this issue, we cover: Biden Administration Labor Leadership … Continue Reading
Currently pending before the Arizona legislature, Senate Bill 1648 would prohibit discrimination in the workplace (and elsewhere) against individuals who have not received or who refuse to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. As proposed, the bill would prohibit any employer from requiring a person to receive or disclose whether they have received a COVID-19 vaccine as … Continue Reading
On May 13, 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) announced that fully vaccinated individuals no longer need to wear a mask or practice social distancing in any setting. Specifically, fully vaccinated people can now: Resume activities without wearing masks or physically distancing, except where required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, … Continue Reading
After postponing the opening of the 2019 EEO-1 Component 1 Data Collection on May 8, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, on April 26, 2021, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) announced that the 2019 and 2020 EEO-1 Component 1 data collection is now open.… Continue Reading
On March 29, 2021, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) announced that data collection for 2019 and 2020 EEO-1 Component 1 filing will open on Monday, April 26, 2021, and that employers will have until Monday, July 19, 2021 to submit their data for those years. Each year, employers with 100 or more employees (and federal … Continue Reading
From our Capital Thinking blog, here are the latest federal employment law developments in in the legislative and executive branches during the week of March 22. *** This is a weekly post spotlighting labor topics in focus by the US legislative and executive branches during the previous week. In this issue, we cover: Biden Administration Labor Leadership … Continue Reading
As we discussed in a previous post, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) published guidance in December 2020 on employer mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies. That guidance explained that subject to a few exceptions, employers can require that employees receive the COVID-19 vaccine as a condition of returning to, or remaining in the workplace. However, … Continue Reading
Arizona employers are now expressly prohibited by state law from discriminating against employees on the basis of pregnancy or childbirth. On January 28, 2021, the Arizona Legislature passed, and on Thursday, February 4, 2021, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey signed into law, HB 2045, which amends the state civil rights statute to clarify that existing statutory … Continue Reading
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) recently proposed regulations pertaining to employer wellness programs that, as will be explained below, may concern employers that have “Participatory” wellness plans. [1] Current Wellness Plan Rules under Other Laws To understand the EEOC’s proposal, one must first take note of the other pre-existing wellness plan rules. In general, … Continue Reading
Last month we discussed whether employers will be able to require employees to obtain a COVID-19 vaccine as a condition of returning to, or remaining in, the workplace. We noted at that time that the conditions for and lawfulness of mandatory vaccination policies was unclear, but that guidance was anticipated from the US Equal Employment … Continue Reading
Except for a brief hiatus between 2010 and 2017 (see here), the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has for decades issued formal opinion letters in response to requests from employers, employees, and others for the DOL’s official interpretation of novel or complex issues relating to the application of the minimum wage and overtime compensation provisions … Continue Reading
It’s a not-so-uncommon scenario for employers. An employer terminates an employee. The employee files a charge with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) alleging her termination was the motivated by unlawful discrimination. The EEOC asks the employer to provide a comprehensive response to the charge, supplemented with voluminous documents requested by the agency in … Continue Reading
With news reports emerging this week that two companies each have developed a COVID-19 vaccine that is more than 90% effective and carries few side effects, and that mass immunizations may begin as early as December 2020, when more than 20 million doses of the vaccines are predicted to be available, employers will soon confront … Continue Reading
On Friday, October 9, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released a proposed rule aimed at modifying the conciliation process that the agency employs prior to filing suit. When the EEOC finds reasonable cause to believe that allegations in a complainant’s charge have merit, the EEOC has the option of pursuing litigation on the … Continue Reading
As if 2020 hasn’t already presented more than its fair share of challenges, flu season is now rapidly approaching. Combined with the still ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, employers are more concerned than ever before with ensuring that their employees stay healthy and productive. As a result, many employers are weighing the pros and cons of encouraging, … Continue Reading
On September 8, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued updated guidance concerning COVID-19 and the workplace. The update provides much-needed answers to questions that have been troubling employers struggling to adapt to circumstances presented by the still-ongoing public health emergency. Can we test employees for COVID-19 prior to allowing them back in … Continue Reading
