A New York federal court recently ruled in Cecilia Prichard v. Long Island University that the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) must conduct a fulsome investigation of an employee’s allegations of discrimination before authorizing the employee to file a lawsuit in federal court. The decision directly conflicts with decisions issued in the Second, Ninth, … Continue Reading
The first half of 2025 is off and running with U.S. state and local jurisdiction employment law developments concerning topics such as paid sick leave, family leave, restrictive covenants, anti‑discrimination and AI, pay stub requirements, gender identity protections, and meal and rest breaks, to name a few. As always, minimum wages continue to increase in … Continue Reading
On July 29, 2025, United States Attorney General Pam Bondi issued new guidance that significantly changes how the government interprets federal antidiscrimination laws to apply to entities receiving federal funds – including private and public employers, state and local governments, and educational institutions – particularly with respect to entities that maintain Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion … Continue Reading
The United States Department of Labor (DOL) recently expanded opportunities for employers to self-audit and correct violations of various wage/hour and leave laws it administers. These self-audit programs are intended to assist employers in complying with the law while advancing worker protections. Some of these programs – some of which are new and others expansions … Continue Reading
On July 4, 2025 President Trump signed into law The One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act, whichcontains key employee benefit changes relating to fringe benefits, executive compensation and health and welfare plan benefits. We look at the key employee benefit changes that you should be aware of in this Insight.… Continue Reading
The White House has nominated two additional members to the National Labor Relations Board, in a move that should help the Board operate in full capacity soon after it has lacked a quorum for most of this year.… Continue Reading
As readers of this blog know, on January 1, 2025, New York became the first state in the country to require a separate bank of paid leave specifically for prenatal healthcare services. The Paid Prenatal Leave (“PPL”) law guarantees 20 hours per year of paid leave for eligible employees to attend pregnancy-related healthcare appointments such … Continue Reading
Squire Patton Boggs Summer Associate Akshey Mulpuri discusses legislative developments in several states attempting to address the current incapacity of the National Labor Relations Board due to lack of a quorum. Since January 27, 2025, when National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “Board”) Member Gwynne Wilcox was removed from that position, the NLRB – the … Continue Reading
On June 27, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL” or the “Department”) issued Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2025-3, in which it prohibits Wage and Hour Division (“WHD”) field staff from seeking liquidated damages in pre-litigation settlements of Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) claims.… Continue Reading
Some employers offer benefits not only to their current employees, but under certain circumstances also offer certain benefits, such as health insurance, to employees who retire from working for them. Employers sometimes modify the terms of benefit policies, programs, and plans for a number of reasons, including to change coverages or eligibility requirements or to … Continue Reading
On June 5, 2025, the United States Supreme Court issued its opinion in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services, No. 23-1039, reviving a lawsuit brought by a heterosexual female employee who alleged she was discriminated against by her employer in favor of less qualified gay candidates. The decision conclusively establishes that the evidentiary burden … Continue Reading
On June 4, 2025, President Trump announced a new travel ban through a proclamation titled “Restricting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats.” The ban, which echoes his 2017 efforts to restrict entry to the United States for nationals of certain … Continue Reading
Squire Patton Boggs Summer Associate Daniel Doherty details how new legislation in Florida will impact employers’ use of garden leave and noncompete agreements in the Sunshine State. On April 24, 2025, Florida lawmakers passed business-friendly legislation that impacts Florida’s regulation of noncompete and garden leave agreements and expands employer enforcement power for such agreements. The … Continue Reading
Data collection for 2024 EEO-1 Component 1 filing opened on May 20, 2025. Employers have until Tuesday, June 24, 2025 to submit their data to the agency. Each year, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) collects workforce data from private employers with 100 or more employees and federal contractors with 50 or more employees … Continue Reading
The National Labor Relations Board’s top enforcement official has issued important guidance, which should make it easier for parties to settle unfair labor practice charges, and which narrows the situations where the Board will seek unique expanded remedies. Background From 2021 to 2024, the Board significantly changed the remedies it sought in ULP cases, and … Continue Reading
In a ruling that clarifies a previously unsettled area of California employment law, a California Court of Appeal affirmed the enforceability of written, prospective meal period waivers for shifts between five and six hours long. The April 21, 2025 decision in Bradsbery v. Vicar Operating, Inc. explained that advanced “blanket” waivers are valid under the … Continue Reading
Although the meteoric rise in remote work prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have plateaued and may even be scaling back as employers press return-to-office policies, the reality is that many employees still work, and will continue to work, remotely. As employment law is largely legislated at the state level, the variation in how … Continue Reading
Effective April 11, 2025, certain foreign nationals in the US must register online with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), while others are already registered based on their status. This requirement is based on a 1940 law that mandates every foreign national who is in the US for 30 days must be registered and fingerprinted … Continue Reading
For the first—but not last—time, the US Supreme Court weighed in on President Donald Trump’s removal of Gwynne Wilcox, a Biden-appointed National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) member (whose removal we discussed in a prior post), and Cathy Harris, a Biden-appointed Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) member. Chief Justice Roberts’ April 9 order temporarily stayed the … Continue Reading
Laying off employees – also referred to as a reduction in force or a RIF – is one of the most difficult decisions an employer can make. Whether driven by economic conditions, organizational restructuring or pivots in business strategy, RIFs inherently create legal risks and significantly impact workplace morale. Although RIFs come with many challenges … Continue Reading
As we reported at the end of 2024, there are a number of critical employment law developments that will affect U.S. employers in the next several months, and, for some employers, in the next several days. Though not an exhaustive list, we focus here on some key upcoming deadlines for employers in Q2 and Q3 … Continue Reading
Among the flurry of Executive Orders signed by President Trump since he took office is an March 14, 2025 Executive Order rescinding 18 prior executive orders and actions, including Executive Order 14026, a Biden-era order increasing the minimum wage for federal contractors to $17.75. Now that Executive Order 14026 has been rescinded, many federal contractors have … Continue Reading
On March 4, 2025, the New York state Senate passed S.372, the “No Severance Ultimatums Act” a first of its kind legislation which, if enacted, will require New York employers to: These protections will apply to all severance agreements except those covered by collective bargaining agreements. This bill has now moved to the New York … Continue Reading
On February 14, 2025, the New York Retail Worker Safety Act, initially set to take effect March 4, 2025, was amended (S.B.740), and the new effective date moved to June 2, 2025. Background On September 4, 2024, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the New York Retail Worker Safety Act (the Act) (S.B. 8358-C/A. 8947-C) … Continue Reading
