While COVID-19 has turned everyone’s focus toward safety and health generally, it has forced US employers specifically to focus on the safety and health of their employees during an unprecedented time. Employers in the US have common law and statutory duties to ensure safe workplaces, but the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly disrupted many of the … Continue Reading
On Wednesday, January 20, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued an administrator’s interpretation [pdf] that includes guidelines for when companies should be considered “joint employers” under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA). The joint employer debate has been gaining steam over the past year. … Continue Reading
Earlier this month, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced that it will begin offering early resolution and mediation instead of investigations in two OSHA regions to address complaints filed with the agency’s Whistleblower Protection Program. OSHA is charged with enforcing the whistleblower provisions in 22 separate statutes, including the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and … Continue Reading
A growing trend among employers today includes requests for non-traditional work arrangements. One of those being “telecommuting”, where employees are permitted to work from remote sites, including home; using mobile telecommunications technology. In fact, studies show that as many as 30 million Americans work from home at least one day per week. Gas prices and … Continue Reading
It’s a fair question. In the U.S., ten states now prohibit such conduct. Another 34 states prohibit texting while driving. The Department of Labor has likewise made its position clear: companies will be held responsible for cell-phone related accidents caused by their employees. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) announced last spring that as part of … Continue Reading
