In the wake of the #MeToo movement, New York, like other states, enacted legislation aimed at limiting employers’ use of non-disclosure provisions in settlement agreements to resolve claims of workplace discrimination. Recently, Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation that amends those existing laws to further strengthen the restrictions on non-disclosure provisions in settlement agreements for discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims. The legislation also extends the statute of limitations for filing such claims with the state enforcement agency.
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Michael Reed
EEOC Issues Guidance on Use of AI in Employment Decisions
As of late, it seems we can hardly go a day without hearing about the rise of artificial intelligence (“AI”) and its potential to disrupt all manner of industries. But awareness of AI’s potential implications to our careers has only recently hit the mainstream. Many employees may be surprised to learn that a number of employers have already been using AI to make employment decisions for some time, especially in the hiring process. And the number of employers using AI in the workplace has been growing rapidly. Some employers are even using AI to make promotion decisions.
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DOL, NLRB Will Collaborate on Investigations, Share Information
The Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division and the National Labor Relations Board released a Memo of Understanding announcing that the two agencies will be collaborating “to strengthen the agencies’ partnership through greater coordination in information sharing, joint investigations and enforcement activity, training, education, and outreach.” The MOU took effect upon both agencies’ approval in early December and will remain in effect for five years.
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The Trend Towards Legal Recreational Cannabis: Considerations for Employers
In the first four months of 2021, Virginia, New Mexico, New York and New Jersey passed laws legalizing or decriminalizing, in some form, recreational marijuana. Exactly how these laws will affect employers in these states is still an open question, but for now, employers should understand the nuances of the laws so they can prepare for the emerging reality that is legal marijuana.
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EEOC Provides Guidance Regarding COVID-19 Vaccinations
On December 16, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission updated its COVID-19 guidance with a new section pertaining to vaccinations. The updated release—“What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEO Laws”—discusses how employers who require vaccinations should respond to an employee who is unable or unwilling to receive a COVID-19 vaccination because of a disability or sincerely held religious belief. …
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Mail Ballot Elections: The New “Preferred Method” for Holding Union Representation Elections?
Due to the outbreak of COVID-19 and the inherent risks in holding large gatherings of people, the prospect of mail ballot elections has recently received considerable national attention. Typically, this attention is focused on how mail ballot elections might affect voter turnout or election results in state and federal elections and whether it might benefit one party over the other.
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DOL Addresses Training Pay and Per-Project Compensation in Two Opinion Letters
The Department of Labor issued two opinion letters on Tuesday in response to specific inquiries that may nonetheless provide some clarity for employers in general. …
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The NLRB Continues Its Trend of Employer-Friendly Decisions
This summer, the National Labor Relations Board issued several pro-employer decisions, including two key decisions for employers involving misclassification of workers and property rights.
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D.C. Circuit Upholds NLRB’s “Perfectly Clear” Successor Doctrine
On September 3, 2019, in First Student, Inc. v. NLRB, __ F.3d __ (D.C. Cir. 2019), the court upheld the National Labor Relations Board’s application of the “perfectly clear” doctrine in First Student Inc. v. NLRB, 366 NLRB No. 13 (February 6, 2018). The “perfectly clear” doctrine affects the right of a labor law successor, which acquires a unionized business, to set new terms and conditions of employment. Thus, it can have an important impact on the economics of the commercial transaction.
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NLRB Issues First of Its Proposed Changes to Union Election Rules
The National Labor Relations Board has issued the first part of its planned series of revisions to labor union election procedures. The revisions arrive five years after the Obama-era Board’s controversial 2014 changes that created the so-called “ambush election” procedures. …
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