Category: HR Management & Compliance

There are dozens of details to take care of in the day-to-day operation of your department and your company. We give you case studies, news updates, best practices and training tips that keep your organization fully in compliance with ever-changing employment law, and you fully aware of emerging HR trends.

The Impact of Banning Gender-Affirming Care on Employees

Gender-affirming care allows individuals to align their outward, physical traits with their inner gender identity. This care can include a range of social, psychological, behavioral, and medical treatments to help individuals develop harmony between their mental, social, emotional, and physical states. This type of care is recognized as medically necessary by major medical organizations, including […]

NLRB

Key Takeaways from NLRB Decision Related to Displaying Black Lives Matter Symbol on Work Uniforms

On February 21, 2024, in a decision that provoked strong dissent, the National Labor Relations Board (the “Board”) ruled in Home Depot USA, Inc. and Antonio Morales Jr. that Home Depot violated the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) by prohibiting an employee from wearing a “BLM” (Black Lives Matter) marking on his work apron and […]

Tight Around the White Collar – The New Overtime Rule is Here

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has published its final rule amending the overtime regulations of the federal wage and hour law, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The new rule requires an increase to the salary threshold for executive, administrative, and professional workers (EAP) and Highly Compensated Employees (HCE) to qualify for exemption from […]

DOL Weighs-In (Again) With Final Rule on Independent Contractors

The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) published a final rule (the “Final Rule”) in January of this year, which took effect March 11, 2024, and changed how the DOL analyzes whether a worker is properly classified as an employee or independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). Employers that misclassify individuals as independent […]

Honestly! Since When Can’t You Fire Somebody for Failing a Drug Test?

Issue 2 became law in Ohio on December 7, 2023, legalizing recreational marijuana use for adults. In presenting on this topic, we have proclaimed that Issue 2 will change very little for Ohio workplaces and employment practices. However, a recent case in the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has created a caveat to our bold […]

Recent Pandemic Decisions Embolden NLRB, OSHA Collab

The COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on employers’ balancing of in-person policy with potential health risks, and recent court decisions have highlighted the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) concerted collaborative efforts in protecting whistleblowing employees speaking out about on-the-job safety. NLRB, OSHA Doubling Down on Workplace Protections Top officials […]

Managing Implications of Remote Employees Working in Multiple States

Remote work has been all the rage in recent years. Initially, employees were working from home because offices were closed by government mandate. While working from home, employees were usually working in the same town or neighboring suburb as their normal office space. As remote work has become a more permanent part of the white-collar […]

DOJ Announces New Program to Garner Employee Cooperation in Anti-Corruption Investigations

Over the past few months, we have discussed recent Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) enforcement actions by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), emphasizing lessons for employers in the current environment. The DOJ continues to signal increasingly aggressive enforcement, now through a whistleblower program that will complement last year’s focus on corporate voluntary disclosure […]

Complex laws around healthcare employees get more complicated

Employers have seen an enormous number of changes recently to various rules about how they manage their employee base. This includes a notice of proposed rulemaking by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in late 2023, sweeping memoranda from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), and final rules from the NLRB on joint employment. All of this is […]

Case Study: Guidance for Employers on Music in the Workplace

In today’s workplace, many employers allow employees to play music. While this is generally a cost-effective way to improve culture, morale, and productivity; it also creates potential exposure for hostile work environment and sexual harassment claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This is particularly true given a recent decision from […]