Archive for the
‘New Laws and Regulations’ Category

By David Michael and Dan Lewis The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) has announced that employers must use new Form I-9 (Rev. 08/01/23) (the “New Form I-9”) by November 1, 2023. USCIS also has issued a new rule that permits employers to use an alternative documentation verification process for employees working remotely. New Form […]

On June 13, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) overruled the Trump-era decision that “entrepreneurial opportunity” is the animating principle of the test to determine whether a worker is an employee or independent contractor under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). In doing so, the NLRB restored the common-law “totality of the circumstances” test. […]

Congress passed two laws related to pregnant workers and nursing mothers in December 2022. First, Congress passed the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), which requires employers with at least 15 employees provide “reasonable accommodations” to a worker’s limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, unless the accommodations will cause an “undue hardship” to […]

On March 13, 2023, Illinois became only the third state to mandate paid time off for all workers in the state when it enacted the Paid Leave for All Workers Act. The act is effective January 1, 2024. Under the act, covered employers must provide employees with up to 40 hours of paid leave during […]

Chicago continues to be at the forefront of combatting sexual harassment in the workplace by further expanding the existing training requirements. Chicago employers have previously been required to provide annual sexual harassment training for employees and supervisors. However, recently, Chicago has increased these requirements by adding an additional hour of “bystander intervention” training. The Chicago […]

The Chicago Fair Workweek Ordinance went into effect in 2020.  In a previous article, we discussed how the ordinance brought predictability to employee scheduling by requiring employers to provide 10 days’ notice of an employee’s schedule. As of July 1, 2022, covered Chicago employers will be required to either give employees 14 days advance notice […]

The U.S. Senate passed legislation on February 10, 2022, that prohibits employers from requiring arbitration with employees for certain disputes. The Ending Forced Arbitration Act, which President Biden is expected to sign, invalidates pre-dispute arbitration agreements that preclude a party from filing a lawsuit in court that relates to sexual assault or sexual harassment. Pre-dispute […]

Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court greenlit enforcement of the vaccine mandate rule from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) while litigation regarding the rule continued in the lower courts.  The interim final rule requires all healthcare workers working in facilities that receive funding from CMS be vaccinated—except for those with medical and religious […]

Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion staying enforcement of OSHA’s emergency temporary standard (“ETS”) which had required vaccines or weekly testing for employers with 100 employees or more. The Court found that the states and business organizations challenging the ETS were likely to succeed in demonstrating OSHA exceeded its statutory authority. Notably, the […]

Last week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit granted the Biden administration’s request to dissolve the Fifth Circuit’s November 6 stay on the emergency Covid-19 “shot-or-test” rule. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published the emergency temporary standard (ETS) on November 5, and it was immediately met by pushback. The ETS […]

The Acting Associate General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) recently published a memorandum addressing the types of bargaining obligations under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) that may arise out of OSHA’s recently issued emergency temporary standards for mandated vaccination (ETS). Given that the ETS requires employees to get vaccinated or, if […]

The Biden administration announced this week that it would mandate COVID-19 vaccinations (with exceptions for disabilities and sincerely held religious beliefs) for a staggering number of Americans. The latest mandate –  covering federal workers, federal contractors, and healthcare workers at hospitals and other health institutions that participate in Medicare and Medicaid social programs – is […]

Chicago and Illinois employers should be aware of three recent changes affecting mandated sick leave benefits for employees. In April, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law an amendment to the Employee Sick Leave Act. The amendment, which took effect immediately, expanded coverage for employees. Additionally, as of July, Chicago’s Paid Sick Leave Ordinance now includes […]

Back in March 2020 we advised that — for employees working remotely — the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was deferring the physical presence requirement of the Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9). Ordinarily, the employer “must physically examine” the approved document(s) within three days of the employee’s first day of employment. Because of continued precautions […]

The Chicago City Council last week passed an ordinance providing more rights to employees who take time off from work to obtain the COVID-19 vaccine. Effective immediately, this ordinance allows Chicago employees and independent contractors to get vaccinated during their work hours, requires pay for hours taken to get vaccinated from employers that make vaccination […]

With the inauguration of Joseph R. Biden as the President of the United States yesterday, we expect to see a different focus, new guidance and new laws. Some of the major changes that may be delivered in the Biden administration include: Renewed Focus on Misclassifications Recently, few areas of employment law have been debated so […]

Last week, Congress passed a $900 billion Appropriations Act. In addition to providing much-needed funding for vaccine distribution, direct payments to the vast majority of Americans, and a renewal of the popular Paycheck Protection Program, the act contains a number of changes that affect businesses and their employees. Paid Sick Leave Credits Extended A covered […]

By David Michael, Emily Wessel Farr and Mark Brookstein Infectious disease experts have a saying: Vaccines don’t save lives, vaccinations do. As the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first COVID-19 vaccine, employers eager to get back to normal may want to mandate vaccinations. Yet, it has been reported that a sizable number of […]

UPDATE: In its latest update to its pandemic workplace guidance, the EEOC addresses questions employers will face as businesses reopen and employees return to work.  In advance of employees’ return, employers are encouraged to provide information to all employees about who to contact in the event they wish to request an accommodation for a disability […]

Last week, the Chicago City Council passed the COVID-19 Anti-Retaliation Ordinance, which aims to protect covered employees who remain at home if they have symptoms of COVID-19 or are following a stay-at-home or isolation order. Effective immediately, employers may not terminate, demote or take any other adverse action against a covered employee for obeying an […]

The IRS issued Notice 2020-29 on May 12, 2020, to assist with the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The notice provides flexibility for mid-year 2020 elections under a §125 cafeteria plan for employer-sponsored health coverage, health Flexible Spending Arrangements (FSA), and dependent care assistance programs (DCAP). It also provides flexibility to carryover unused benefits in an FSA […]

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has updated its FAQ page on the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), explaining how employers should calculate employee leave and addressing the confusion over what a “quarantine or isolation order” means for purposes of emergency paid sick leave. As we previously wrote, the DOL provides guidance via these […]

UPDATE: A challenge to the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission’s emergency amendment, described below, has resulted in a temporary hold on the rule.  On April 22, 2020, the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association (IMA) and the Illinois Retail Merchants Association (IRMA) filed a complaint in Sangamon County against the IWCC and its Commissioner, Michael J. Brennan, seeking an […]

Current guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) provides that employers may lawfully take an employee’s temperature upon entering the workplace during the COVID-19 pandemic.  In taking this step, however, employers must consider that the time an employee spends waiting to and actually having their temperature taken may need to be paid out. While […]

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently released an alert advising employers on safety tips to help protect manufacturing workers from exposure to COVID-19.  OSHA advises employers to implement the following: For more information and to discuss these benefits further, please contact a member of Gould & Ratner’s Human Resources and Employment Practice.

The Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) has announced its implementation of expanded unemployment benefits under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, including: Even though the recent influx of claims has stressed unemployment offices nationwide, the IDES has specifically advised that “every individual who is unemployed or underemployed should file a claim […]

A significant component of the sweeping $2 trillion economic stimulus enacted on March 27, 2020, is a $500 billion Exchange Stabilization Fund, whose intended beneficiaries include mid-sized businesses with less than 10,000 employees that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) Act authorizes the U.S. Treasury Department and […]

The CDC this week issued updated COVID-19 guidance for employers, supplementing its “Interim Guidance for Businesses and Employers to Plan and Respond to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)” by adding to its cleaning and disinfecting guidelines, social distancing best practices, and strategies and recommendations to respond to the virus. As we previously wrote about, there are […]

As part of the recently enacted $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), Congress included expanded unemployment benefits in partnership with state unemployment agencies. The CARES Act creates a pandemic unemployment assistance program through Dec. 31, 2020, and retroactively to Jan. 27, 2020. The CARES Act will provide payment to those […]

As employers nationwide have turned to teleworking to help “flatten the curve,” the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on March 20 that it will defer the physical presence requirement of the Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) under Section 274A of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Ordinarily, the employer “must physically examine” the approved […]

The Illinois Department of Employment Services adopted emergency rules for the COVID-19 crisis. The rules include: Qualification for benefits for those who are temporarily laid off An individual temporarily laid off can qualify for benefits as long as they were able and available for and actively seeking work. The individual would not have to register […]

Employment laws are often grouped based on numbers – number of employees, to be exact. Sometimes, however, you can group laws by industry. This year, a number of new laws will affect Illinois hotels.   Lodging Services Human Trafficking Recognition Training Act Illinois lodging establishments will need to provide training to certain employees on how […]

Throughout 2019, Illinois has adopted a number of laws imposing new requirements and restrictions on employers, meaning that prudent Illinois employers should consider updating their employee handbooks to ensure compliance with new laws in effect now and as of Jan. 1, 2020.  Following are brief recaps of the new laws: Salary History Ban On Sept. […]

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) yesterday issued its final rule on overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) increasing the salary thresholds for workers to be considered “exempt” and opening the door to an estimated 1.3 million workers receiving overtime pay next year. For the past 15 years, employees generally could be […]

When signed into law last month, the new Illinois Workplace Transparency Act (WTA) included a variety of provisions creating substantial changes for employers and employees starting Jan. 1, 2020.  We covered one of the provisions – mandatory annual sexual harassment prevention training – in our blog post here. The WTA also includes new restrictions on […]

As we welcome 2019, the following is a recap of new laws affecting Illinois employers. Illinois Human Rights Act The Illinois Human Rights Act (IHRA) now requires all Illinois employers to advise employees of their right to be free from harassment, discrimination, and retaliation in the workplace.  Employers must post a notice provided by the […]

On August 21, 2018 the State of Illinois amended the Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Act to prohibit an employer from reducing an employee’s compensation for breaks for nursing mothers. Originally, employers were required to provide “reasonable unpaid break time each day” to express milk, which “must, if possible, run concurrently with any break time […]

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has announced an immediate stay and review of an Obama-era policy requiring pay information to be included on form EEO-1.  The revised form was set to take effect with the next filing cycle in March 2018. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has always required companies to report […]

Remember last November when a federal judge put a temporary hold on significant changes to federal labor laws affecting millions of workers and their employers?  We wrote about it here. Last week, the judge issued a final ruling that struck down the proposed changes, which would have required employers either to substantially increase the pay […]

The Illinois House of Representatives has passed House Bill 2462, which aims to prevent pay discrimination against women in Illinois.  The bill amends the existing Equal Pay Act of 2003, which prohibits employers from paying wages to another employee of the opposite sex for the same or substantially similar work, where the job requires substantially […]

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (in Chicago) ruled on April 4, 2017, that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 – which prohibits workplace discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin – includes discrimination based upon an employee’s sexual orientation. While the federal agency that enforces […]

Effective Sunday, January 22, 2017, all employers must have completely converted to using the new version of the Form I-9 to verify new employee identification and U.S. employment authorization (for both citizens and non-citizens).  Employers are not required to re-verify existing employees on the new Form I-9, except when an employee’s authorization documents have expired. It is imperative that all employers use this new […]

For many, January 1 signifies a time for making New Year’s resolutions, setting goals and resetting benchmarks. This year, one thing is certain: when we enter the New Year, several new or amended employment laws will take effect for Illinois employers – and inevitably affect many individuals as well.  The 2017 changes starting either January 1 […]

As of Wednesday, companies are no longer subject to the Department of Labor’s “Persuader Rule” requiring disclosure of legal advice a company receives in response to union organization campaigns.  A court in Texas has permanently blocked the new Persuader Rule. Earlier this year, the Department of Labor issued the new Persuader Rule requiring public disclosure […]

The Department of Labor just announced its updates to the overtime exemptions effective December 1, 2016.  These updates (“Final Rule”) greatly impact many businesses, resulting in more than 4 million workers who are currently overtime-exempt eligible for overtime pay.  Federal labor law requires that all employees receive at least a minimum wage and that most […]

On June 1, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court held that in order to prevail in a disparate-treatment claim, an applicant need show only that her need for accommodation was a motivating factor in the employer’s decision, not that the employer had actual knowledge of her need. In 2008, Samantha Elauf, a Muslim woman, applied for […]

In a split decision ruling on December 11, 2014, the National Labor Relations Board (“Board”) held that employees have the right to use their employers’ email systems for nonbusiness purposes, including soliciting, distributing and organizing employees. The Board’s decision is limited to: Employees who already have access to their employer’s email system in the course […]

In a significant change for employers facing a union representation election, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “Board”) has adopted its “final rule” amending representation case procedures.  These procedures resolve certain existing representation disputes and provide detailed guidance on the NLRB’s representation procedures, from the petition being filed to post-election issues. Under the previous […]

On July 14, 2014, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued new enforcement guidance on pregnancy discrimination, the first comprehensive update on the subject since the 1983 publication of a chapter on the subject in the Compliance Manual. The new guidance sets out the fundamental Pregnancy Discrimination Act (“PDA”) protections: that employers are prohibited […]

On July 21, 2014, President Obama signed Executive Order (“EO”) 13672, designed to prohibit federal contractors from discriminating against employees based upon sexual orientation and gender identity and broadly prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity across all federal employment. EO 13672 amends two prior executive orders: EO 11246, issued by President Lyndon Johnson to prohibit […]

On July 31, 2014, President Obama signed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order (“EO”), which requires prospective federal contractors to disclose labor law violations and provides additional guidance to government agencies on how to consider labor violations when awarding contracts. The EO also encourages employers to settle existing disputes, ensures that workers are […]

Illinois joins the growing list of states which have enacted legislation banning employers from asking about criminal convictions on an employment application. The new law, signed on July 21, 2014, applies to private-sector employers that have 15 or more employees in the current or preceding calendar year. It becomes effective on January 1, 2015. The […]

On April 8, 2014, President Obama issued an executive order (New EO) amending Executive Order 11246 (EO 11246) to prohibit discrimination or retaliation against employees of Federal government contractors for discussing compensation along with a Memorandum to the Secretary of Labor (the Memo) directing the Secretary of Labor (the Secretary) to propose a rule directing […]

Along with the New Year come a number of changes to Illinois law that are certain to impact employers. The following changes took effect January 1, 2014: Social Media. The Right to Privacy in the Workplace Act, which was amended effective January 1, 2013 to prohibit employers from requiring employees to disclose usernames and passwords […]

0
0
image
https://www.humanresourceslawblog.com/wp-content/themes/blake/
https://www.humanresourceslawblog.com//
#0077C8
style1
paged
Loading posts...
/nas/content/live/bloghrlaw/
#
on
none
loading
#
Sort Gallery
https://www.humanresourceslawblog.com/wp-content/themes/blake
on
no
yes
off
on
off