by Cameron D. Ritsema, Bodman PLC
Under Michigan’s Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act (IWOWA), minimum wage increases in the state took effect on January 1, 2026.
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As Congress rushes to avoid another shutdown, it has a bipartisan agreement to provide the Department of Labor (DOL) with a budget of $13.7 billion for the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2026. The budget would provide the...
For all the clamor about ending eight wars, invading Greenland, creating an “A+++++++” economy, pardoning friends and supporters by the bagful, converting the DOJ into a vehicle for personal retribution, even tariffs—if...
Christmas came early for one former employee when, on December 19, a Dallas jury awarded her a multimillion dollar verdict for a breach of an employment contract. Read on. Dem dry bones Andrea C. Avellan went to work at...
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has resumed operations after a prolonged period without a quorum, restoring its ability to decide cases and issue precedent. Yet the Board’s narrow composition, looming vacancies...
From pay transparency to remote work, employees are increasingly vocal about working conditions both in the office and online. The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) protects employees—union and nonunion alike—when they...
Feb 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter
· Great Lakes
· Illinois
· Indiana
· Michigan
· Ohio
· Wisconsin
· Midsouth
· Kentucky
· North Carolina
· South Carolina
· Tennessee
· West Virginia
· Southeast
· Alabama
· Florida
· Georgia
· Louisiana
· Mississippi
· West
· Alaska
· Arizona
· Hawaii
· Nevada
· Oregon
· Washington
In a new wave of lawsuits filed under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), four employers were sued during the recent holiday season for allegedly breaching ERISA fiduciary duties regarding their...
Feb 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter
· Mid-Atlantic
· Delaware
· Maryland
· New Jersey
· Pennsylvania
· Virginia
· Midsouth
· Kentucky
· North Carolina
· South Carolina
· Tennessee
· West Virginia
· Midwest
· Arkansas
· Kansas
· Missouri
· Oklahoma
· Mountain West
· Colorado
· Idaho
· Montana
· New Mexico
· Utah
· Wyoming
· Upper Midwest
· Iowa
· Minnesota
· Nebraska
· North Dakota
· South Dakota
· West
· Alaska
· Arizona
· Hawaii
· Nevada
· Oregon
· Washington
The flu is spreading like wildfire! So, is a flu-caused absence protected under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)? Calling out sick Here’s a typical scenario: Employee is off for four days. He calls in and says he...
Over the past year, I’ve responded to several “Notice of Payment Compliance Complaints” from the Industrial Commission of Arizona (ICA), the state agency responsible for enforcing Arizona wage payment compliance. These...
Here’s a case that presents retaliation basics in Texas. By basics, I mean what it is that you screen in looking for a way to dismiss a discrimination charge or a lawsuit. Let’s look at a few facts Kelli Smith worked as...
Words matter, and they matter a lot. As Mark Twain purportedly once said, “The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between a lightning bolt and a lightning bug.” So, I read with...
Feb 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter
· Texas
· Great Lakes
· Illinois
· Indiana
· Michigan
· Ohio
· Wisconsin
· Mid-Atlantic
· Delaware
· Maryland
· New Jersey
· Pennsylvania
· Virginia
· Midwest
· Arkansas
· Kansas
· Missouri
· Oklahoma
· West
· Alaska
· Arizona
· Hawaii
· Nevada
· Oregon
· Washington
The new year, as always, brings with it new developments in labor and employment law. Likewise, the ever-growing labyrinth of state and local paid leave laws, including paid sick leave and family and medical leave laws...
The Frank Sinatra song “My Way” popped into my head as I was reading a case from the Houston area, where an employee argued her pregnancy must be the reason for her termination because her performance was excellent (if...
In Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a rare unanimous employment opinion, held that placing an additional evidentiary burden on majority group plaintiffs was inconsistent with Title...
On December 2, 2025, the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service issued a notice of proposed rulemaking regarding the new “Trump accounts,” which were created by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The...
Feb 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter
· Great Lakes
· Illinois
· Indiana
· Michigan
· Ohio
· Wisconsin
· Mid-Atlantic
· Delaware
· Maryland
· New Jersey
· Pennsylvania
· Virginia
· Midsouth
· Kentucky
· North Carolina
· South Carolina
· Tennessee
· West Virginia
· Midwest
· Arkansas
· Kansas
· Missouri
· Oklahoma
· New England
· Connecticut
· Maine
· Massachusetts
· New Hampshire
· Rhode Island
· Vermont
· Southeast
· Alabama
· Florida
· Georgia
· Louisiana
· Mississippi
· Upper Midwest
· Iowa
· Minnesota
· Nebraska
· North Dakota
· South Dakota
· West
· Alaska
· Arizona
· Hawaii
· Nevada
· Oregon
· Washington
Q If an employee takes sick leave but hasn’t completed and returned an Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) form, can the employer lawfully terminate employment? Under the FMLA, employers are permitted to require medical...
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