Employment Law Letter

Workplace pressures take a toll, but employers can help

Evidence is piling up that many in today’s workplace are not OK. Stressors like financial insecurity, worries about artificial intelligence (AI), and political strife spilling into the workplace are dragging people down...

Jun 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 · Mountain West · Colorado · Idaho · Montana · New Mexico · Utah · Wyoming · 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

Latest office design trends focus on AI, flexibility, function, and more

Today’s workplaces likely have a different look and feel than the offices of just a few years ago. When hybrid work first became normalized, organizations began looking at space differently and even downsizing their real...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · New York · 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 · Mountain West · Colorado · Idaho · Montana · New Mexico · Utah · Wyoming · 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

Salary ain’t the rule: Don’t just assume the overtime exemption applies

I hear the incredulity from clients constantly: “Overtime? We pay our employees a salary—they aren’t eligible for overtime.” I call it the salary assumption. Unofficially, it’s the most common misconception in employment...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · New England · Connecticut · Maine · Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Rhode Island · Vermont · Southeast · Alabama · Florida · Georgia · Louisiana · Mississippi · West · Alaska · Arizona · Hawaii · Nevada · Oregon · Washington

Depending on the employer relationship, Form I-9 may not be your responsibility

Employers are generally not required to complete a Form I-9 for employees who are employed by a contractor providing contract services (such as employee leasing or temporary agencies) and providing labor or services to...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · New England · Connecticut · Maine · Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Rhode Island · Vermont

7th Circuit treatment confirms lowered adverse action standard not a free-for-all

Just over two years have passed since the U.S. Supreme Court overruled precedent on the issue of adverse employment actions in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 employment discrimination cases in its seminal...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · Great Lakes · Illinois · Indiana · Michigan · Ohio · Wisconsin

Virginia enacts paid family and medical leave

On April 22, 2026, Virginia enacted a paid family and medical leave law after the Virginia General Assembly accepted Governor Abigail Spanberger’s amendments. The program will be administered by the Virginia Employment...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · Mid-Atlantic · Delaware · Maryland · New Jersey · Pennsylvania · Virginia

DOL proposes regulations simplifying joint employer analysis for employers

On April 22, 2026, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued proposed regulations simplifying the analysis on whether multiple employers are considered joint employers under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · Southeast · Alabama · Florida · Georgia · Louisiana · Mississippi · West · Alaska · Arizona · Hawaii · Nevada · Oregon · Washington

Spotting the red flags: The legal risks posed by employer use of AI

Artificial intelligence—or AI as we all refer to it—is rapidly transforming and becoming increasingly integrated into employer’s decision-making. Employers are leveraging AI tools to streamline hiring, manage employee...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · New York · 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 · New England · Connecticut · Maine · Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Rhode Island · Vermont

Is AI an employee’s BFF? Don’t forget the importance of human connection

An article published recently in the Harvard Business Review (“Employees Are Relying on AI For Personal Support. That’s Risky” by Constance Noonan Hadley and Sarah L. Wright) argues that we are sliding to the point where...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · Texas

ICE updates I-9 inspection guidance

Recently, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) made unannounced changes to their Form I-9 inspection guidance. Employers are required to verify the identity and employment authorization for all employees through the...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · California · New York · Texas · 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 · Mountain West · Colorado · Idaho · Montana · New Mexico · Utah · Wyoming · 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

RIFs in the age of AI: Why data-driven decisions are increasing employer risk

Employers have long used reductions in force (RIFs) as a high-risk but familiar response to economic pressure, restructuring, or strategic change. Traditionally, employers evaluated RIF-related risk through relatively...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · Mountain West · Colorado · Idaho · Montana · New Mexico · Utah · Wyoming

When is travel time compensable?

Q Our technicians travel to different jobsites with company-provided vehicles, and they don’t typically drive to a central company location but rather drive from site to site and then home at the end of the day. Is the...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · Midsouth · Kentucky · North Carolina · South Carolina · Tennessee · West Virginia

Federal agencies to require clause banning DEI programs for federal contractors

President Trump has signed another Executive Order (EO) banning “racially discriminatory DEI activities.” Contractors will be required to acknowledge compliance with multiple obligations, including potential access to...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · Great Lakes · Illinois · Indiana · Michigan · Ohio · Wisconsin · New England · Connecticut · Maine · Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Rhode Island · Vermont · Southeast · Alabama · Florida · Georgia · Louisiana · Mississippi

5th Circuit: Accommodate disability limitations, not disabilities

While the following case deals with a university and a student, its lesson applies equally to an employer and an employee. Disability: ADHD ADHD stands for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and nursing student...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · Texas

Develop, implement PIPs properly to minimize risks of employment-related claims

To prove a claim of work-related discrimination or retaliation, employees must prove they suffered an “adverse employment action.” A recent federal appeals court decision provides employers with guidance about whether...

Jun 01, 2026 · Employment Law Letter · Midwest · Arkansas · Kansas · Missouri · Oklahoma

Arkansas Stephen W. Jones of Jack Nelson Jones, PLLC, and Audra Hamilton and Nathan Read of Mitchell Williams
Kansas Boyd A. Byers, Teresa L. Shulda, and Tara Eberline of Foulston Siefkin LLP
Missouri Robert A. Kaiser, Jeremy Brenner, and Ida S. Shafaie of Armstrong Teasdale LLP
Oklahoma Charles S. Plumb, Courtney Bru, Paul Ross, Philip Bruce, and Jacob Crawford of McAfee & Taft

Delaware Lauren Russell of Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP
Maryland Steven E. Bers and David M. Stevens of Whiteford, Taylor & Preston, L.L.P.
New Jersey John C. Petrella and Dina M. Mastellone of Genova Burns LLC
Pennsylvania Dena Calo, Lisa Koblin, Carolyn Pellegrini, and Zachary Kimmel of Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP
Virginia Jonathan Mook and Bernard J. DiMuro of DiMuroGinsberg PC

Illinois Steven L. Brenneman and Kelly Smith-Haley of Fox, Swibel, Levin & Carroll, LLP
Indiana Brian R. Garrison of Faegre Drinker
Michigan Gary S. Fealk and John T. Below of Bodman PLC
Ohio Fred G. Pressley, Jr., Jourdan D. Day, and John M. Stephen of Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP
Wisconsin Saul Glazer, Troy D. Thompson, Michael J. Westcott, Leslie A. Sammon, and Heath Straka of Axley Brynelson LLP

Kentucky Richard S. Cleary, John T. Lovett, Robert D. Hudson, and Kathleen Biggs Wright of Frost Brown Todd LLC
North Carolina Richard L. Rainey of Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP
South Carolina Richard J. Morgan, James K. Gilliam, Jonathan C. Eggert, and Chandler E. Aragona of Burr & Forman LLP
Tennessee Kara E. Shea and David Johnson of Butler Snow LLP
West Virginia Larry J. Rector and Allison B. Williams of Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

Alabama Albert L. Vreeland and David J. Middlebrooks of Lehr Middlebrooks Vreeland & Thompson, P.C.
Florida G. Thomas Harper of The Law and Mediation Offices of G. Thomas Harper, LLC, Lisa Berg and Andrew Rodman of Stearns Weaver Miller, and Robert J. Sniffen and Jeff Slanker of Sniffen & Spellman, P.A.
Georgia Raanon Gal of Barnes & Thornburg LLP, Glianny Fagundo of Thompson Hine LLP and Chris Butler of the Chris Butler Firm
Louisiana H. Mark Adams and Jennifer Kogos of Jones Walker LLP
Mississippi Martin J. Regimbal of The Kullman Firm

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