On May 26, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued revised guidance regarding the reporting of COVID-19 cases. A link to the guidance is available at https://www.osha.gov/memos/2020-05-19/revised...
Employment Law Letter
Unemployment filings in Oklahoma, and elsewhere, are at an all-time high because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Oklahoma Employment Security Commission (OESC) recently stated it has paid more than $432 million in...
Concerns that clients, customers, or business associates could sue them over claims they were exposed to COVID-19 have made some businesses reluctant to reopen. We’ve already seen lawsuits filed against retail stores and...
The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals (which covers Michigan and Ohio as well as Kentucky and Tennessee) recently reversed the dismissal of a disability discrimination claim against an employer. The employee had...
Q We fired an employee because of theft, and he is currently incarcerated. Do we have to offer COBRA due to these circumstances? A You are not required to offer Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA)...
Many employees were allowed to telecommute temporarily during the COVID-19 crisis. Others were furloughed or laid off. As some of them begin to return to the workplace, employers may be considering whether to conduct...
An employer’s informal background check on a new hire via Google didn’t support a race discrimination claim under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals (which covers North...
Under the New York Forward (NYF) reopening plan, employers are required to screen for COVID-19. While NYF’s guidance on reopening is largely based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and...
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo recently announced a second phase of industries can start preparing to reopen amid the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of the process, the state released detailed guidance and a safety plan...
Q Several employees forced to work from home during the pandemic say they prefer it to working in the office and actually feel more productive. Should we be preparing to extend and expand our telecommuting options even...
On March 31, the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals (whose rulings apply to all New Jersey employers) affirmed the district court’s dismissal of discrimination, retaliation, and wrongful termination claims filed by an ex...
The ban on sex discrimination in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 covers employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or transgender identity, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in an unexpected 6-3 decision...
A supermarket cooperative isn’t considered the employer of individuals who work for its member stores and cannot be found liable for the age discrimination claims of an employee of one of its members, the Appellate...
Will New Hampshire employers be liable to employees who contract COVID-19 on the job? Governor Chris Sununu’s economic reopening task force recently posed the question to Attorney General Gordon J. MacDonald. Employers...
As Phase Two of Nevada’s COVID-19 recovery brings even more employees back to work, many people may show up still emotionally charged from recent racial tragedies across the nation as well as the protests and riots that...