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How to tackle an employee food allergy

Q: We have an employee with a severe food allergy. Can we ask all employees to refrain from bringing the specific food into the workplace? Should we ask the employee for a doctor’s note to verify the allergy? Generally...

Jun 30, 2023 · Employment Law Letter · California · New York · Texas · Mid-Atlantic · Delaware · Maryland · New Jersey · Pennsylvania · Virginia · Great Lakes · Illinois · Indiana · Michigan · Ohio · Wisconsin · 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

Suffering tech overload? How to help employees get app-happy

People rely on all kinds of technology to get their work done. Zoom meetings, Slack messages, scheduling apps, and other tools keep the workplace humming. But at what point does all that tech do more harm than good? Can...

Jun 29, 2023 · 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 · West · Alaska · Arizona · Hawaii · Nevada · Oregon · Washington

Sizing up DEI initiatives in the era of anti-‘woke’ efforts

With politics and economics seemingly working against employer efforts to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the workforce, many DEI proponents are worried about the future. And a recent report from a...

Jun 29, 2023 · 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 · West · Alaska · Arizona · Hawaii · Nevada · Oregon · Washington

Future of comprehensive federal privacy law still uncertain

The European Union (EU) General Data Privacy Regulation (GDPR), adopted in 2016 and effective in 2018, was one of the first major pieces of data privacy legislation, and in many ways, it has set the standard for other...

Jun 29, 2023 · Employment Law Letter · California

AI creates more risks and challenges for employers

For decades, standardized testing has been subject to attack for discriminatory bias and adverse impact against protected classes. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) 1978 Uniform Guidelines on Employee...

Jun 29, 2023 · Employment Law Letter · California

NLRB’s noncompete pendulum has swung back

Readers of this column know that the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) was created to reflect the politics of the incumbent president. Each board member has staggered five-year terms, so every president gets to...

Jun 29, 2023 · Employment Law Letter · California

Broadly offensive music and lyrics create hostile environment

It’s been almost 40 years since the U.S. Supreme Court recognized that a hostile work environment can constitute sex discrimination and sexual harassment under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the federal...

Jun 29, 2023 · Employment Law Letter · California

Heat-related injuries are this summer’s hot topic

As summer heats up, employers should keep a close eye on how heat affects their workforce. Heat-related illness is a hot topic for the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) as well as state OSHA...

Jun 15, 2023 · Employment Law Letter · California · Great Lakes · New England

9th Circuit weighs in on who is responsible for unpaid wages

When you see the packages of strawberries in the produce department, you probably don’t consider whose employees grew, packaged, and shipped them. The court of appeal recently had to consider whether farmworkers work for...

Jun 15, 2023 · Employment Law Letter · California

Supreme Court to decide whether to replace Title VII de minimis standard

On April 18, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case involving a former U.S. Postal Service (USPS) worker who was denied a religious accommodation to observe his sabbath. The broad implications of a...

May 31, 2023 · 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

NLRB ruling will make it tougher to discipline workers for outbursts

On May 1, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) reversed a 2020 decision that made it easier to discipline workers for inappropriate or offensive outbursts while engaging in activities protected by the National...

May 31, 2023 · 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

NLRB ruling brings changes to severance agreements

Some employers offer severance agreements to employees when they’re discharged, waiving employees’ rights to potential employment claims in exchange for a few weeks’ or months’ salary. Many agreements also include broad...

May 31, 2023 · 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