Employment Law Letter

Q Can we deny someone employment based on their preemployment drug screen test that was positive for cannabis if cannabis is legal in our state? Likely, no. But the decision is ultimately influenced by state law...

Nebraska, like many jurisdictions, provides employees with a common-law protection against employment termination in violation of certain public policies. Primarily, the protections allow employees to report violations...

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines “disability” as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activity. The ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA) clarified that the ADA’s...

Surging changes to workplace laws understandably have employers suffering from whiplash. Historically, employment laws have shifted when presidential administrations have changed. A May 1, 2025, announcement by the U.S...

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. To establish a minimally sufficient discrimination claim under Title VII, employees...

In May 2025, the Trump administration’s U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published guidance saying that it would stop enforcing a Biden-era rule—one that had rescinded a rule created during the first Trump administration...

The beginning of summer often aligns with the beginning of the growing season for many Midwest farmers. With the rising temperatures, fruits and vegetables aren’t the only things growing this summer. Heatstroke, heat...

Q In Wisconsin, if an employee caused damage to a customer’s vehicle, can we deduct the cost from the employee’s paycheck without special consent? The short answer: No, employers must have some form of written agreement...

After being left for three weeks pending in committee, House Bill (HB) 149 was reconsidered by the Texas Senate and was promptly passed in days, barely making the legislative deadline. The bill is the first of its kind...

On January 2, 2025, President Joe Biden signed the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act into law, significantly affecting various programs, benefits, and services for...

On February 26, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case that challenges the heightened evidentiary burden imposed on majority-group employees in employment discrimination cases under Title VII of the...

Q We have an employee who’s been on workers’ compensation leave for six months. She was placed on light duty, but then her doctor changed her restrictions, and she’s been off work since leave began. Can we fire her? Any...

In September 2024, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released the report “High Tech, Low Inclusion: Diversity in the High Tech Workforce and Sector From 2014-2022,” which highlighted demographic...

Q Can we uphold our employee handbook policy that states employees are eligible for sick leave after 90 days of employment, or must we adhere to state sick leave laws that say they should be eligible upon being hired...

On April 24, the Florida Legislature passed House Bill 1219, marking a new, even more employer-centric era for noncompete agreements and other restrictive covenants in the Sunshine State. The bill, titled “Contracts...