Blog
NLRB Dismantles Former Board’s Handbook Rule: What Does This Mean for Employers?
December 28, 2017
For 8 years, the Obama-era Board scrutinized employer handbooks and held that facially neutral policies and rules maintained by employers (i.e., rules that, as written, did not target protected activity) were violations of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) if an employee could “reasonably construe” the policy or rule to prohibit a right protected under the NLRA.
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Some Highlights from the EEOC’s Latest Strategic Plan
December 28, 2017
On December 8, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) has released its draft strategic plan for public notice and comment. Not to be confused with the revised Strategic Enforcement Plan published in September—which outlined substantive priorities for investigation and litigation—the strategic plan is akin to a company’s operational plan.
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Ontario Bill 148 is Now Law
December 22, 2017
Bill 148, the Ontario, Canada Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, received Royal Assent on November 27, 2017. This means that the Bill has passed and is now law.
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NLRB Reverses Course on Employee Handbooks, Joint Employers, and More
December 22, 2017
Last week, the National Labor Relations Board (the “NLRB” or “Board”) issued four significant decisions reversing precedent under the National Labor Relations Act (the “NLRA” or “Act”) governing the legality of employee handbooks and employment policies, joint employment relationships, employers’ ability to unilaterally change terms and conditions of employment in accordance with a past practice, and the unionization of small bargaining units of employees (called “micro-units”).
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New York State Planning to Expand Call-In Pay Requirements for Most Employers
December 20, 2017
On November 22, 2017, the New York State Department of Labor (“NYDOL”) issued proposed regulations seeking to impose new pay obligations on employers who change employee work schedules on short notice or schedule shifts less than two weeks in advance, and expanding current requirements for additional pay when an employee subject to call reports for work.
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The Winds Keep Blowing: Miscimarra's Final Days with the NLRB Produce More Change for Employers
December 19, 2017
Last week we issued two alerts covering the winds of change blowing at the NLRB. The strong winds continued on Friday, December 15 as the Board overruled two more decisions: one addressing an employer’s duty to bargain; the other addressing the proper analysis for determining appropriate voting units in union elections.
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Massachusetts Employers Face $750 Penalty for Employees Who Enroll in MassHealth or Receive Subsidized Health Coverage
December 19, 2017
In August, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed into law, “An Act Further Regulating Employer Contributions to Health Care,” which will become effective on January 1st. More recently, the Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA) issued proposed draft regulations.
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The NLRB Brightens the Season with Multiple Employer-Friendly Decisions Before the New Year
December 18, 2017
As has been anticipated since the change in presidential administrations earlier this year, the National Labor Relations Board, with a Republican majority, issued a slew of impactful and employer-friendly decisions in recent days.
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Gale Force Winds of Change: National Labor Relations Board Reverses Course on Workplace Rules and Joint Employer Standards
December 15, 2017
The newly-constituted NLRB dismantled two earlier cases that were the subject of extensive employer criticism.
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Be Careful Asking About Employees’ (Non)Prescription Drug Use
December 14, 2017
The ADA limits an employer’s ability to make medical inquiries to those that are job-related and consistent with business necessity.
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What Could the New NLRB General Counsel Mean for Employers?
December 13, 2017
For the last eight years, the Obama-era National Labor Relations Board has issued decisions that have shocked and frustrated employers.
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Recent NLRB Actions Signal the Winds of Change Are Blowing: The NLRB Requests Information on Controversial "Quickie Election" Rules and Issues Its First Reversal of Obama-Era Policy
December 13, 2017
Recently, the U.S. Senate confirmed two Republicans to the National Labor Relations Board, resulting in a Republican majority on the Board for the first time in ten years, and a new NLRB General Counsel, management-side labor lawyer Peter Robb. Swift changes followed, and more are likely.
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