Regulatory

On April 7, 2022, in a move that could dramatically alter long-established employer tactics in union organizing campaigns, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo issued a memorandum announcing that she will ask the Board to find what are commonly known as “captive audience” meetings to constitute an unfair labor practice (ULP) under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).… Continue Reading

On March 14, 2022, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released several pieces of guidance aimed at addressing discrimination against caregivers, including:

  • A technical assistance document entitled “The COVID-19 Pandemic and Caregiver Discrimination Under Federal Employment Discrimination Law”;
  • Updated COVID-19 guidance, entitled “What You Should Know,” which explains what may constitute discrimination against employees and job seekers with family caregiving responsibilities; and
  • A short video explaining caregiver discrimination in both English and Spanish.
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On February 7, 2022, the Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment publicly released its report to President Joe Biden, offering nearly 70 recommendations to promote pro-union policies and practices in the public and private sectors. The Task Force, chaired by Vice President Kamala Harris, embodies President Biden’s vow to be the “most pro-union President” in United States history.… Continue Reading

On February 1, 2022 National Labor Relations Board General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo announced an initiative to seek injunctions under Section 10(j) of the National Labor Relations Act in cases “where workers have been subject to threats or other coercive conduct during an organizing campaign.”  According to her memo, Abruzzo opines that, “because threats or other coercion have a well-recognized inhibitive effect on employees, there is a likelihood of immediate harm to employee organizing efforts.”… Continue Reading

The U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division (DOL-WHD) and National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) announced plans to collaborate “to enhance and maximize the enforcement of the federal laws administered between the two agencies.”  The DOL-WHD enforces the minimum wage and overtime requirements while the NLRB enforces the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).… Continue Reading

On December 14, 2021, the EEOC updated its COVID-19 Technical Assistance manual Technical Assistance manual to address when employees who contract COVID-19 are covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). The ADA generally prohibits discrimination against (1) a person with disability; (2) a person who has a record of impairment; or (3) an employee who is regarded by the covered entity as an individual with a disability.… Continue Reading

On November 17, 2021, the EEOC, as it has done throughout the pandemic, updated its COVID-19 Technical Assistance manual. The additional questions and answers clarify that applicants and current and former employees are protected from relation for exercising EEO rights in connection with COVID-19. The guidance identifies particular examples of protected activity, which employees may engage in without fear of retaliation, including:

  • Filing a charge, complaint, or lawsuit, regardless whether the underlying discrimination allegation is successful or timely.
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On November 10, 2021, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) issued a Memorandum outlining employers’ duty to bargain with unions over the implementation of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS).

The Memo provides that employers have bargaining obligations regarding aspects of the ETS that affect terms and conditions of employment, to the extent the ETS provides employers with choices regarding implementation.… Continue Reading

On Monday, as it has done periodically throughout the pandemic, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) updated its now-lengthy technical assistance related to COVID-19. This new guidance comes as U.S. employers increasingly have abandoned encouraging or incentivizing vaccinations for their workforces in favor of vaccine mandates, in an effort to get their employees back to work on site (for those who have been working remotely) and in a determined effort to curb the spread of the disease among those who have been working throughout the pandemic or who are just returning to the workplace.… Continue Reading

In a statement that portends additional scrutiny of the “working conditions” of college and university athletes, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo has publicly stated her view that scholarship athletes at academic institutions are employees who have the right to organize and to be protected from discrimination and retaliation when they act concertedly to improve their working conditions.… Continue Reading