Legal Issues

Prepare to accommodate covid after-effects

June 24, 2021
Most people recover from covid-19 within a few weeks. However, reasonably large numbers of people who had the disease experience after-effects that may interfere with their ability to work. As a result, employers can expect to see more requests for ADA reasonable accommodations and FMLA intermittent leave.

Same-sex harassment may include nonsexual behavior

June 10, 2021
Don’t ignore a sexual harassment complaint just because the workplace consists of members of a single sex and there’s no claim that the harasser was seeking sexual favors.

Firm threatens lawsuits over vaccine mandates

June 3, 2021
Despite EEOC guidance that employers may require employees to be vaccinated against covid-19, only 49.9% of Americans had received at least one shot as of June 2. About 13% of Americans say they will refuse to be vaccinated under any circumstances, according to the nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation.

Are we on the hook if a social media hack creates a false job opening?

May 28, 2021
Q: “Our company LinkedIn account was hacked with a bogus job opening to which people are responding. Do we have any responsibility?” – Beth, Ohio

Employment law changes: What to expect into 2022

May 26, 2021
Paid sick leave—an issue supported by President Biden and gaining steam in state legislatures—is the top legislative issue that employers expect to impact their businesses over the next 12 months, according to a new Littler survey of 1,100 HR professionals and in-house attorneys.

$150M reminder: Beware ‘predictive scheduling’ laws

May 21, 2021
A growing number of states and cities (including Oregon, New York City and Chicago) have new laws requiring employers to give workers advance notice of their upcoming schedules and any changes.

No coverage for burnout under the FMLA, court rules

May 19, 2021
Sick and tired of being sick and tired? That isn’t enough to qualify for FMLA leave. According to a federal trial court, employee burnout isn’t a serious health condition covered under the FMLA.

Should you remove ‘he’ & ‘she’ from handbook?

April 22, 2021
As more employers take steps to make nonbinary individuals feel more comfortable in the workplace, some organization are working to create gender-neutral employee policies and handbooks.

Pay employees for pre-shift COVID screening

April 15, 2021
To decide if you must pay employees for their pre- or post-work activities—such as putting on uniforms, waiting in a time-clock line, etc.—take a look at the Fair Labor Standards Act. The main issue is whether the pre- or post-activity is “integral” and “indispensable” to the employee’s principal activity.

Before you assign any overtime …

March 26, 2021
Here’s how to dish out overtime hours and avoid legal trouble.