Amid election uncertainty, employers face challenges that include a growing skills gap, an increasingly active labor movement, and legal complexity around corporate diversity efforts

Survey also reveals significant misalignment among top executives, posing challenges for effective AI risk management

Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, has released its 2024 AI C-Suite Survey Report, completed by more than 330 C-suite executives across the United States.

(October 2, 2024) – For the seventh consecutive year, Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, has achieved 2023-2024 Mansfield Certification Plus status through Diversity Lab. This year-long, structured certification process confirms that all talent at participating law firms have fair and equal opportunities to advance into leadership. To achieve “Plus” designation, firms voluntarily provide data showing their progress and the outcomes of their efforts to broaden talent pools and increase visibility of advancement processes.

Littler, the world’s largest employment and labour law practice representing management, has released its seventh annual European Employer Survey Report, based on responses from nearly 630 human resources (HR) executives, business leaders, and in-house lawyers from across Europe—57% of whom hold C-suite positions at their organisations.

SAN FRANCISCO (October 7, 2024) – Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, is pleased to announce the addition of Amit Shah as the firm’s Chief Digital Innovation Officer (CDIO). He joins Littler from Excelitas Technologies, where he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer for Information Technology.

NEW YORK (October 9, 2024) – Littler attorney Michael Paglialonga testified before the New York City Council’s Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection today on behalf of Littler’s Workplace Policy Institute^® (WPI^®), the firm’s government relations and public policy arm.

Joy C. Rosenquist, Rick Reyes and Blair C. Senesi examine California’s new Freelance Worker Protection Act (FWPA), which aims to provide greater protections to freelance workers.

Wolters Kluwer

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The Illinois Department of Labor (IDOL) has just issued some much-needed guidance, through Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), on whether enrollment and use of E-Verify is prohibited in Illinois for private employers that do not have federal contracts. The answer is NO.

FRESNO, Calif. (November 4, 2024) – Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, has added Seth G. Mehrten as a shareholder in its Fresno office. Mehrten joins the firm from Barsamian & Moody.

A bill introducing a right to bereavement leave was submitted this summer in the Netherlands. The following is a brief outline of this proposal.   

Current Law

(November 7, 2024) – For the 15th consecutive year Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, has achieved “National Tier 1” rankings for the following practice areas in the 15th edition of Best Law Firms^®, ranked by Best Lawyers^®:

Alyesha Asghar and Julian G.G. Wolfson explain “background circumstances,” which are required as evidence in cases of reverse discrimination, and the implications for employers and IE&D.

Wolters Kluwer

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Emily Haigh, U.S. Army veteran and co-founder of Littler's Veterans Initiative, speaks with Littler attorneys Michael Kibbe, Caroline Lutz and Jonathan Heller, about how their military experience has had a positive impact on their legal practice.
  

Stacey James and Jamie L. Santos discuss a California amendment that seeks to allow restaurants to support higher wages and benefits while clearly disclosing service fees to consumers upfront.

Wolters Kluwer

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Denise Backhouse shares how best to alleviate data risks that many e-discovery professionals may face in the new year.

Legaltech News

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Kwabena Appenteng weighs in on the challenges to international data privacy regulations and data transfers and says companies should make sure that they have standard contractual clauses in place.

SHRM Online

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Paul Weiner, Denise Backhouse and Gretchen Marty explain how the legal and technical matters of e-discovery are prominent in lawsuits and in the legal industry as a whole.

Law360

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Scott Forman gives his predictions for legal technology and data analytics tools, especially towards generative AI point solutions, in 2024.

Legaltech News

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Deborah Margolis, Jan-Ove Becker and Stephan Swinkels discuss AI’s impact on the global economy and the workforce.

International Employment Lawyer

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As we look ahead to 2024, it is clear that both data protection and AI will continue to take center stage in the UK, as it will in many other countries.

In this article we look ahead to the developments that are expected to impact UK employers in the coming year.

Australia’s Senate on Thursday, February 8, 2024, passed a bill that would prevent an employer from contacting employees outside of work hours. The bill gives the employee the right to refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact, or attempted contact, from an employer outside of the employee’s working hours without fear of being penalized, unless the employee’s refusal is unreasonable.

The Brazilian Data Protection Law (LGPD) in effect since 2020 is starting to show its effects in the litigation landscape.

Multinational employers operating in China have been waiting since September 2023 for the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) to finalize proposed revisions to its complex and burdensome rules for cross-border data transfers.  Relief arrived on March 22, 2024, when the CAC published the “Provisions on Promoting and Regulating Cross-border Data Flows” (the “Approved Provisions”), which went into effect on the same day.

Shannon Meade talks about how the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) has affected employers in Illinois and how SB 2979 would update it and tweak its liability guidelines.

Law360

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Niloy Ray and Alice H. Wang say California’s Senate Bill 1047 represents another significant step forward in the state’s wide-ranging efforts to regulate the development and use of AI.

Daily Journal

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Zoe Argento, Kwabena Appenteng, Alyssa Daniels, Philip Gordon, Rajko Herrmann, Soowon Hong, Renata Neeser, Naomi Seddon, Christina Stogov and Grace Yang share a comprehensive guide for how employers can ensure data protection as they implement artificial intelligence.

Corporate Compliance Insights

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(May 8, 2024) – In an election year that could significantly impact the future of employment and labor law, U.S. employers expect heightened regulatory enforcement as they navigate a host of workplace issues, including the disruptive impact of artificial intelligence (AI) and managing divisive political beliefs among employees.

UPDATE: On May 17, 2024, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed Senate Bill 24-205 into law, although not without reservations. Governor Polis sent a letter to the members of the Colorado General Assembly encouraging them to reconsider and amend aspects of Senate Bill 24-205 before it takes effect on February 1, 2026.

Stephen Shore discusses a new law in Saskatchewan, Canada, that requires employers to create workplace violence prevention programs and inform employees about other workers who have a history of violent behavior.

International Employment Lawyer

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Orly M. Henry calls a law to amend language addressing claim accrual in BIPA litigation long overdue and “a huge step in the right direction.”

Chicago Daily Law Bulletin

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Zoe Argento says the use of AI to evaluate or assess applicants or employees is the highest risk use of AI in the workplace, and it’s also where she’s seeing the most amount of regulation.

Law Week Colorado

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Kristy Peters discusses how employment law attorneys can be critical partners for employers to help them identify challenges and opportunities for their business.

InBusiness Phoenix

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Bradford Kelley, Kellen Shearin and Michael Lotito say employers must consider employees' rights — and limits on those rights — related to political speech and activities in the workplace.

Law360

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Hot off the press – here is Littler’s mid-year report!  As federal regulators, states and cities continue to pass new workplace regulations through the calendar year, we summarize each state’s notable labor and employment law updates. Some states, like Maryland, have at least a dozen new laws and regulations taking effect this summer, tackling everything from vaping at work to pay discrimination.  Other states have just one, such as the state of West Virginia, which now restrains employers from acting against employees who store firearms in their vehicles on company property.