Update: On August 2, 2024, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed SB 2979 into law, reforming the liability guidelines under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act.

CHICAGO (April 11, 2024) – Today, the Illinois Senate passed SB 2979, which would reform the liability guidelines under the state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). The bill marks an important milestone in the broader effort to resolve BIPA’s vague statutory language and courts’ expansive interpretations of the law, which have posed a threat to businesses that capture biometric information.

PITTSBURGH (April 15, 2024) – Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, has added Shannon Huygens as special counsel in its Pittsburgh office. Huygens, who was an associate at Littler from 2004 to 2013, rejoins the firm after serving as associate general counsel at the University of Pittsburgh for more than a decade.

NEW YORK (May 28, 2024) – Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, has added Kelly M. Cardin as a shareholder in its New York City office. Cardin – who joins the firm from Ogletree Deakins, where she was co-chair of the Pay Equity practice group – marks Littler’s fifth shareholder level addition since the beginning of April.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (June 4, 2024) – Bruce Buchanan, an attorney in the Nashville office of Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, has published the 2024 edition of The I-9 and E-Verify Handbook, along with co-author Greg Siskind of Siskind Susser, PC.

(June 6, 2024) – Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, and its attorneys have again been recognized by Chambers and Partners in its Chambers USA 2024 guide. Based on in-depth market analysis and independent study, the Chambers USA guide ranks the leading lawyers and law firms across all 50 states and Washington, D.C., covering hundreds of practice areas.

Littler’s Workplace Policy Institute files brief for the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace urging court to grant review of Goldstein v. Professional Staff Congress and reaffirm Constitutional protections against compulsory union representation

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.

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.

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(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^®:

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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Niloy Ray talks about the proposed AI regulations from the California Privacy Protection Agency and what all HR professionals should consider about AI and compliance. 

HR Brew

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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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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.

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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Niloy Ray says employers should be intentional about their generative AI usage, not only with regard to whether they use it at all, but also how, why and when. 

HR Dive

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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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May 25th marked six years since the General Data Protection Regulation has been in effect.

Since it was implemented, GDPR has been regarded as the gold standard for data protection legislation across the world. The implementation of GDPR signaled the European Union’s firm stance on data privacy and security, demonstrated by the large fines introduced for businesses that violate GDPR standards. The GDPR is retained in the UK’s domestic law as UK GDPR, which sits alongside the Data Protection Act 2018.

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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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.

On August 2, 2024, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law Senate Bill 2979 (the “Amendment”), implementing long-awaited, highly anticipated reform to the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). The Amendment is a milestone in the broader ongoing effort to resolve BIPA’s vague statutory language and courts’ expansive interpretations of the law, which have resulted in businesses across Illinois paying hundreds of millions of dollars to settle the 1,000+ BIPA class actions filed in state and federal courts to date.

Philip L. Gordon says a new AI law in Colorado means that any employer doing business in the state with more than 50 employees will have specific obligations when AI is a factor in the decision-making processes that affect personnel.

HR Brew

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Bradford Kelley and James McGehee discuss the potential risks for employers when employees use social  media for political purposes.

Law360

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Joycelyn Stevenson shares four key points employers should consider when it comes to politics at work.

Nashville Business Journal

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Stephan Swinkels, Jan-Ove Becker and Deborah Margolis discuss findings from Littler’s 2024 European Employer Survey Report.

International Employment Lawyer

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Bradford Kelley talks about how important it is for employers to create effective AI policies.

SHRM

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Deborah Margolis talks about the importance of creating effective GenAI policies.

Human Resources Director America

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Rebecca Goldstein and Terri Solomon comment on New York's Retail Worker Safety Act, which requires retail employers to adopt a violence prevention policy.

Law360 Employment Authority

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Ben Smith discusses a UK proposal to abolish the two-year qualifying period for employees to bring an unfair dismissal claim against their employer.

Law 360

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Stephan Swinkels and Jan-Ove Becker discuss workplace issues that European employers are struggling with, including geopolitical events, political debates and LGBTQ+ rights. 

Human Resources Director Asia

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Ben Smith says Labour's plans to upgrade workers' rights would create extra red tape for employers. 

BBC

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Kelly M. Cardin provides insight about why New York City is expanding its sick leave law to let workers use it to care for pets and service animals.

Law360

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Bradford J. Kelley stresses to employers the importance of implementing safeguards when considering adopting AI technologies.

Thomson Reuters

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Michael Lotito, Jim Paretti, and Shannon Meade discuss what a new administration will mean for employment law and employers.

American City Business Journals

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Bradford Kelley, Jim Paretti and Eduardo Reyes Chavez say a new administration could lead to changes in AI compliance requirements for employers nationwide.

Law360

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