Colleges and universities that employ their own students face conflicts about how to protect student information, as required by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), while disclosing information about student-employees who seek to unionize, as required by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).

On August 6, 2024, the National Labor Relations Board’s general counsel issued a memorandum with her advice about how higher education institutions should handle this dilemma.

On October 31, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced that the agencies have executed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) “to strengthen the agencies’ partnership to promote safe and healthy workplaces through protecting worker voice.”  The

UPDATE: On March 21, 2024, Ontario’s Bill 149 - Working for Workers Four Act, 2024 received Royal Assent. The amendments to the ESA made by Bill 149 came into force on the day it received Royal Assent, with the following exceptions:

Rhonda B. Levy and Monty Verlint explain Ontario's Bill 79, Working for Workers Act, 2023.

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As many Washington residents are aware, wildfires, and wildfire smoke, are becoming an increasingly regular occurrence. The increase in wildfires has often led to days—or even weeks—of smoky air throughout the state.

On November 24, 2022, Bill 41 – 2022: Workers Compensation Amendment Act (No. 2), 2022 (Bill 41), which introduced changes to British Columbia’s Workers Compensation Act, received Royal Assent. Effective January 1, 2024, Bill 41 imposes certain duties on employers and employees following a workplace injury.

In a significant decision about workplace drug use, the Connecticut Appellate Court backed an employer’s right to terminate a worker who was impaired on the job by medical marijuana. The decision also clarified the factual basis an employer must possess to justify ordering a drug test based on suspicion of impairment.

Update: On June 20, 2024, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board unanimously approved an amended version of the proposed indoor heat illness prevention regulation which specifically excluded the government entities (mainly correctional facilities) whose inclusion had led to the earlier rejection by the Director Finance. The Board also requested that the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) expedite their review and allow the regulation to become effective immediately upon OAL approval.

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Devjani Mishra discusses findings from Littler’s 2024 Annual Employer Survey Report that show an increase in workplace requests for leaves of absence or other accommodations for mental health.

Corporate Counsel

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Devjani Mishra discusses the pandemic’s ongoing impact on the workplace revealed by key findings from Littler’s 2024 Annual Employer Survey Report.

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Alka Ramchandani-Raj talks to employers about OSHA-recommended accommodations when altering employees’ working hours due to heat-related conditions.

CNN

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Alka Ramchandani-Raj says a proposed OSHA rule would direct OSHA inspectors to request to see an employer’s written heat plan as part of construction site inspections on days the temperature has reached the rule’s trigger point. 

Bloomberg Law

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Bradford Kelley talks about the promise of AI tools to increase worker health and safety in the workplace.

Bloomberg Law

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Felicia Watson discusses three concerns about a proposed OSHA rule that would protect indoor and outdoor workers from heat illness.

SHRM

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In R. v. Greater Sudbury (City), 2024 ONSC 3959, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (OSCJ) dismissed an appeal of the trial judge’s decision in which she acquitted the City of Sudbury (City) of various charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA).

On October 15, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor released expanded guidance for OSHA inspections of employers in the animal slaughtering and processing industry. This guidance supersedes previous guidance issued in 2015, which had been limited to poultry processing establishments.

As part of the Obama administration's commitment to accountability in spending under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), the federal Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) will be tracking its ARRA-related and non-ARRA-related enforcement activities separately and aggressively auditing recipients of ARRA funds.

On July 7, 2009, OFCCP released a new directive that explains the different procedures that will apply in scheduling and conducting compliance evaluations for ARRA-funded contractors versus other federal contractors.

The Internal Revenue Services (IRS) has announced a delay in beginning a comprehensive employment tax audit program originally scheduled for November 2009 but now scheduled to begin February 2010. In February, the IRS will launch its latest National Research Program (NRP). This NRP will be focused on conducting detailed employment taxes examinations. Approximately 6,000 employers are to be randomly selected for audit. In addition to potential "assessments," these audits will provide the IRS with the statistical sample of overall employment taxes compliance.

On October 1, 2013, the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (DOL) published a final rule in the Federal Register eliminating the Fair Labor Standard Act's (FLSA) minimum wage and overtime exemption for home care workers employed by home care agencies and other companies.  The new regulations also significantly narrow the exemption for home care workers employed directly by the individuals or families receiving home care services. 

The district court's opinion denying cross-motions for summary judgment in Bobbitt v. Broadband Interactive, Inc., No. 8:11-cv-2855 (M.D. Fla. Oct. 21, 2013) illustrates how not to structure an independent contractor relationship and how not to lay the groundwork to defend that relationship in the event of litigation.  The case also serves as a warning that even well-conceived independent contractor relationships may be open to question by a court that is inclined to distrust them.

Background

On page 54, Eric Stevens urges bank executives to begin preparing now for changes to employee data reporting in 2018 by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.  

The Tennessee Banker

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Jim Paretti talks about submitting workforce data correctly on EEO-1 reports.

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As prosecutors and states have ramped up the criminal prosecution of wage theft and other employment law violations, Jacqueline Kalk explains why this isn’t always necessary.

Law360 Employment Authority

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David Goldstein talks about some differences as the Labor Department proposes changes to a Trump-era rule that it says “undermined” how it handles and resolves discrimination claims by federal contractors.

Government Executive

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Aki Tanaka talks about how the monthly average working hour per employee went down in Japan after the country started implementing a law limiting overtime in 2018.

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Rhonda B. Levy and George Vassos discuss an Ontario Court of Appeal decision that puts employers on notice that their discretion in awarding bonuses is not unconstrained and must be exercised fairly and reasonably.

Human Resources Director Canada

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