Insights on Labor, Employment & OSHA

In a 3-1 representation case, the National Labor Relations Board recently continued its roll-back on Obama-era precedents, invalidating a 180-member “micro-unit” of Boeing mechanics.

In resolving a growing split among California courts, the California Supreme Court in ZB, N.A. v. Superior Court faced the issue of whether actions for unpaid wages under Labor Code section 558 brought under the Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) could be compelled to arbitration.

On September 11, 2019, the California Senate passed Assembly Bill 5 (A.B. 5), which – if signed into law – will codify the so-called “ABC Test” utilized by the California Supreme Court in Dynamex v. Superior Court of Los Angeles to hold that the company’s delivery drivers were employees.

Continuing its trend of pro-employer rulings, the NLRB ruled that instead of a “clear and unmistakable waiver” standard, a “contract coverage” standard should apply when considering whether an employer’s unilateral action is permitted by a collective bargaining agreement.

A divided panel of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) ruled that the stand-alone misclassification of a worker as an independent contractor instead of an employee does not violate the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA or Act). Velox Express, Inc., Case 15-CA-184006.

In a split decision, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or the Board) ruled last week that a property owner that is not in any underlying labor dispute, does not have to grant access to off-duty employees of an onsite contractor to exercise their Section 7 rights, including leafletting.

The National Labor Relations Board recently issued a 113-page Notice of Proposed Rulemaking as the first of a planned series of revisions to its representation procedures under Section 9 of the National Labor Relations Act.  

In its groundbreaking decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, 584 US ___, 138 S. Ct. 1612 (2018), the Supreme Court held that the National Labor Relations Act permits employer/employee agreements that contain class- and collective-action waivers and mandate arbitration for employment disputes. 

WASHINGTON — Fifty Arent Fox LLP attorneys have been rated as leaders in their profession by The Best Lawyers in America 2020.

As the #MeToo movement continues to sweep the country, on August 9, 2019, Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law Illinois Senate Bill 75 (now Public Act 101-0221) which will mandate statewide sexual harassment training for employers in Illinois.

After enacting progressive sexual harassment laws just last year, New York State (NYS) lawmakers have once again strengthened employee protections in the workplace.

On July 24, 2019, Chicago passed the Chicago Fair Workweek Ordinance, which will dramatically change how many Chicago employers schedule work.

On July 24, 2019, the Chicago City Council voted to pass the Fair Workweek Ordinance that will require covered employers to, among other things, provide employees with at least 10 days’ advance notice of their work schedules and provide additional compensation to employees.

New York State has banned discrimination against hairstyles or textures associated with race.

On May 28, 2019, the Maryland Governor permitted (without signature) the Noncompete and Conflict of Interest Clauses Act (the Act) to become law.

The esports industry has been rapidly growing since its inception in the 1990’s. Viewership numbers for esports championship games exceed that of the NHL’s Stanley Cup Finals, the MLB World Series, and the NBA Finals.

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker recently signed a bill that moves the Paid Family and Medical Leave Program start date from July 1, 2019 to October 1, 2019.

The 2019 edition of Legal 500 US has rated 49 Arent Fox LLP attorneys as national leaders in their field. In addition, 15 of the firm’s practice areas were ranked among the best in the country.

Today, the US Supreme Court settled a hotly debated issue under Title VII: Is the statute’s charge-filing requirement jurisdictional? The answer, according to the unanimous Court, is no.

The Supreme Court’s, McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green, 411 US 792 (1973), burden-shifting framework is all too familiar to employment discrimination and retaliation litigants. 

The US House of Representatives passed the Equality Act of 2019, which would prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in a broad array of important areas.

Bowing to pressure from the business community, the Department of Family and Medical Leave (Department) recently set a new deadline of June 30, 2019 for employers to provide written notice of the paid family and medical leave program to employees. The Department also extended the initial filing dead

In an opinion letter issued earlier this week, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) advanced a business-friendly standard to determine whether a worker is an FLSA-covered employee or an independent contractor. 

Yesterday, in a 5-4 decision written by Chief Justice John Roberts, the United States Supreme Court held that ambiguous arbitration agreements do not provide the affirmative contractual basis required to send a dispute to classwide arbitration.

The US Supreme Court ruled in Lamps Plus, Inc., et. al. v. Varela, No 17-988 (April 24, 2019), that class-wide arbitration is not available to parties when the underlying arbitration agreement between them is ambiguous as to whether it was contemplated.