Employment practices liability insurance policies, commonly referred to as EPLI, provide protection against large jury verdicts rendered in cases involving employment discrimination, harassment and other employment law violations. These policies also typically call for insurers to pay the costs of defense counsel in excess of the employer’s retention. While these policies may indeed provide significant protection, they have also proved problematic in one respect to many employers, because many EPLI policies specify that defense counsel will…

At the beginning of the pandemic, many employers began to require employees to be screened for COVID-19 symptoms prior to starting work. Common screenings include daily temperature checks and symptom questionnaires, as well as questions about recent travel or recent exposure to COVID-19. Predictably, lawsuits have started to surface by employees alleging state and federal wage violations due to non-payment of wages for time spent undergoing mandatory employer screenings. For example, in federal court in…

In what would amount to the most significant overhaul to American Labor law since the passage of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) in 1935, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (PRO) on March 9. While the PRO has several more legislative stops on the road to becoming law, if enacted, the PRO would result in sweeping changes to the NLRA, including, amongst others: Expanding the definition…

The light at the tunnel is near! Due to the increase in vaccinations in the United States, the CDC has issued updated guidance regarding “fully vaccinated” individuals. For purposes of the guidance, an individual is considered fully vaccinated two or more weeks after receiving the second shot of a two-dose vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna) or two or more weeks after receiving one shot of a one-dose vaccine (Johnson & Johnson). The CDC guidance eases up…

With recent weather happenings leaving much of Ohio covered in varying degrees of snow, ice, and that all-too-familiar gray slush that ensues as it all melts, re-freezes, and melts again, now seems like a good time to discuss the workers’ compensation implications when employees get hurt trying to traverse this sometimes perilous terrain. In Ohio, the basic rule of workers’ compensation is that it covers injuries sustained both in the course of and arising out…

According to new guidance from the U.S. Department of Labor, workers who refused jobs that they viewed as unsafe for COVID-19 reasons may now be eligible to collect unemployment benefits. The DOL published this guidance on February 25 in keeping with President Biden’s promise to provide unemployment benefits to workers who chose unemployment over exposure to COVID-19. The DOL’s action applies to persons who are eligible for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance under the 2020 CARES Act,…

As the COVID-19 vaccine becomes available across the country, companies are facing critical decisions as they create policies and/or plan for the transition back to work. Below is a list of questions and best practices Frantz Ward attorneys frequently discuss with clients related to key issues facing returning to the office. PEOPLE Back to the Office Health Check Q: Do I legally have a right to ask my employees to take their temperature and screen…