Videoconferencing made many employee onboarding tasks easier under COVID-related rules, including the inspection of passports, birth certificates and other I-9 documents. Those COVID-related rules are ending, however, and employers now have to conduct an in-person inspection of all I-9 documents
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OSHA Announces New National Emphasis Program to Address Workplace Falls
On May 1, 2023, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) announced its second National Emphasis Program (“NEP”) in three months, this time addressing the leading cause of fatal workplace injuries and the most frequently cited health and safety standard…
The Five Deadly Sins of Employee Handbooks
Employee handbooks are vital tools employers use to communicate expectations for employee conduct, company culture and core values, policies, and procedures. However, when drafted poorly, handbooks can create confusion and legal liability. Below are some of the most common mistakes…
Can Self-Insured Employers Unilaterally Terminate Payment for Ongoing Prescription Medication in Workers’ Compensation Claims? It Depends…
Prescription medications are a necessary, albeit expensive component of any self-insured workers’ compensation program. Unfortunately, injured workers are often prescribed unnecessary prescription drugs which can lead to dangerous health conditions and increased complexity of workers’ compensation claims. Physicians continue to…
The United States Supreme Court Confirms that “Salary Basis” Under the FLSA Really Means “Salary Basis”
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court ruled in Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. v. Hewitt that an employee who earned more than $200,000 a year was not exempt from overtime pay under the FLSA’s highly compensated employee exemption.
The highly compensated…
NLRB Finds Common Severance Agreement Terms Illegal
The NLRB this week once again ruled that a relatively common employment practice violated federal labor law, continuing what some are seeing as a trend under the current administration. This time, the NLRB ruled that it was illegal for an…
Fights and Horseplay in the Workplace
Fighting and Horseplay in the WorkplaceWhen thinking about injuries at the workplace, many of the first things that often come to mind are single-employee accidents like slips and trips, muscle strains from lifting heavy objects, or cuts and bruises from…
Update on EEOC Scrutiny of Artificial Intelligence Tools
We previously reported that disability advocates for many years had been asking for action with respect to the use of artificial intelligence (“AI”) tools, as it is estimated that approximately 80% of employers use some form of automated tool to…
Are 4-Day Work Weeks Right 4 Employers?
In the midst of a national labor shortage, employers recruiting from a shrinking pool of potential employees are looking for ways to gain a competitive edge over other employers. What’s a better job perk than having every Friday off?
Companies…
OSHA Continues Aggressive Enforcement Priorities, Announcing Expanded Instance-By-Instance Citation Policy
On January 26, 2023, OSHA issued two enforcement memoranda accompanied by a clear message to employers from Assistant Secretary for OSHA Doug Parker: employers who “choose to put profits before their employees’ safety, health and wellbeing” will be targeted. Aggressively.…