By Glen Krebs We have heard a lot recently about the H-1B CAP.  The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) just completed its lottery to select which H-1B visa applications it will review.  They will soon start to return the applications and fees for those cases that were not selected in the lottery.  Next year, the process will be different and less costly to employers.  Watch for the new instructions to come out later in…

By Sharon Gold The Kentucky Pregnant Workers Act (“the Act”), adopted in April, amends  the Kentucky Civil Rights Act (“KCRA”), and expands protections for pregnant workers in Kentucky.  The Act applies to  employers who have 15 or more employees within the state in each of twenty or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year and any agent of the employer.  It requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations, including but not limited to…

By Thomas Travis On April 29, 2019, the Department of Labor issued an opinion letter pertaining to individuals providing services in the “unidentified virtual marketplace,” and placed a thumb on the scale in favor of their status as independent contractors, rather than employees. The “unidentified virtual marketplace,” also known as the “gig economy,” is commonly understood to be online or smartphone-based referral sources that connects providers directly to consumers for a vast array of services.…

By Jordan White On April 22, 2019, the Supreme Court granted certiorari and consolidated three cases involving whether Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a)(1), prohibits employment discrimination based on an individual’s sexual orientation and transgender status. The three cases are: Zarda v. Altitude Express, Inc., 883 F.3d 100 (2d Cir. 2018) (en banc); Bostock v. Clayton County Board of Commissioners, 723 F. App’x 964 (11th Cir. 2018); and…

By Mitzi Wyrick In a ruling that will undoubtedly affect how employers choose to proceed with respect to unemployment claims, the Kentucky Court of Appeals held that employers must have counsel to represent them in referee hearings and before the Kentucky Unemployment Insurance Commission.  In Nichols v. Kentucky Unemployment Insurance Commission, et al., the Kentucky Court of Appeals reviewed a decision in which the claimant was denied unemployment benefits after his employment was terminated.  The…

By Michelle Wyrick On March 25, 2019, Governor Bevin signed legislation providing that an employer may require an employee to sign an arbitration agreement as a condition of employment. The legislation, which amends KRS 336.700, is designed to reverse the Kentucky Supreme Court’s decision in Northern Ky. Area Development Dist. v. Snyder,  2017-SC-000277-DG (Ky. 2018), which held that employers may not condition employment upon execution of an arbitration agreement. In Snyder, the Kentucky Supreme Court…

By Marianna Michael On Thursday, March 28, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced proposed changes to the overtime provisions of section 7(e) of the Fair Labor Standards Act.  In its current form, the statute generally requires employers to pay overtime if workers work more than 40 hours a week.  One exemption to the overtime rule includes the salary basis exemption, where employees generally must be paid at least $455 per week on a…