Years ago, providing cash to employees that declined benefits was fairly common. Over the past few years, increasing regulations have made that practice mostly obsolete. Then, on June 2, 2016, the Ninth Circuit added FLSA overtime implications to the list of gotchas.
We routinely receive questions from employers contemplating offering cash to employees that decline benefits. Non-exhaustive examples of the concerns are:
- The option needs to be provided through a cafeteria plan
- The cash amount may impact “affordability” under the ACA
- The option cannot enable/require an ...
Under Federal, State and local laws, employers are required to post information regarding laws that protect workers in the workplace, including but not limited to wage laws, discrimination laws, workers’ compensation laws, unemployment law, protected leave laws and safety issues. In Illinois these include the following:
- IL Dept. of Labor State of Illinois Your rights Under Illinois Employment Laws
- IL Workers’ Compensation Notice
- IL Unemployment Insurance Benefits Notice
- IL Emergency Care for Choking
- IL Smoke Free Illinois Act
- FLSA / Minimum Wage compliance poster
- Equal ...
On March 24, 2016, we reported on a U.S. Supreme Court’s decision involving litigation by workers at meat-processing facilities who alleged they were entitled to overtime pay and damages because they were not paid for time spent “donning and doffing” protective gear. A critical issue in that case was the plaintiff’s use of statistical data to prove their claim, which the Supreme Court found appropriate, and which ultimately resulted in a $5.8 million judgment.
Shortly after that Supreme Court’s decision, the Tenth Circuit issued a ruling on yet another “donning and ...
Last week, clearly identifying the creation of a circuit court split, the Seventh Circuit (covering IL, IN and WI) held that class action waivers violate the NLRA, even in a non-union setting. Lewis v. Epic Sys. Corp., No. 15-2997 (5/26/2016). By way of background,
- The Supreme Court previously held that the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) preempted a state court’s judicial rule regarding the unconscionability of class arbitration waivers in consumer contracts – even if the contract was a “contract of adhesion” between parties of significantly disparate ...
The Colorado state legislature recently passed House Bill 16-1438 requiring employers to engage in an interactive process to assess potential reasonable accommodations for pregnant employees and applicants for health conditions related to pregnancy and childbirth.
If Colorado’s governor signs this bill into law, Colorado will join a growing group of states that have passed similar legislation, including Alaska, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Utah, West Virginia, and the District of ...
The EEOC has finalized 2 rules relevant to employer wellness programs. The Final Rules, which can be found here and here, amend existing regulations implementing the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act (“GINA”), respectively, and specifically address employer-sponsored wellness programs.
The ADA prohibits employers from making disability-related inquires or requiring medical examinations, except in limited circumstances. GINA prohibits employers from requesting, requiring or purchasing “genetic ...
Today the US Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued its long awaited final rule increasing the minimum salary requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).
Key Provisions of the Final Rule
The Final Rule focuses primarily on updating the salary and compensation levels needed for Executive, Administrative and Professional workers to be exempt.
Of particular significance, the Final Rule:
- Sets the standard salary level at $913 per week – $47,476 annually;
- Sets the total annual compensation requirement for highly compensated employees (HCE) subject to a minimal ...
As we reported on May 13, 2016, there is now a federal statute, called the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) that provides a federal cause of action for trade secret misappropriation. The full DTSA is found here.
One important feature of the DTSA is that it, like most state trade secret statutes, allows employers to recover punitive damages and attorney’s fees for the unauthorized use or disclosure of trade secrets. However, unlike the state statutes, the DTSA conditions the availability of these remedies on compliance with certain notice requirements contained in Section 7 of ...
On May 11, 2016, President Obama signed into law the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA). DTSA provides a new federal cause of action for misappropriation of trade secrets. A “trade secret” is a broad category of intellectual property. Essentially, it includes any business information that is confidential and derives value from not being known to competitors. It can include everything from technology, to business strategies, to proprietary information about customers and prospects. Unlike patents, copyrights or trademarks, there is no registration system for trade secrets ...
A recent federal appellate court decision underscores the importance of strong employment policies to establish the company’s expectations and potentially save the company from protracted and expensive litigation.
In Tsegay v. Amalgamated Transit Union, 1235, the court found that a union refusing to arbitrate a grievance did not breach its duty of fair representation to a union member terminated for using a mobile device while operating a passenger vehicle. No. 15-6102 (6th Cir. Apr. 27, 2016).
After passenger complaints of texting-while-driving, employer Metropolitan ...
Welcome to the Labor and Employment Law Update where attorneys from Amundsen Davis blog about management side labor and employment issues.
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