Employment Archives - Page 10 of 104 - EMPLOYEE BENEFITS BLOG

OSHA Reaffirms Arrival of Permanent Healthcare Industry COVID-19 Standard

by Abigail M. Kagan, Evie Atwater and Lindsay Ditlow | Mar 31, 2022 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans, Labor

On March 22, 2022, the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced a limited reopening of the rulemaking record for the COVID-19 emergency temporary standard for the healthcare industry, originally published on June 21, 2021 (the Healthcare ETS). OSHA will hold an informal public hearing to gather additional information from healthcare industry stakeholders. With the announcement, OSHA reaffirmed its plans to publish a permanent COVID-19 safety standard (i.e., regulation) for the healthcare industry later this year.

Read more here.

Illinois Supreme Court Eliminates Defense to Biometric Privacy Class Actions

by Jean Edmonds, P. Kevin Connelly and Joseph K. Mulherin | Mar 30, 2022 | Employment, Labor, Privacy and Data Security

Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) has spawned a tsunami of class actions against employers who utilize biometric timekeeping or security systems. Now, the Illinois Supreme Court in McDonald v. Symphony Bronzeville Park, LLC has eliminated a defense invoked by employers facing claims under BIPA: the exclusivity of workers’ compensation.

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COVID-19 Vaccine Exemptions as Easy as Copy and Paste

by Michelle S. Strowhiro | Mar 29, 2022 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans

The federal government’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate has spurred an uptick in religious exemption requests. In this Politico article, McDermott Partner Michelle Strowhiro explains how some workers are copying and pasting exemption documents from anti-vaccine websites.

“The religious exemption is not a tough standard for a worker to submit,” Strowhiro said. “There can be a level of people making things up, unfortunately.”

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New York State Ends COVID-19 HERO Act Designation

by Abigail M. Kagan and Lindsay Ditlow | Mar 24, 2022 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans

On March 17, 2022, New York State’s Commissioner of Health ended the designation of COVID-19 as an airborne infectious disease that presents a serious risk of harm to public health under the New York Health and Essential Rights (HERO) Act. As of that date, private sector employers in New York State are no longer required to implement their workforce safety plans.

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Biden Administration EO Requires Project Labor Agreements with Unions on Certain Federal Construction Projects

by Stephania Sanon and Daniel Graham | Mar 22, 2022 | Employment, Labor

A project labor agreement (PLA) is a collective bargaining agreement between a contractor and the building trade union on a specific construction project. PLAs are negotiated before any workers are hired, and they establish the terms of employment on a project. Executive Order (EO) 14063, issued by the Biden administration on February 2, 2022, requires PLAs on “large-scale construction projects,” defined as Federal construction projects within the United States for which the total estimated cost of the construction contract to the Federal Government is at least $35 million.

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New Illinois Noncompete and Nonsolicitation Law in Effect

by Brian Mead and Barrick Bollman | Mar 15, 2022 | Employment, Labor

As of January 1, 2022, a new Illinois law governing restrictive covenants (Public Act 102-0358) is in effect. This law outlines the requirements for valid noncompetition and nonsolicitation agreements, and enforcement of those covenants. It applies to all agreements entered into on or after January 1.

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Telework Boom Has Employers Rethinking Hiring, Onboarding

by McDermott Will & Emery | Mar 2, 2022 | Employment, Labor

The process of recruiting and onboarding new employees will require re-examination as remote work becomes a permeant fixture of the American workplace. In this Law360 article, McDermott Partner Ellen Bronchetti offers perspective about how companies will need to modify these policies and procedures.

“My concern when you don’t have the level of engagement that you used to have when you brought an employee in the door, is whether or not a company’s policies and practices are adequate to instruct employees [about] the rules [and] expectations,” Bronchetti said.

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California Supreme Court Decision Places Higher Burden on Employers in Whistleblowing Retaliation Claims

by Pankit Doshi | Mar 1, 2022 | Employment, Labor

On January 27, 2022, the California Supreme Court provided clarification in Lawson v. PPG Architectural Finishes, Inc. to lower California courts reviewing whistleblower retaliation claims. In what it calls an “unsurprising” decision, the California Supreme Court concluded that the framework prescribed by California Labor Code section 1102.6, rather than the McDonnell Douglas test, must be used in whistleblower claim evaluations. The impact of this decision is that employees will have a lower burden to meet to demonstrate that their alleged whistleblower activities resulted in an adverse employment action, while employers will have to meet a higher burden requiring them to demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that they did not retaliate based on the employee’s activities.

Read more here.

Four Discrimination Questions Employers Have About COVID-19

by Lindsay Ditlow | Feb 25, 2022 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans, Labor

As the world enters the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic, employers have gained a greater understanding about the virus’ relationship with US anti-discrimination laws. With the inevitable rise of future variants and long-haul COVID-19 cases, however, businesses are still navigating murky waters. In this Law360 article, McDermott Partner Lindsay Ditlow offers perspective about worker accommodation requests and what they mean for employers.

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Agencies Clarify How Employers Can Charge COVID-19 Vaccine Premium Incentives

by Sarah Raaii and McDermott Will & Emery | Feb 24, 2022 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans, Labor

US employers have grown increasingly interested in identifying incentives that increase COVID-19 vaccination among employees. The US Departments of Labor, Treasury and Human and Human Services recently issued guidance regarding the application of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) wellness rules to vaccine-related premium surcharges and discounts, clarifying that employers may charge vaccine premium incentives if they adhere to the requirements of activity-only health-contingent programs. In this Employee Benefit Plan Review article, McDermott Partner Judith Wethall and McDermott Associate Sarah G. Raaii outline what this HIPPA guidance means for employers.

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