Throughout US President Joe Biden’s first year in office, the Biden administration reversed numerous Trump-era policies, including those concerning the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, federal contractors, wage data and LGBTQ bias. In this Law360 article, McDermott Partner Rachel Cowen offers insight into how the friction between religious and LGBTQ rights will continue to play out throughout employment law.
As US Congressional Democrats continue their advocacy for a pro-worker agenda, multiple bills and rules could bring about sweeping changes to the civil rights and labor protections for millions of workers. These include:
According to McDermott partner Ellen Bronchetti, the PRO Act, for example, would enshrine a strict ABC test into federal law that would analyze whether workers qualify as independent contractors.
“I think that because Biden has promised to strengthen worker protections and strengthen workers’ right to organize, I think employers need to keep a real close eye on this legislation or versions of the legislation or pieces that might get pulled out and put elsewhere,” Bronchetti said in an article published in Law360.
Environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) efforts can create hazards for multinationals with US operations due to the risk of reverse discrimination litigation under US law. According to McDermott’s Ludia Kwon, a recently filed lawsuit (Kafiti v. AB Electrolux, Case No. 3:21-CV-00029 (W.D. NC. 2021)) highlights the risk in implementing ESG efforts in the United States. US employment discrimination laws swing both ways, as the prohibition against sex discrimination protects men as well as women.
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