Workforce Bulletin

Retail employers and other businesses that serve the public in New York City should take particular notice of the New York City Commission on Human Rights’ detailed written guidance issued on December 21, 2015, reinforcing its desire that the protections afforded to transgender individuals by the New York City Human Rights Law (“NYCHRL”) be broadly interpreted to ensure that transgender individuals receive the full protection of the NYCHRL. The guidance includes specific examples of what the Commission believes constitutes unlawful discrimination based on an ...

In a decision that will affect New Jersey employers seeking to arbitrate employees’ claims, the Appellate Division, earlier this month, in Morgan v. Ramours Furniture Company, Inc., held that arbitration clauses contained in employee handbooks are unenforceable where the handbook also includes a disclaimer that it does not create a contract.[1]  Accordingly, New Jersey employers whose handbooks currently include arbitration clauses should consider carefully, replacing them with either arbitration clauses in an employment application, and/or with a stand-alone ...

Employers of all industries should be aware of the following five recent developments under New York State and New York City employment law.

1. Increased Minimum Wage

Effective December 31, 2015, three separate minimum wage increases took effect across New York State: (i) the nonexempt employee minimum wage increased from $8.75 per hour to $9.00 per hour; (ii) the minimum salary for executive and administrative exemptions increased from $656.25 per week to $675.00 per week; and (iii) the minimum pre tip wage for tipped employees in the hospitality industry increased to $7.50 per hour ...

One of the featured stories on Employment Law This Week – Epstein Becker Green’s new video program – is the Eleventh Circuit decision limiting the supervisory misconduct defense against OSHA citations.

At a construction worksite, a supervisor and his subordinate from Quinlan Enterprises were found working on a 15 foot wall without fall protection or a secure ladder. The company was held responsible for the OSHA violation, because, in most cases, a supervisor’s knowledge of a violation is imputed to the employer. Quinlan appealed citing the Eleventh Circuit’s Comtran ...

One of the featured stories on Employment Law This Week – Epstein Becker Green’s new video program – is that in a year when OSHA penalties are already set to increase, a new enforcement initiative is putting pressure on companies to make sure they’re compliant.

The Department of Justice and the Department of Labor have teamed up to encourage federal prosecutors to pursue OSHA and other worker safety violations as environmental crimes. These crimes can be charged as felonies, while OSHA violations are considered misdemeanors. The initiative will facilitate the sharing of ...

Employment Law This Week – Epstein Becker Green’s new video program – has a story about an effort to unite retailers against a restrictive scheduling law in Washington, D.C.

The National Retail Federation issued a letter urging the city council in D.C. to abandon new scheduling legislation for retailers and restaurants. The proposed law would require businesses to post schedules three weeks in advance, with heavy penalties if they make any changes to the posted schedule. The NRF argues that this legislation removes the benefit of flexibility for employees, and that it ...

One of the featured stories on Employment Law This Week – Epstein Becker Green’s new video program – is the SEC reminder that their bounty program applies to external whistleblowers.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has awarded $700,000 to a whistleblower who was not employed by the company he exposed. The external whistleblower discovered the issue when he ran a detailed analysis on the company. The agency explained that analysis from “industry experts” is as valuable as insider information. The whistleblower program began after the Dodd-Frank Act was ...

To establish that an OSHA regulation has been violated, the Secretary must prove that: (1) the regulation applied; (2) it was violated; (3) an employee was exposed to the hazard that was created; and (4) the employer knowingly disregarded the OSH Act’s requirements.  The general rule has been that the knowledge of a supervisor is imputed to the employer – so if the supervisor knew or should have known of the violation, his knowledge is imputed to the employer and the Secretary can use this fact to show that the employer had knowledge of the violation.

The Court of Appeals for the Eleventh ...

Our colleagues in Epstein Becker Green’s Immigration Law Group recently published a special client alert regarding a final rule issued by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) concerning highly skilled workers.

On January 15, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) issued its long-awaited final rule regarding highly skilled workers from Australia, Chile, Singapore, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (“CNMI”), along with amendments favoring employment-based immigration. In summary, this rule:

After a year of OSHA’s promises that an online form for reporting work-related fatalities and severe workplace injuries was “coming soon,” the agency finally unveiled the form on its website on December 24, 2015.  The online form is one of three options that employers can use to fulfill updated fatality and severe injury reporting requirements, which went into effect on January 1, 2015 (see related story).  Employers also have the options of calling the OSHA office nearest to their worksite or calling the OSHA 24-hour hotline at 1-800-321-6742 (OSHA) to make a report.

The updated ...