Workforce Bulletin

By Eric J. Conn and Casey M. Cosentino

For years, OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard (“HazCom”) has been the standard most frequently cited against hotel and other hospitality employers.

In FY 2011 37 hotel companies were cited for violations of the HazCom Standard, including, primarily, alleged failures to:

(1) maintain a written Hazard Communication Program;

(2) ensure each container of hazardous chemicals (such as cleaning agents) is labeled, tagged, or marked;

(3) maintain a complete set of Material Safety Data Sheets (“MSDS’s”) for each hazardous ...

Michelle Capezza, our colleague at Epstein Becker Green, recently posted a useful summary of the JOBS Act, and we recommend it to our readers in the financial services industry.  See below for an excerpt and link.

On April 5, 2012, President Obama signed into law the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, or JOBS Act.  In light of the sharp decline in the number of companies entering the U.S. capital markets through IPOs over the last ten years, Congress recognized a need for this legislation since small companies are critical to economic growth and job creation.  To promote growth and ...

On April 5, 2012, President Obama signed into law the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act or JOBS Act.  In light of the sharp decline in the number of companies entering the U.S. capital markets through IPOs over the last ten years, Congress recognized a need for this legislation since small companies are critical to economic growth and job creation.  To promote growth and assist small companies in gaining access to capital, the JOBS Act amends the securities laws in several ways, which include the following:

(i)                  Establishes a new category of issuers known as “Emerging Growth ...

by Ian Gabriel Nanos

Like it or not, we live in a digital-age, and how people choose to define themselves is often readily showcased on social networking sites such as Facebook.  Given the candid manner many individuals express themselves on their social networking profiles, it's only natural that employers have started to pay attention.  Why wouldn't they? Employers want to pick the right person for the job and that their employees do not disparage the company or act in a manner that threatens workplace security.  But when news spread that a few employers were demanding access to ...

By: Kara M. Maciel and Matthew Sorensen

Social media has become an increasingly important tool for businesses to market their products and services. As the use of social media in business continues to grow, companies will face new challenges with respect to the protection of their confidential information and business goodwill, as several recent federal district court decisions demonstrate.  

Christou v. Beatport, LLC (D. Colo. 2012), Ardis Health, LLC v. Nankivell (S.D. N.Y. 2011), and PhoneDog v. Kravitz (N.D. Cal. 2011) each involved former employees who took the login ...

By Julia E. Loyd and Eric J. Conn

Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) launched a new National Emphasis Program targeting Nursing Homes and Residential Care facilities (“Nursing Home NEP”).  In an accompanying Press Release, OSHA announced that the Nursing Home NEP aims to protect workers from safety and health hazards “common in medical industries.”  Effective upon its announcement and for a three-year period thereafter, the NEP focuses on ergonomic hazards (e.g., strains and sprains from patient  ...

Written By:  Eric J. Conn

OSHA is signaling a major departure from its position on acceptable exceptions to the Lockout/Tagout requirements in the agency’s electrical safety standards. Historically, employers have been permitted to conduct electrical maintenance near energized parts in data centers that host critical business operations (i.e., operations which must stay live 24/7), under an “infeasibility” exception to the general rule that electrical equipment must be deenergized and locked out before maintenance is permitted. A series of recent enforcement ...

By Michael Kun

This morning, the California Supreme Court has just issued its long-awaited decision in the Brinker case regarding meal and rest period requirements.   It is largely, but not entirely, a victory for employers.  A copy of the decision is here.

A few highlights of the decision:

On rest periods, the Court confirmed the certification of a rest period class because Brinker’s written policy arguably did not comply with the law as to the second rest period in a day.  In so doing, it clarified when employees are entitled to rest periods:

• Employees are entitled to 10 minutes’ rest ...

Epstein Becker & Green’s Chief Information Officer, Frank Spadafino, was interviewed by The American Lawyer magazine on March 22, 2012, regarding the firm’s adoption of iOS or iPhone mobile devices.  Spadafino reported that more than half of the law firm’s lawyers are now using iPhones. Lawyers, not unlike the general market, want the increased functionality provided by iOS devices. "The smartphone is not just about e-mail, calendars, and contacts anymore," Spadafino stated, “We want to add functionality to attorneys' devices, like greater accessibility to our ...

By: Jay P. Krupin and Dana Livne

Historically, the United States has continuously attracted international commerce and investment. In recent years, in spite of a challenging economic situation, international hospitality groups continue to seek opportunities in the US for financial growth, promotion, and strategic reasons. When they do so, they must comply with unfamiliar and complex labor and employment laws which are constantly changing. In the US especially, the increasingly litigious environment can affect every step of the enterprise – right from the start ...