Workforce Bulletin

In the wake of the landmark decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, we have been closely monitoring legal developments across the country. In addition to well publicized “trigger laws” that were effectuated as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s order, states have taken up a variety of legislative actions in response to the ruling, which placed authority for the regulation of abortion with the states.

In reversing a Nevada district court’s grant of summary judgment, the Ninth Circuit, in Cadena v. Customer Connexx LLC, recently held that the time call center employees spent booting up their computers is compensable. Because a functioning computer was necessary for the call center employees to do their job, the court unanimously agreed that the time required to turn on their computer and log in was “integral and indispensable to their principal activities” and, therefore, compensable, subject to certain limitations.

On November 6, 2022, clocks will fall back an hour and in Westchester County, New York a new law requiring disclosure of salary ranges in job advertisements will take effect.

As we previously reported, Westchester, located just north of New York City and home to numerous corporate campuses, recently enacted an amendment to its local human rights law to require employers to state a minimum and maximum salary in any “posting” for jobs, promotions, and transfer opportunities. This comes on the heels of a similar law in New York City that took effect on November 1, 2022.

As featured in #WorkforceWednesday:  This week, we weigh in on the upcoming expiration of California’s privacy exemptions and how employers can develop preventative policies and procedures to effectuate employee rights under the state’s laws.

It is time to update your workplace signage. On October 19, 2022, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a new workers’ rights poster, which it quickly revised and re-issued on October 20, 2022. The new “Know Your Rights” poster replaces the EEOC’s “Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law” poster, which had been in place for more than a decade, and it features several substantive changes.

California plaintiffs’ lawyers typically bring every type of wage-hour claim they can.  Increasingly, however, they have focused on one type of claim – wage statement violations.

As we have previously written about, bringing class and representative actions under California’s Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) alleging that employers did not fully comply with California’s onerous wage statement laws has become a lucrative practice for the plaintiffs’ bar.  Given the flurry of litigation, it is beneficial for employers that do business in California to review their wage statements to best ensure compliance.

Employers with employees in the District of Columbia have until Monday, October 31, 2022, to comply with a specific notice provision contained in the D.C. Non-Compete Clarification Amendment Act of 2022 (B24-0256) (the “Amendment”).

As featured in #WorkforceWednesday:  This week, we’re breaking down new pay range disclosure laws emerging across the country and discussing how employers can comply with the requirements.

On October 25, 2022, the Department of Labor extended the comment period for its new proposed rule regarding independent contractor status under the Fair Labor Standards Act. While the comment period was originally set to expire on November 28, 2022, interested parties will now have until December 13, 2022 to submit comments.

For more than two and a half years, employers across the country have navigated a nuanced web of legal requirements and guidance to safely operate during the global COVID-19 pandemic.  Recent updates to the legal landscape at the federal, state, and local level, however, have left many employers asking: is the COVID-19 pandemic finally over? For now, the answer remains “no.” This post discusses three key reasons why employers should continue to operate with the pandemic in mind.