Workforce Bulletin

As featured in #WorkforceWednesday:  This week, workplace safety and liability issues are top of mind while employers also look ahead to the tax issues telecommuting will cause this tax season.

Video: YouTube, Vimeo, MP4, Instagram.

The first legal challenge to Executive Order 13950 (the “Order”) has been made. On October 29, 2020, the NAACP, representing the National Urban League, and the National Fair Housing Alliance, filed a civil rights class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (Case No. 1:20-cv-03121), requesting injunctive and declaratory relief against the President of the United States, the U.S. Secretary of Labor and the U.S. Department of Labor. Specifically, the lawsuit seeks for the Court to strike down the Order, declaring it unlawful and invalid ...

As featured in #WorkforceWednesday:  Employers fear that the COVID-19 pandemic could undo recent progress towards workforce equity, with women and caregivers leaving the workforce in droves. Flexible time off, remote work policies, and employee benefits, like on-site child care, are just a few options employers can deploy to retain female talent. Learn more about the legal issues.

Video: YouTube, Vimeo, MP4, Instagram.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect workplaces throughout the world, employers are considering new ways to ensure a safe workplace when employees return to the office. Outside the US, employers must balance their duty of care to protect the health and safety of all their employees with safeguarding employees’ privacy and complying with data protection regulations. Many employers already have analyzed whether they may require or request employees to (i) submit to COVID-19 testing at the workplace, (ii) certify certain health information regarding exposure to ...

As COVID-19 cases once again surge across the country, Washington, D.C. employers must remember to provide both paid and unpaid leave under the new District of Columbia Coronavirus Support Temporary Amendment Act of 2020 (D.C. Law 23-130) (the “Act”).  Although passed in July 2020, the Act formally became effective on October 9, 2020 and will remain in effect through the end of the declared COVID-19 public health emergency—currently December 31, 2021.  The law repeals the emergency laws that we previously blogged about, but carries over the additional obligations to provide ...

As featured in #WorkforceWednesday: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention broadened its definition of “close contact.” Now, spending a total of 15 minutes within six feet of an infected individual over a 24-hour period counts as close contact. Previously, it was an exposure period of 15 consecutive minutes.  Attorney Denise Dadika explains what this change means for employers.

Video: YouTube, Vimeo, MP4, Instagram.

As the pandemic continues into 2021, many employers are contending with their workers’ significantly increased caregiving responsibilities.  Parents – many without viable day care or other childcare options – must try to balance work with the challenges of caring for their children and overseeing their education (and entertainment). Other employees find themselves at the forefront of caregiving for sick family members and for family members at high risk for serious illness, if they become infected by COVID-19.

Recent data has revealed the disproportionate impact that ...

October has brought a weekly flurry of changes to Michigan’s COVID-19 legal landscape. [1] On Thursday October 22, 2020, Governor Whitmer added to this recent activity by signing three bills into law that provide employers with significant liability protection and employees with job protections related to COVID-19.

Employer Protections: Liability Shield

Titled the “COVID-19 Response and Reopening Liability Assurance Act,” HB 6030 provides employers with immunity from liability for a “COVID-19 claim” as long as the employer acted in compliance with all federal ...

Part 9 of a series featuring our video Rules of the Road: Return to Work in the Time of COVID-19.

If the Rules of the Road: Return to Work in the Time of COVID-19 series has given you any takeaways, it should be that it pays to be prepared, to be safe, and to anticipate workplace issues before they arise. This means taking stock of what has happened in the past year and what challenges lie ahead. There is almost nothing the pandemic has not affected in our lives, or in business and the workplace and the challenges have been daunting. Challenges have included, coping with illness, the stressors of ...

As featured in #WorkforceWednesday:  This week, federal contractors receive guidance on diversity training, while many employers are committing to diversity and inclusion anew with updated plans and time off to vote.

Video: YouTube, Vimeo, MP4, Instagram.