As featured in #WorkforceWednesday: This week, we’re highlighting recent updates across the state and federal employment landscapes, including the New Jersey Supreme Court’s non-disparagement ruling, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) new artificial intelligence (AI) guidelines, and the DOL’s restructuring of Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA’s) regional operations.
On May 14, 2024, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights (“DCR”) released Guidance on Discrimination and Out-of-State Remote Workers (“the Guidance”), explaining the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination’s (NJLAD) application to remote employees. Noting the rise of telework following the COVID-19 pandemic, the Guidance states that the NJLAD is not limited to protecting only New Jersey-based employees but takes the position that it protects aggrieved employees of New Jersey employers “regardless of their ...
On May 17, 2024, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed into law SB 24-205—concerning consumer protections in interactions with artificial intelligence systems—after the Senate passed the bill on May 3, and the House of Representatives passed the bill on May 8. In a letter to the Colorado General Assembly, Governor Polis noted that he signed the bill into law with reservations, hoping to further the conversation on artificial intelligence (AI) and urging lawmakers to “significantly improve” on the law before it takes effect.
SB 24-205 will become effective on February 1 ...
Less than one week after the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC” or the “Commission”) published its final rule (“Final Rule”) and interpretive guidance to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), seventeen states jointly filed a complaint seeking to enjoin and set aside the portions of the Final Rule providing for abortion-related accommodations. And just a few weeks later, two more states filed suit on the same grounds.
As discussed in more depth here, the PWFA requires covered entities to reasonably accommodate qualified employees ...
In 2019, in response to the “#MeToo” movement, the New Jersey Legislature enacted a law that made any “non-disclosure provision” in an employment contract or settlement agreement unenforceable against the employee, if the provision had “the purpose or effect of concealing the details relating to a claim of discrimination, retaliation, or harassment.” N.J.S.A. § 10:5-12.8(a) (the “Law”). The Law left unanswered whether it applied to “non-disparagement” provisions that are common in agreements settling employment disputes.
On May 7, 2024, the New Jersey ...
As featured in #WorkforceWednesday: This week, we’re detailing for employers the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) expansion of overtime salary limits, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC’s) recently released sexual harassment guidance, and New York State’s unprecedented mandatory paid prenatal leave.
As featured in #WorkforceWednesday: On April 23, 2024, the FTC announced its final rule banning virtually all non-compete agreements nationwide. Employers across the nation are looking for answers.
In this episode of Spilling Secrets, Epstein Becker Green attorneys Peter A. Steinmeyer and Erik W. Weibust lay out the details of the ban, the legal challenges already underway,* and the actions employers should be taking.
*EBG is representing amici in one legal challenge: the U.S. Chamber of Commerce litigation.
As featured in #WorkforceWednesday: This week, we’re diving into arbitration agreements and learning some best practices for employers when crafting these agreements:
Employers often include arbitration agreements in their onboarding and other employee materials. Arbitration agreements are an important tool for employers due to the relative speed and lower costs associated with arbitration compared to litigation. However, these agreements are subject to increasing scrutiny and require careful consideration from employers.
Epstein Becker Green attorneys Victoria Sloan Lin and Andrew Lichtenstein highlight some hidden elements that can impact the effectiveness of arbitration agreements.
Is the developer of an AI resume-screening tool an “employment agency” or “agent” subject to liability under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act for its customers’ allegedly discriminatory employment decisions? According to the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”), the answer is yes. On April 9, 2024, the EEOC filed a motion for leave to file a brief as amicus curiae, together with a brief, in Mobley v. Workday, Inc., Case No. 3:23-cv-00770-RFL, to support plaintiff Derek Mobley’s (“Mobley”) motion to dismiss.
The EEOC’s action is ...
As featured in #WorkforceWednesday: This week, we’re breaking down the U.S. Supreme Court’s (SCOTUS’s) new workplace discrimination decision, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC’s) final rule on the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), and how recent artificial intelligence (AI) hiring tools have violated federal anti-bias laws.
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Recent Updates
- Video: Non-Disparagement Settlements in New Jersey, DOL's AI Guidelines, OSHA Regions Shift - Employment Law This Week
- New Jersey Attorney General and Division on Civil Rights Issue Guidance Regarding the NJLAD’s Applicability to Remote Workers
- Colorado’s Historic SB 24-205 Concerning Consumer Protections in Interactions with AI Signed Into Law, After Passing State Senate and House
- EEOC Final Rule Implementing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act Ignites Lawsuits from 19 States
- N.J. Supreme Court Bans Broad “Non-Disparagement” Provisions in Agreements Settling Employment Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation Claims