Workforce Bulletin

On May 19, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a new Civil Rights Fraud Initiative that will leverage the federal False Claims Act (FCA) to investigate and litigate against universities, contractors, health care providers, and other entities that accept federal funds but allegedly violate federal civil rights laws.

The initiative will be led jointly by the DOJ Civil Division’s Fraud Section and the Civil Rights Division—with support from the Criminal Division, federal civil rights agencies, and state partners. 

The initiative implements President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14173, “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity” (January 21, 2025), directing agencies to combat unlawful discrimination through the FCA, and complements Attorney General (AG) Bondi’s February 5 memorandum, “Ending Illegal DEI and DEIA Discrimination and Preferences.”

As featured in #WorkforceWednesday®: This week, we explore how key changes introduced by President Trump’s Executive Order 14281, “Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy” (“EO 14281”), raise important questions for employers navigating compliance with varying federal, state, and local laws.

EO 14281 poses significant challenges for employers because it seeks to limit disparate impact liability but clashes with established state and local regulations and laws, such as New York City’s law regarding the use of automated employment decision tools. This tension underscores the increasing complexity of managing artificial intelligence (AI)-driven decision-making in the workplace amid shifting legal standards.

On May 20, 2025, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Acting Chair Andrea Lucas announced that the 2024 EEO-1 Component 1 data collection is now open and will close on June 24, 2025. This gives covered employers just five weeks to file.

Overview of EEO-1 Reporting Obligations

The EEO-1 Component 1 Report, also known as the Employer Information Report, is a mandatory annual filing that captures workforce demographic data. Covered private-sector employers with 100 or more employees, and certain federal contractors with 50 or more employees meeting specific criteria, must submit demographic workforce information categorized by job classification, race/ethnicity, and sex. The data is used by the EEOC and, in years past, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) to support enforcement of federal anti-discrimination laws.

Hold your horses—Maryland just added a few more furlongs to its race toward a paid family leave. On May 6, 2025, Governor Wes Moore signed House Bill 102 (“the Amendment”), which again pushes back the start date for Maryland’s Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program (FAMLI). This latest delay came as no surprise, given Maryland Department of Labor’s (MDOL) proposal earlier this year to extend the FAMLI implementation dates, because of the “high degree of instability and uncertainty for Maryland employers and workers” created by recent federal actions.

Dates to Begin Contributions and Use Leave Benefits

As we previously discussed, FAMLI will be funded through contributions from employees and employers with 15 or more employees. Although the Amendment does not alter FAMLI’s funding model, the required payroll deductions, previously scheduled to start on July 1, 2025, will now begin on January 1, 2027. The Maryland Secretary of Labor also now has until March 1, 2026, to set the contribution rates for 2027, and then until November 1st to designate the contribution rate for each subsequent calendar.

Generational shifts in the workplace bring unique challenges and opportunities for employers striving to build productive and engaged teams.

In this one-on-one conversation, Epstein Becker Green attorney Jeff Landes joins George Whipple to explore strategies for managing and motivating the emerging workforce, with a particular focus on “Gen Z” employees. Jeff examines how organizations can adapt to generational expectations, including fostering transparency, providing meaningful feedback, and supporting mental health and wellness initiatives.

The discussion also addresses the evolving dynamics of hybrid and remote work, underscoring the importance of consistent performance management, clear communication, and innovative accommodations. From creating inclusive environments to navigating requests for flexible schedules, Jeff offers practical advice for handling the complexities of a modern workforce while maintaining operational efficiency.

Listen now to gain actionable ideas for workforce development and learn how to create a workplace culture that aligns with both employee needs and business goals.

As we explained in a previous blog post, last fall, Governor Kathy Hochul signed the New York Retail Worker Safety Act (NYRWSA) into law, obligating employers to provide certain safety measures for retail workers by early March of this year.

But just a few months later, a temporary reprieve came, when lawmakers introduced a bill (“S740” or “the Amendments”) to modify specific details of the original NYRWSA. Just weeks before the original version was to take effect, Governor Hochul signed off on the Amendments, which not only changed some of the law’s original requirements, but also delayed mandatory policy, training, and notice requirements until June 2, 2025.

While portions of our blog post from October 2024 remain accurate, some details have changed. New York retail employers should read on to learn what NYRWSA requires of them, and by when.

As featured in #WorkforceWednesday®: This week, we're covering the U.S. Department of Labor's (DOL’s) decision to halt enforcement of the Biden-era independent contractor rule, the upcoming EEO-1 reporting season (starting on May 20), and New York State’s new labor law amendment, reducing damages for first-time frequency-of-pay violations.­

On May 17, 2024, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed Colorado’s historic artificial intelligence (AI) consumer protection bill, SB 24-205, colloquially known as “Colorado’s AI Act” (“CAIA”), into law. As we noted at the time, CAIA aims to prevent algorithmic discrimination in AI decision-making that affects “consequential decisions”—including those with a material, legal, or similarly significant effect with respect to health care services and employment decision-making. The bill is scheduled to take effect February 1, 2026.

The same day he signed CAIA, however, Governor Polis addressed a “signing statement” letter to Colorado’s General Assembly articulating his reservations. He urged sponsors, stakeholders, industry leaders, and more to “fine tune” the measure over the next two years to sufficiently protect technology, competition, and innovation in the state.

As the local and national political climate steers toward a less restrictive AI policy, Governor Polis drafted another letter to the Colorado legislature. On May 5, 2025, Polis—along with Attorney General Phil Weiser, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, and others—requested that CAIA’s effective date be delayed until January 2027.

On Wednesday, April 23, 2025, President Trump signed EO 14281, titled Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy (EO), stating a new Trump Administration policy “to eliminate the use of disparate-impact liability in all contexts to the maximum degree possible . . . .”

We, along with several of our colleagues, already explained this EO, but this shift in federal policy—barely noticed by most people amidst myriad controversies, memes, and crypto schemes, as well as a number of other executive orders—is important enough to warrant further consideration by anyone who manages workplaces and those of us who advise employers about civil rights laws. As a cover story in the Sunday, May 11, 2025 issue of the New York Times observed, the EO’s directive to curtail the use of disparate impact liability is part of a larger effort to “purge the consideration of diversity, equity and inclusion, or D.E.I., from the federal government and every facet of American life. . . .” and focuses on “the nation’s bedrock civil rights law.”

On May 9, 2025, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury (collectively, “the Departments”) asked the D.C. federal court to suspend a lawsuit to challenge the legality of the 2024 Rule on the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) while the Departments consider whether to rescind or modify the 2024 Rule.^[1] On May 15, 2025, the Departments released a public statement that they will not enforce the 2024 Final Rule prior to a final decision in the litigation, plus an additional 18 months after the decision.

The public statement on May 15 provides further details regarding the scope of the non-enforcement policy, including clarification that the 2013 MHPAEA rules remain in effect, as does plans’ obligation to develop comparative analyses of non-quantitative treatment limits (“NQTLs”). However, the Departments have not yet provided any indication of the timeline for publishing a notice of proposed rulemaking to rescind or modify the 2024 Rule, and most likely it will take some time for the Departments to determine how exactly the new rule should be designed to better implement the statutory requirements.