News Briefs

OSHA Proposes New Standard for Heat Injury and Illness Prevention

By Jennifer Vold posted 12 hours ago
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The summer heat may have you dreaming about crisp fall days, but the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is heating up its heat injury and illness prevention initiatives. OSHA has recently focused on its National Emphasis Program (still in effect) and has now proposed a new permanent standard for all ...

A Roundup of Recent U.S. Supreme Court Decisions Impacting Employers

By Mary Miller posted 12 hours ago
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The U.S. Supreme Court had a busy 2023-24 term, with decisions that covered issues including official bribes, immigration, Second Amendment rights, and presidential immunity. While they may not have garnered as much attention in the media, there were also a few important decisions with long-term implications for employers. ...

Reminder: Employers Obligated to Inform Colorado Employees of FAMLI Program When Need Arises

By Maggie Roddy posted yesterday
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Employers participating in the state-run Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program (FAMLI) have a variety of obligations pursuant to Colorado’s paid leave statute. For example, employers are required to withhold or pay themselves the employee portion of the premium and to maintain the employee’s health insurance while ...

NLRB Retroactively Restricts Existing Severance Agreement

By Ivy Voss posted 7 days ago
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The National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB’s) much-discussed opinion in the McLaren Macomb case in 2023 restricted the use of non-disparagement, confidentiality, and non-competition clauses in employment agreements. This legal doctrine has now been applied to pre-existing contracts in a case involving a 2019 severance ...

Colorado Secure Savings Program: Have You Registered?

By Laurie Enke posted 7 days ago
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It has been over a year since the first set of registration deadlines for the Colorado Secure Savings Program (CSSP). As of June 30, 2024, more than 15,300 employers had registered for the retirement savings program, and more than 31,500 employers had registered their exemption from the program, certifying that they offer ...

EEOC Releases Guidance for Preventing Harassment in Construction Industry

By Brandon Garrett posted 7 days ago
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The construction industry is experiencing growth. However, equal employment opportunities within the field are still being obstructed. Recently, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released a document titled Promising Practices for Preventing Harassment in the Construction Industry . It provides guidelines ...

California Governor Signs Two Bills Updating Employers’ Notice Requirements to Employees

By Jaimie Graczyk posted 8 days ago
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On July 15, 2024, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 2299 and Assembly Bill 1870 . The laws will require employers to update written notices to California employees. Assembly Bill 2299 AB 2299 requires the Labor Commissioner to develop a model list of employees’ rights and responsibilities ...

Appellate Court Sternly Rejects NLRB’s Findings in Employer Surveillance Case

By Drew Hintze posted 14 days ago
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An appellate court’s decision this past spring is worth taking note of for employers. The United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit reversed a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) decision in Stern Produce Co., Inc. v. NLRB , 97 F.4th 1 (D.C. Cir. 2024) as “nonsense” and determined that a produce ...

When Does an Emergency Declaration in Colorado Trigger Additional Paid Leave Requirements?

By Hannah Rich posted 14 days ago
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A recent disaster emergency declaration by Colorado Governor Jared Polis in response to an avian flu outbreak has raised questions about the implications for paid sick leave under the Healthy Families and Workplaces Act (HFWA) . This article seeks to clarify the purpose of both public health emergencies (PHEs) and ...

After Decades in the Making, California PAGA Reform Is Finally Here

By Mary Miller posted 14 days ago
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On June 27, 2024, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2288 , which amends Labor Code Section 2699 and provides some relief to businesses under the threat of a PAGA claim in class action lawsuits for labor code violations. In 2004, the California Legislature, in an attempt to enforce employer compliance ...

OSHA’s New Hazard Communication Standard Takes Effect July 19, 2024

By Jennifer Vold posted 15 days ago
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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has updated its Hazard Communication Standard to more closely align with the revised Globally Harmonized System (GHS). The updated standard breaks hazards into solids, liquids, gases, and combustible dusts and accounts for changes in a chemical’s physical form. ...

Supreme Court Overrules Long-Standing Chevron Regulatory Precedent

By Drew Hintze posted 23 days ago
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The United States Supreme Court’s recent decision to overturn 40-year-old legal precedent will have a profound impact on how federal agencies — including those regulating workplace health and safety matters — are able to function. In a landmark 6-3 opinion in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo , the Court fundamentally ...

Colorado Legislature Amends PROPWA to Clarify Definitions

By Drew Hintze posted 23 days ago
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In 2023, the Colorado Legislature passed the Protections for Public Workers Act (PROPWA), which grants rights to expressive and concerted activity similar to Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) to certain state and local public employees. However, PROPWA stops short of requiring collective bargaining ...

New DOL Salary Level Rule for Overtime Exemption Takes Effect

By Barbara Bagdon posted 25 days ago
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The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) final rule increasing the salary level threshold for employees to be classified as exempt took effect for the vast majority of the nation on Monday, July 1, 2024. However, on June 28, in State of Texas v. Dept. of Labor (E.D. Texas), a federal judge issued an injunction blocking ...

FAMLI Alert for Employers that Top Off Colorado Employees’ Benefits

By Heather Hancz posted 28 days ago
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As of July 1, 2024, Colorado’s average weekly wage increases to $1,471.34, up about 3.5% from $1,421.10. This means that some Colorado workers taking Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program (FAMLI) leave may receive a bump in benefits paid from the FAMLI Division. Workers who already receive the maximum benefit of ...

California Labor Commissioner Cites Large Retailer Nearly $6 Million for Violating Warehouse Quotas Law

By Jaimie Graczyk posted 29 days ago
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On June 18, 2024, the California Labor Commissioner announced a nearly $6 million citation to a giant warehouse retailer for violating California’s Warehouse Quotas law. On January 1, 2022, Assembly Bill 701, also known as California’s warehouse quotas law, went into effect. The law requires ...

Economic Perspective July 2024

By Cory Martin posted 29 days ago
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Employers Council has prepared this Economic Perspective summary to assist the decision-makers of member organizations. The economic data in these charts summarize the most commonly watched economic and compensation indicators. The data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics can be used in conjunction with Employers ...

Supreme Court Curbs NLRB’s Authority when Seeking Emergency Relief from Courts

By Drew Hintze posted 06-21-2024
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On June 13, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in Starbucks Corp. v. McKinney making it more difficult for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) to obtain temporary reinstatement of workers fired during labor disputes. Section 10(j) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) gives the Board ...

Groff v. DeJoy: The Supreme Court Decision’s Impact One Year Later

By George Russo posted 06-21-2024
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Groff v. DeJoy was the U.S. Supreme Court case decided on June 29, 2023, that redefined the religious accommodation standard. Significantly, it removed the “de minimis,” or very minor, hardship rule when discussing religious accommodations and replaced it with a higher “substantial in the overall context of the business” ...

California Labor Commissioner Settles with Residential Care Facility for Nearly $660,000 for Wage Violations

By Mary Miller posted 06-21-2024
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On June 12, 2024, the California Labor Commissioner’s Office announced that it reached a $658,948 settlement with a Los Angeles residential care facility for failure to pay employees for all hours worked. The settlement will provide owed wages and damages to the 34 employees who were forced to work through required meal ...