Posts by Joe Boone
EEOC’s Updated Guidance on COVID-19 Vaccines in the Workplace Impacts Employer Approaches for Compliance with CDC Guidance and State and Local Require
Employers―and particularly those operating in multiple states―should be mindful of how the updated guidance impacts their efforts to comply with state requirements. On May 28, 2021, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated its guidance on workplace COVID-19 vaccination issues under the federal EEO laws. The updated guidance is important for employers to consider in…
Read MoreEmployees Working from Home – How Should Company’s React?
With the country reopening due to the lessening of COVID-related restrictions, companies and employees are returning to a new “normal.” Remote working has become a recruiting tool for some companies. For other companies which have required employees to return to the office, the failure to continue to allow some form of remote working (“hybrid model”)…
Read MoreCourt Revives Title VII and FMLA Claims
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals revived race discrimination and retaliation claims of a Black sheriff’s office employee fired for sleeping on the job based on evidence that the office only counseled a white employee for the same behavior. The plaintiff was a shift supervisor in the dispatch department of the St. John the…
Read MoreInterview Icebreakers Can Land You in Hot Water
Breaking the ice during job interviews without breaking the law is tougher than it sounds. Personal questions at job interviews are risky, legal experts say; they recommend interviewers stick to job-related inquiries, which are a safer way to build rapport. However well-intentioned, questions about children and where a job applicant is from, among other questions,…
Read MoreEEOC Greenlights Coronavirus Vaccine Requirements, Incentives — With Some Limits
Federal equal employment opportunity laws do not prohibit policies requiring that all employees who physically enter a workplace receive a COVID-19 vaccination, so long as such policies comply with the reasonable accommodation provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act as well as other applicable laws, according to…
Read MoreWhat Employers Need to Know About the New COBRA Subsidies
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 provides 100% premium assistance for eligible individuals under COBRA for a six-month period. Since its passage in 1985, COBRA has allowed qualified individuals who lose their health benefits due to a life event to continue to receive group health benefits for a set period of time. Continued coverage,…
Read MoreEmployers Should Start Preparing Their EEO-1 Reports Now
After a long delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has opened the EEO-1 portal for employers to submit demographic data about their workforces. Businesses with 100 or more employees and some federal contractors with at least 50 employees must submit an annual EEO-1 form, which asks for information from…
Read MoreNLRB Looks to Circumstances to Determine Duration of Confidentiality Requirement in Investigation
In Alcoa Corp., the National Labor Relations Board addressed an important issue to both non-union and unionized employers alike concerning workplace investigations. Most importantly, the Board reaffirmed that an employer does not violate the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) when it instructs employees to keep investigative interviews confidential for the duration of the workplace investigation.…
Read MoreEmployers React to Workers Who Refuse a COVID-19 Vaccination
As COVID-19 vaccines become widely available, many employers are asking if they can require employees to get vaccinated, and what they can do if workers refuse. Some employers are firing workers who won’t take the vaccine. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has weighed in with guidance that answers some workplace vaccination questions. Employers may encourage or…
Read MoreOSHA Advises Employers Not to Record Adverse Reactions From Voluntary COVID-19 Vaccines on the 300 Log
OSHA yesterday issued an additional guidance addressing whether employers need to record adverse vaccine reactions on their 300 Logs. Consistent with the OSHA regulations, OSHA’s guidance explains that an adverse reaction to the COVID-19 vaccine is recordable if the reaction is: (1) work-related, (2) a new case, and (3) meets one or more of the general recording…
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