Employee Relations
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 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 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…
Read MoreEEOC Issues New Guidance on Religious Discrimination and Accommodation of Religious Beliefs
Whenever there is a change in federal administrations, employers must be aware of how various employment laws, rules and regulations will change. One hot topic in employment law, which has seen significant change in recent years, is religious discrimination and accommodation of religious beliefs in the workplace. This issue is pertinent, not only because of…
Read MoreFederal District Court Found That Employer Did Not Violate Title VII in Prohibiting Black Lives Matter Attire
Over the past couple of months, we have been asked by our clients if there been any court rulings on whether companies can limit employees from wearing Black Lives Matter and other social justice attire to work. The answer is Yes. During this pandemic and the political and social unrest underlying the Black Lives Matter…
Read MoreIt’s Time Again for Employers to Ensure Handbook Compliance
It is early in 2021 and already the NLRB has before it ALJ determinations that employee handbook policies conflict with the NLRA. When analyzing employee handbook policies, the Board generally applies the Boeing test, whereby a handbook policy’s potential interference with employee rights under the NLRA is balanced against an employer’s legitimate justifications for the policy, when…
Read MoreEEOC: IHOP Manager Conditioned Leave, Scheduling on Accepting Sexual Advances
A manager at a Frederick, Maryland, IHOP restaurant subjected women, including teen workers, to sexual harassment in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission charged in a lawsuit. EEOC said the manager subjected female employees to unwanted advances and touching, sexual comments and intrusive questions about their…
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