NLRB
Employees Are Responsible for Logging Remote Work Hours
Employers have struggled with identifying remote working hours for non-exempt employees juggling telework, child care and/or virtual learning during the pandemic. Employees will now bear the burden of properly recording those hours, under new enforcement guidance issued by the Department of Labor (DOL) in late August. Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), an employer…
Read MoreAcademic Studies Diverge on Salary History Bans’ Effects on Worker Pay
States and cities are increasingly barring employers from asking about job applicants’ salary histories with the aim of closing pay gaps, but it remains to be seen whether those laws are having the intended effect, according to recent research. An analysis of salary history bans published earlier this month by researchers at the Boston University…
Read MoreAuto-Deducted Meal Breaks — Can They Be Done?
The practice has landed many in a costly trap. Companies with practices conducive to auto-deductions, however, may be able to use them without fear. At first glance, auto-deducting employees’ unpaid meal breaks from their pay may appear to be a good idea. Administratively, it’s simpler than requiring employees to clock out and clock back in, and…
Read MoreAnswers to Wage and Hour Questions You’re Afraid to Ask as Workers Return
As states lift stay-at-home orders and businesses prepare to reopen their doors to employees, employers face a minefield of issues on the employment law front. One major area is wage and hour law, as many employers had to quickly implement layoffs, furloughs and wage cuts in the wake of the pandemic. As employers bring back…
Read MoreMore Handbook Guidance: NLRB Shows When It Will Uphold Policies Regarding Confidentiality, Cell Phones, and Email Usage
Since the National Labor Relations Board issued the precedent-changing Boeing Company decision in late 2017, the Board has continuously illustrated when employment policies will survive scrutiny under the National Labor Relations Act. Recently, in Argos USA LLC, the Board clarified its position about three common types of employment agreements or policies, i.e., those concerning confidentiality,…
Read MoreCompetition in U.S. Labor Markets: Non-Compete Clauses Increasingly Under Fire
I. Introduction Until fairly recently, non-compete clauses and other employer practices affecting employee mobility and wages were a relatively minor focus of U.S. antitrust enforcement authorities. No more. Over the past few years, the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division (“DOJ”), the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), and various state attorneys general have focused significant attention…
Read MoreOne Promotion Too Far
As human resources consultants, we see all sorts of reasons for businesses deciding to terminate employees, ranging from gross misconduct to plant closures. But there is one scenario that comes up from time to time that always strikes me as a particularly unfortunate loss of talent – when a good employee gets promoted into a…
Read MoreIt’s Time to Review Your Employee Handbook
NLRB rulings and new anti-harassment, marijuana and leave laws may prompt changes. A new year inevitably brings new workplace laws, whether at the federal, state or local level. So January is usually a good time for HR professionals to review their employee handbook and make changes. Staying abreast of the evolving regulatory environment remains one…
Read MoreCaught Between a Rock (Labor Law) and a Hard Place (Employment Law)
What would you do if one morning you saw on the overtime volunteer list on your company bulletin board that an employee had handwritten across the top of the list the words “Whore Board?” I think I know: You would fire that employee, assuming you could identify who it was. However, what if this all…
Read MoreNLRB Gives Employers Back the Right to Restrict Employee Use of Work Email
On Tuesday, December 17, 2019, in Caesars Entertainment d/b/a Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, 368 NLRB No. 143, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board or NLRB) held that an employer may restrict the use of its email system if it does so on a non-discriminatory basis, effectively reinstating the holding of Register Guard, 351…
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