SimplyHR | Employment & Labor Blog 

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued a decision on February 21, 2023, that restored pre-Trump era precedent and prohibits employers from offering employees severance agreements that contain broad confidentiality and non-disparagement provisions.

In the case at issue, McLaren Macomb and Local 40, RN Staff Council Office and Professional Employees International Union, AFL-CIO, 372 NLRB No. 58 (2023) (McLaren), the issue was whether Michigan hospital operator McLaren Macomb violated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) when it offered severance agreements with broad confidentiality and non-disparagement requirements to 11 employees furloughed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Missouri

2022 was relatively quiet for Missouri employers, except for the buzz around recreational marijuana (forgive our pun). As explained in more detail below, the law does not limit Missouri employers from continuing to drug test and discipline employees who violate anti-use policies, with certain modifications for medicinal users. 2023 also brings a Missouri minimum wage rate hike, but we expect employees may still grumble, as this increase does not pace with inflation.

President Biden signed into law the “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021” on March 3. As its name suggests, the law prohibits pre-dispute arbitration agreements that require individuals to arbitrate any claim under federal, tribal or state law relating to a sexual assault or sexual harassment dispute. In other words, employers can no longer compel employees to arbitrate sexual assault or sexual harassment claims. Class action waivers are also prohibited with respect to those claims.

In a year marked by federal responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, federal agencies managed to finalize some non-pandemic legal developments in 2020: the Department of Labor’s (DOL) new overtime rule and joint employer test both went into effect, and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) overturned a handful of Obama-era precedents. With Joe Biden’s election as president in November 2020, the coming four years will likely bring some reversal of the impact of the Trump administration, particularly on the DOL and NLRB. The 2019-2020 Supreme Court term was relatively busy for employment, including a major development for Title VII. Of course, much of the energy and resources of the federal agencies overseeing employment laws were spent on providing guidance to employers related to COVID-19 issues. Below is a summary of major federal employment law headlines from last year and a look at what employers can expect in 2021.

In a year dominated by the pandemic, 2021 updates to Missouri and Illinois law are overshadowed by COVID-19’s impact and related federal employment law developments. Illinois’ treatment of July as the new January adds to the relatively quiet start to 2021 while the state adapts to its new employment laws that went into effect July 1, 2020.

With Election Day fast approaching, Missouri employers should be aware of their obligations to provide eligible employees with time off to vote. We have complied a list of frequently asked questions to help employers ensure they comply with Missouri’s voting leave law on November 3, 2020.

On April 1, 2020, the Department of Labor released a temporary rule issuing regulations under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) effective immediately through December 31, 2020. Employers who have been wrestling with compliance with the FFCRA’s paid leave provisions will recognize much of the material in these regulations from the DOL’s informal guidance or from the CARES Act’s amendments to the FFCRA*. The regulations also include some helpful clarification:

The theme for last year’s federal developments was reversal of Obama-era rules. The Department of Labor and National Labor Relations Board were especially active in this respect.

After a relatively quiet Supreme Court term for employment law in 2018-19, the stage is set for the court to rule in 2020 on highly anticipated topics. Below is a summary of major federal employment law headlines from last year and a look at what employers can expect in 2020.

While Missouri employers saw few legislative updates that will affect the state of employment law in 2020, the Illinois legislature had a busy year. Below is a look at some of the legislative highlights of 2019 and how they might affect your business in 2020.

Can employers violate employees’ rights by creating policies that prohibit certain hairstyles at work? New York City and California think so; and they likely won’t be the last jurisdictions with a say on the matter.

Just this year the New York City Commission on Human Rights issued guidelines saying that while employers can require that employees maintain a work-appropriate appearance, a grooming policy that prohibits locs, cornrows, fades, Afros, and other such hairstyles will be considered racial bias. Specifically, the guidelines state: