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Category: Legal Insights

Newsroom image for the post Biden Administration Pushes New Federal Equal Pay Requirements

Posted May 24, 2021 with Tags

Biden Administration Pushes New Federal Equal Pay Requirements

During the Trump Administration, equal pay advocates focused their attention on legislative and regulatory changes at the state and local levels. These advocates believed change was impossible at the federal level. Still, they successfully convinced states to revise their equal pay statutes and enhance state-level protections against pay inequities. However, with the changing of the White House, pay equity advocates have refocused their attention back on the federal government.

Newsroom image for the post Pay Equity Advocates Leverage Shareholder Derivative Lawsuits To Drive Pay Equity Efforts

Posted April 5, 2021 with Tags , ,

Pay Equity Advocates Leverage Shareholder Derivative Lawsuits To Drive Pay Equity Efforts

Pay equity advocates have used a variety of mechanisms to pressure employers to prioritize pay equity in the workplace. These efforts include shareholder resolutions regarding pay equity, threats of divestiture, and public campaigns against particular employers. Recently, pay equity advocates have unveiled a new tactic to enhance pressure on public corporations to prioritize pay equity: failure to comply with their own pay equity promises. These lawsuits signal a new front in the activist war against perceived pay inequities.

Posted March 26, 2021 with Tags ,

California’s New Supplemental Paid Sick Leave for COVID-19

California recently passed new legislation that will require employers to provide their California employees with up to 80 hours of supplemental paid sick leave for various COVID-19-related reasons. Sound familiar? There are some similarities between the new law and the 2020 COVID-19 supplemental paid sick law, but the differences are significant for many employers. We’ve put together key takeaways for you to consider before the law becomes effective on Monday, March 29, 2021.

Newsroom image for the post Business Travelers and Nonimmigrant Workers Face New Challenges

Posted March 3, 2021 with Tags ,

Business Travelers and Nonimmigrant Workers Face New Challenges

On March 2, 2021, the U.S. Department of State announced unexpectedly that, effective immediately, it has rescinded a previous policy on categories of business travelers and nonimmigrant workers eligible for National Interest Exceptions (NIEs) to Presidential Proclamation 10143, which restricts travel from the European Schengen Area, the United Kingdom, and Ireland.  The new policy will indeed make it more difficult for business travelers and nonimmigrant workers to obtain permission to travel to the United States.

Newsroom image for the post Resurrecting EEO-1 Component 2: California Mandates Pay Data Reporting by March 31

Posted March 3, 2021 with Tags

Resurrecting EEO-1 Component 2: California Mandates Pay Data Reporting by March 31

As part of its continuing efforts to combat pay discrimination, California enacted a new pay data reporting law at the end of 2020. The law requires certain employers to submit annual reports to the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH), detailing their California employees’ yearly compensation and hours worked based on job category, race, ethnicity, and gender classifications. Pay data reports for the 2020 reporting year are due on March 31, 2021. Employers who will be subject to these reporting requirements should ensure they understand and collect the information needed to complete the report on time.

Newsroom image for the post EEOC and DFEH Using EEO-1 Pay Data to Find Intersectional or Gender-Plus Claims

Posted March 3, 2021 with Tags

EEOC and DFEH Using EEO-1 Pay Data to Find Intersectional or Gender-Plus Claims

Employers that provided EEO-1 Component Two pay data to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), or are currently preparing to provide data to the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) as part of California’s new pay data reporting requirement, are doubtless interested in learning how the agencies will use the data. One likely answer is that the EEOC and DFEH will use employer’s data to identify instances of “intersectional” pay discrimination. That is, claims of pay discrimination that involve the combination of two or more protected classes (such as race and gender), which are also commonly referred to as “gender-plus” claims (e.g., gender-plus-race).

Newsroom image for the post FAQs for Employers: Minneapolis’ Right to Recall Ordinance

Posted February 26, 2021 with Tags ,

FAQs for Employers: Minneapolis’ Right to Recall Ordinance

Minneapolis employers in the hospitality industry will likely soon have to contend with a new set of worker protection laws. The Minneapolis City Council is currently considering a citywide Hospitality Worker Right to Recall Ordinance, which would require employers to rehire workers previously terminated due to the Coronavirus pandemic. If adopted, the Ordinance will go into effect on May 1, 2021. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Legislature is considering a similar right to recall law, which would apply statewide to a larger group of employers.

Newsroom image for the post Not Biden His Time: Biden Administration Announces Intentions to Make Immigration Reform a Top Administrative Priority

Posted January 26, 2021 with Tags , ,

Not Biden His Time: Biden Administration Announces Intentions to Make Immigration Reform a Top Administrative Priority

Immediately after President Joe Biden took office, his administration unveiled a series of Executive Actions and legislative proposals designed to signal its top priorities. The actions taken within his first week include reversing Executive Orders issued by the Trump Administration, withdrawing certain pending regulations, delaying the implementation of regulations made by the Trump Administration post-election, and pushing forward a legislative overhaul of the current immigration system. These actions and proposals signal that modernizing the current immigration system will be one of the top priorities of the new administration.

Newsroom image for the post Employer Incentivization of COVID-19 Vaccination

Posted January 19, 2021 with Tags ,

Employer Incentivization of COVID-19 Vaccination

Many employers are seeking ways to encourage their employees to get vaccinated for COVID-19. For those wishing to stop short of making it mandatory, incentivizing voluntary vaccination is an option, but one that comes with its own set of potential legal pitfalls employers should be aware of.

Newsroom image for the post Backlog to the Future: Lingering Questions about the Employment-Based Immigrant Visa Wait Times Under H.R. 1044/S. 386

Posted December 16, 2020 with Tags ,

Backlog to the Future: Lingering Questions about the Employment-Based Immigrant Visa Wait Times Under H.R. 1044/S. 386

As currently drafted, the bills would eliminate the 7% per-country ceiling for all employment-based visa categories by October 1, 2022. However, the bill would not eliminate the numerical cap for immigrant visas that could be issued per year. Instead, it would distribute the backlog across all countries by changing the visa allocation process to be a first-come, first-served process.

Newsroom image for the post DHS Extends Temporary Protected Status Benefits for El Salvador, Nicaragua, Sudan, Honduras, and Nepal Nationals

Posted December 10, 2020 with Tags ,

DHS Extends Temporary Protected Status Benefits for El Salvador, Nicaragua, Sudan, Honduras, and Nepal Nationals

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on December 9, 2020, an extension of the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation for El Salvador, Nicaragua, Sudan, Honduras, and Nepal through October 4, 2021. TPS is a temporary status that allows nationals of designated countries to remain and, in some cases, work in the United States until it is considered safe to return to their home country.

Newsroom image for the post Before In-Person Trials Halted, Three NJL Women Led (and Earned) Successful Defense Verdicts

Posted December 7, 2020

Before In-Person Trials Halted, Three NJL Women Led (and Earned) Successful Defense Verdicts

During the small window when trials briefly went live this fall, three Nilan Johnson Lewis women not only led the few pieces of pandemic litigation, but all three garnered full defense verdicts within three days of each other. This is significant when you consider nearly 97 percent of civil cases are resolved before going to trial in a typical year without a pandemic.

Newsroom image for the post Federal Judge Strikes Down Two Rules that Impose Restrictions on U.S. Employers who Sponsor Foreign Workers

Posted December 1, 2020 with Tags , ,

Federal Judge Strikes Down Two Rules that Impose Restrictions on U.S. Employers who Sponsor Foreign Workers

At issue was whether or not the Administration was justified in its determination that the COVID-19 pandemic provided a good cause exception to Section 553(b) of the Administrative Procedure Act, which requires a proper public notice and comment period before a rule can be implemented. The court decided that it was not.

Newsroom image for the post Anti-Kickback Statute and Stark Law Regulations: Final Rules Issued

Posted November 25, 2020

Anti-Kickback Statute and Stark Law Regulations: Final Rules Issued

On November 20, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published two final rules that aim to reduce regulatory barriers to care coordination and accelerate the transformation of the healthcare system to value-based care. The HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued the final rule “Revisions to the Safe Harbors Under the Anti-Kickback Statute and Civil Monetary Penalty Rules Regarding Beneficiary Inducements,” and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the final rule “Modernizing and Clarifying the Physician Self-Referral Regulations.” The regulations are effective on January 19, 2021.

Posted November 6, 2020 with Tags , ,

The Premium Processing Roller Coaster: What is the Fee Now, and Has it Been Expanded to Other Types of Immigration Benefit Requests?

The short answer is that the premium processing fee increased to $2,500 effective October 20, 2020, for all eligible I-129 and I-140 filings (except for H-2B and R-1 requests that increased to $1500), based on the Emergency Stopgap USCIS Stabilization Act that was part of the Continuing Appropriations Act 2021 and Other Extensions Act signed into law on October 1. Although the Act gives U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) authority to expand premium processing to other types of benefit requests, the agency recently said it is not yet taking that action. In other words, USCIS has not yet applied premium processing to I-765, I-539, or the other new benefit requests.

Posted November 6, 2020 with Tags

Minnesota Assisted Living License Update

While the details have yet to be finalized, Assisted Living Facilities in Minnesota will need to transition to a new combined Assisted Living License by August 1, 2021.

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