In November 2021, Governor Tom Wolf’s administration proposed a new regulation that will require tipped employees to earn at least $135 a month in tips before an employer is permitted to pay the $2.83 per hour tipped rate, rather than state’s minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. Currently, in Pennsylvania, employers can pay tipped employees
US Alert
Virginia officially revoked COVID-19 workplace safety standard
On Wednesday, March 23, 2022, official revocation of Virginia’s COVID-19 permanent workplace safety standard became effective upon publication in the Richmond Times-Dispatch. That action followed a vote by the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry’s (DOLI’s) Safety and Health Codes Board (Board) earlier this week.
The Board initiated steps in February to end the standard…
New York enacts two bills expanding employee protections under the state’s anti-discrimination statute
As we previously reported, the New York State Senate recently passed a handful of significant employment-related bills. On March 16, Governor Kathy Hochul signed several of the bills into law.
Perhaps most notably, Senate Bill S.5870 bars employers from disclosing an employee’s personnel files because the of the employee’s participation in a workplace complaint…
Biden signs federal law restricting sexual harassment and assault arbitration
On March 3, President Joe Biden signed into law one of the most significant modifications ever made to federal arbitration law. Known as the “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021” (the Act), the new law essentially restricts employers from forcing workplace sexual harassment or assault claims to be resolved…
New York legislature proposes sweeping changes to workplace laws
On March 1, 2022, the New York State Senate passed a suite of landmark employment legislation. Though several of the bills still need to be passed by the State Assembly – and, of course, ultimately signed into law by Governor Kathy Hochul – Empire State employers should nevertheless review the measures now so they will…
Virginia begins process to revoke permanent COVID-19 workplace safety standard
On Wednesday, February 16, 2022, the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry’s (DOLI’s) Safety and Health Codes Board (Board) convened and voted to recommend revoking the Commonwealth’s COVID-19 permanent workplace safety standard. This action comes after newly-elected Governor Glenn Youngkin issued Executive Order 6 directing the Board to convene an emergency meeting to consider…
Congress passes bill prohibiting sexual harassment and assault arbitration
By Veronica Miclot & Christopher Bouriat on
On February 7, 2022, the United States House of Representatives passed H.R. 4445, which would modify the Federal Arbitration Act by carving out an exception for cases involving sexual harassment and assault. The bill titled, “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021” – which was passed by the Senate on…
Pennsylvania businesses with COVID-19 vaccine requirements may have to provide new exemption for employees
By Veronica Miclot & Christopher Bouriat on
Pennsylvania House of Representatives members have proposed House Bill 2318, which proposes that employers must provide a “natural immunity” exemption to employees under any employer COVID-19 vaccine mandate policy. The bill defines “natural immunity” as possessing immunity to the COVID-19 virus as a result of previous infection caused by the virus. Thus, if the proposed…
Supreme Court blocks federal vaxx-or-test rule for large employers
By Mark S. Goldstein & Emily Harbison on
The highest court in the land has, at long last, weighed in on the permissibility of the federal government’s November 2021 vaccine-or-test rule for large employers. Specifically, on January 13, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), which had required that private employers with 100 or more U.S. employees adopt either (1) a mandatory vaccination policy or (2) a policy that allows employees to choose between vaccination and submission of weekly COVID tests (as we previously discussed here).
As a result, employers previously covered by the ETS will not have to comply – at least for now – with its requirements. Below we will discuss the Court’s ruling and, equally if not more importantly, what this means for U.S. employers.…
Continue Reading Supreme Court blocks federal vaxx-or-test rule for large employers
Violations of Colorado’s non-compete statute to become a criminal offense
By Paulo McKeeby & Joseph J. Mammone Jr. on
On March 1, 2022, Colorado Senate Bill 21-271 (SB 21-271) goes into effect. This new law will make the violation of a number of statutes, including Colorado’s non-compete law, C.R.S. § 8-2-113, a criminal offense, specifically a class 2 misdemeanor. See Colorado Senate Bill 21-271, Section 81.
In Colorado, covenants not to compete that restrict the right of any person to receive compensation for the performance of skilled or unskilled labor are void unless one of the following four exceptions are met:
- Any contract for the purchase and sale of a business or the assets of a business
- Any contract for the protection of trade secrets
- Any contractual provision providing for recovery of the expense of educating and training an employee who was employed by the employer for less than two years
- Executive and management personnel and officers and employees who constitute professional staff to executive and management personnel
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Continue Reading Violations of Colorado’s non-compete statute to become a criminal offense