Articles and Blogs

Health care providers who staff for safety-sensitive positions should take notice of a Seventh Circuit appeals panel ruling on October 29, 2019, that an obese applicant cannot claim a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act for an employer’s rejection of him over concerns about future possible health conditions and related safety concerns arising... READ MORE

This fall, a string of state laws limiting the enforceability of noncompete agreements with low-wage workers are beginning to take effect. Six states have passed such laws this year, following a trend that started in Illinois and Massachusetts, including Maine (effective September 19, 2019), Maryland (effective October 1, 2019) and New Hampshire (effective September... READ MORE

Two recent opinion letters by the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) interpret the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) to require that whenever an employee takes leave for an FMLA-qualifying reason, the employer must designate such leave as FMLA leave, even if the employee would prefer to “save... READ MORE

On September 24, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor announced a final rule updating the salary basis test’s earning threshold for exempt employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act. This new rule will become effective on January 1, 2020. These changes, which will require employers to reassess exempt employee classification, may significantly impact many... READ MORE

A federal district court in Nashville, TN has entered a summary judgment dismissal of a former Human Resources Director’s discrimination and retaliation claims. The case is significant because it explores the line between offensive social conduct that does not violate Title VII and adverse employment action that does. Discrimination Marie Hasting’s lawsuit asserted that... READ MORE

In March of this year, a federal judge in Washington, D.C. reinstated the controversial EEO-1 Component 2 pay data reporting requirements. The current reporting deadline is September 30, 2019. The EEO-1 Pay Data Reporting Roller Coaster The EEO-1 is an annual report filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) that has historically collected... READ MORE

On July 8, 2019, the Sixth Circuit issued an employer friendly opinion strengthening the enforceability of routinely included mandatory arbitration provisions in employment contracts. In its opinion, the court rejected a former employee’s claim that “two completely different and conflicting terms” for resolution of all legal disputes rendered the mandatory arbitration clause in his... READ MORE

On June 25, 2019, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act (the “Act”) to make Illinois the eleventh state to allow recreational marijuana use. Effective January 1, 2020, adults age 21 and older may purchase and possess up to 1 ounce (30 grams) of marijuana at a time from a... READ MORE

On June 12, 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit joined the Second, Sixth and Eighth Circuits in determining that without evidence of an underlying physiological disorder, a plaintiff’s weight does not qualify as a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). In the Seventh Circuit case Richardson v. Chicago... READ MORE

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) agreed on June 28, 2019, to delay implementation of the recently finalized Conscience Rule. We wrote about the Final Conscience Rule and its potential impact on health care employers and organizations in our recent blog. The Conscience Rule prohibits discrimination of individuals who refuse to... READ MORE