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When taking disciplinary action against an employee, it is important for employers to ensure that the underlying evidence clearly supports the reason for such action. Sometimes, decisionmakers get caught up in the emotion of the moment and do not necessarily maintain objectivity, or they do not take the time to […]

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs released its annual update of the hiring benchmark for protected veterans to 5.5%, effective March 31, 2022, based on recently-released data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Under revised Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act regulations issued in 2014, covered government (sub)contractors must […]

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs released a new directive that “will strengthen OFCCP compliance evaluations and reduce delay by promoting the timely exchange of information.” But what this really means for contractors is a less transparent and less cooperative process. Among the things the directive does: Rescinds four […]

An employee must actually request leave (for a covered reason) in order to trigger the protections of the Family and Medical Leave Act – and saying that they are working from home is not a request for leave, as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently noted. […]

Although companies with fewer than 15 employees are not covered by federal anti-discrimination laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit found those that are sufficiently related may be combined to trigger ADA coverage. In Buchanan v. Watkins & Letofsky, LLP, the […]

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit rejected a race discrimination claim based on different levels of discipline received by two employees for the same misconduct, finding that more serious discipline was imposed not based on race but the employee’s conduct following the charge of misconduct. In Reives […]

In the context of the opioid crisis, the US DOJ has issued a Q&A guidance on how the Americans with Disabilities Act may apply to those in treatment for or recovery from opioid use disorder (OUD). The DOJ makes several points of significance to employers. In the guidance, the DOJ […]

Only days after being sworn into office, President Biden signed Executive Order 13985, “Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government.” On April 14, 2022, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission released its Equity Action Plan in accordance with that E.O., containing several items of interest or […]

This was the lesson that a company recently and sadly learned, when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit found its arbitration agreement to be invalid because of the handbook disclaimer. In Coady v. Nationwide Motor Sales Corp., the employer’s Employee Handbook contained an arbitration agreement, which provided […]

When conducting a reduction in force, it is important to ensure that the criteria by which employees are either retained or selected for termination are clearly identified and applied consistently, as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently reminded employers. In Gosby v. Apache Industrial Services, Inc., […]