Fisher Phillips News

This legal alert was posted on April 24th, 2020 by Risa B. Boerner (CIPP/US) and Luke E. McDaniels in Philadelphia. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused many employers now operating remotely to conduct meetings via video conference – which has created a whole new set of various privacy and cybersecurity concerns. While these remote work tools have facilitated a more personal connection and interactive...

This legal alert was posted on April 20, 2020 by Nicholas S. Hulse in Charlotte. The Centers for Disease Controls and Prevention (CDC) just released guidance to assist employers in making decisions regarding reopening during the COVID-19 pandemic. Besides continuing to follow the recommendations issued by state and local health departments when determining the most appropriate actions to take, you...

This legal alert was posted on April 20, 2020 by Travis W. Vance in Charlotte. Businesses will soon reopen, presenting employers with new challenges as part of the next phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. With no known vaccine or treatment currently available for the novel coronavirus, reopened employers will likely experience confirmed cases of the illness in their workplace. Now is the time to devel...

This legal alert was published on March 18, 2020 by Shayna Balch (Phoenix/Los Angeles). The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission just weighed in on the impact that the COVID-19 coronavirus is having on American workforces and issued a press release today titled “What You Should Know About the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and COVID-19.” The publication takes a Q&A format and tackles some common...

This legal alert was published on March 29, 2020 by Steven Bernstein (Tampa), Benjamin Ebbink (Sacramento), Samantha Monsees (Kansas City), Samantha Saltzman (Irvine), and J. Hagood Tighe (Columbia). The Department of Labor (DOL) continues to update its guidance document on implementation of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), and the latest update caught many employers by surpris...

This article was originally published in the March 2020 issue of the “On the Front Lines” newsletter by Erin Price in Sacramento. With the rising cost of child care, and the fact that both parents are employed in more than half of two-parent families, the option for employers to allow employees to bring their infant children with them to work is becoming increasingly popular. This article looks at...

This article was originally published in the March 2020 issue of the “On the Front Lines” newsletter by April Perkins in Sacramento. It looks at the four-day work week, examining some of its potential benefits (such as employee retention, increased productivity, decreased operational costs, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions) and its potential downsides (including unpredictable outcomes and conf...

This legal alert was published on January 13th, 2020 by Marty Heller in Atlanta, Richard Meneghello in Portland, and John Polson in Irvine. The U.S. Department of Labor just finalized its rule that attempts to limit the scope of joint employment liability for wage and hour matters. Although much remains to be seen, this rule may usher in a new era, and could lead to fewer businesses being found to...

This article was originally published in the February issue of the “On the Front Lines” newsletter by Annie Lau and Anthony E. Guzman II in San Francisco. The assault on arbitration is old news. Recently, however, courts and commentators alike have seemed to stake out a new area for contest in the ongoing back and forth debate about this valuable litigation alternative: confidentiality clauses. Fo...

This article was originally published in the February issue of the “On the Front Lines” newsletter by Travis Vance in Charlotte. Employee safety has always been important, but the recent public shaming of allegedly hazardous workplaces reveals that the public’s disdain for companies that provide unsafe environments for their employees is increasing. No longer can you ignore the public cries to eli...

Part IV includes California Law, Employee Benefits, & Supreme Court ---- When the calendar turned to January 1, we not only saw the dawn of a new year but the beginning of a new decade. It’s natural, at such a turning point, to spend some time looking back on what has transpired in the past 10 years before turning our attention to the years to come. And we’ve done just that in the area we know bes...

Part III includes Immigration, International Law, & Workplace Privacy ---- When the calendar turned to January 1, we not only saw the dawn of a new year but the beginning of a new decade. It’s natural, at such a turning point, to spend some time looking back on what has transpired in the past 10 years before turning our attention to the years to come. And we’ve done just that in the area we know b...

Part II includes Labor Relations, Wage and Hour, Workplace Safety, & Joint Employment ---- When the calendar turned to January 1, we not only saw the dawn of a new year but the beginning of a new decade. It’s natural, at such a turning point, to spend some time looking back on what has transpired in the past 10 years before turning our attention to the years to come. And we’ve done just that in th...

Part I includes #MeToo, EEO Law, Pay Equity, & Affirmative Action ---- When the calendar turned to January 1, we not only saw the dawn of a new year but the beginning of a new decade. It’s natural, at such a turning point, to spend some time looking back on what has transpired in the past 10 years before turning our attention to the years to come. And we’ve done just that in the area we know best:...

This article was published by Cheryl Pinarchick on November 11, 2019 in the “Pay Equity Matters: Mind the Gap” blog on fisherphillips.com. A California federal judge on November 11th granted the U.S. Women’s National Team an early victory in their pay equity battle against the U.S. Soccer Federation (the Federation), granting class certification to a group of players who want to collectively asser...

This article was published by Rick Grimaldi on November 12, 2019 in the "Gig Employer Blog" on fisherphillips.com. The Philadelphia city council recently passed the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights, which grants domestic workers benefits such as paid time off. While it is not the initial purpose of this plan, a benefits model where workers carry benefits with them between one job to the next could h...

This article was published in the December issue of the “On The Front Lines” newsletter by Andrew Hoag and Sarah George. What happens when a male employee refuses to work with female coworkers because of a religious belief that men and women should avoid one-on-one situations? This article examines a pending case in North Carolina as well as several from the recent past where religious convictions...

This article was published in the November edition of the On the Front Lines Newsletter by Micah Dawson in Denver. With the rise of social media and other review outlets, employers can find themselves exposed to fake or slanderous online postings from former employees. With almost all content platforms having policies stating they will not play arbitrator in defamation disputes, what can employers...

This article was published in the November edition of the On the Front Lines Newsletter by Cheryl Pinarchick and Jennifer Scully in Boston. The rise of co-working spaces has presented unique legal issues for companies that utilize these services. Some of the risks include sexual harassment, theft, and other unwanted behavior caused by the absence of policies governing conduct, and the availability...

This blog post was published on October 21st 2019 by Richard Meneghello in Portland. California just enacted a new independent contract statute that will soon make it difficult for gig economy businesses and other companies to classify their workers as independent contractors. Now, several other states are considering their own versions. This blog post looks at California’s statute and what it mea...

This article was published in the October edition of the On the Front Lines Newsletter By Kathleen McLeod Caminiti in New York and New Jersey, and Sarah Wieselthier in New Jersey. With the end of the year soon approaching, now is the perfect time to evaluate your pay practices and minimize risk for litigation. Many states have pay equity laws that prohibit discrimination in wages on the basis of g...

This article was published in the October edition of the On the Front Lines Newsletter by Megan Walker in San Diego. As you begin to see more Gen Z workers enter your workforce, what does it mean for your company and your management styles? Gen Z workers tend to value diversity, honesty and transparency, frequent feedback and mentoring, and a company culture that promotes treating their employees...

This legal alert was posted on September 11th 2019, by James Fessenden in San Diego. It looks at a new California law that would make it much more difficult for businesses to treat workers as independent contractors and hire small businesses, and would grant workers across the state increased pay, benefits, and protections. While there are exceptions that may apply, businesses that do not comply w...

This article was published in the September edition of the On the Front Lines Newsletter by Erin Price in Sacramento. Instead of traditional in-person interviews, some companies are opting for text-based chatting in order to streamline the interview process, cut down on travel costs, and increase candidate engagement. This article looks at the growing trend of conducting interviews through text me...

This article was published in the September edition of the On the Front Lines Newsletter by Miranda Watkins in San Diego and Sara Zimmerman in Irvine. It looks at how new monitoring technologies can affect employees and what they might mean for employers. These technologies, such as wristbands that can record the actions of an employee, might be useful for efficiency, but can lead to concerns abou...