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Quick Hits The DOL’s Employee Benefit Security Administration (EBSA) recently released final rules requiring more financial transparency and disclosures from PBMs to health plans. The rule’s purpose is to give large employers and plan fiduciaries more information to evaluate their contracts with PBMs and affiliated brokers and consultants. The regulations are applicable to plan years beginning on or after July 1, 2027. The final regulations will require both initial disclosures…

Quick Hits The role of HR in disciplinary proceedings is generally to guide the process and provide advice to the managers taking the decisions. In most situations, HR will not participate in taking the final decision. Nevertheless, cases are fact-specific, and someone from HR taking the decision in a disciplinary process does not automatically render a dismissal unfair. Background and Analysis In Shing v University of the Arts London, WYC…

Quick Hits The EEOC voted to rescind its 2012 enforcement guidance related to using arrest and conviction records in employment decisions. The Commission stated that the agency voted 2-to-1 in favor of rescinding on October 28, 2026, and that the rescission is effective immediately. The 2012 guidance had indicated that employers’ use of information on arrest and conviction records could implicate their obligations under Title VII of the Civil Rights…

Quick Hits President Trump signed Executive Order 14426, “Accelerating Access to Veterans’ Benefits and Employment Opportunities,” on September 8, 2026, to address the transfer of records between DOW and the VA. The executive order sets a series of deadlines for the DOW and the VA to modernize both the technology and the policies governing records sharing. The executive order also directs changes to help veterans move more quickly into employment…

Quick Hits A growing number of states and localities are passing laws to prohibit workplace discrimination based on menopause or perimenopause. Menopause symptoms may be covered under the ADA, depending on the woman’s limitations and essential job functions. Employers often cover menopause treatments in group health plans. Legislative Action and Case Law Legislation (H.R.9671) is pending in the U.S. House of Representatives that would require covered employers to provide reasonable…

Quick Hits Oregon OSHA has finalized a workplace violence prevention rule that expressly covers home health agencies and home hospice programs in addition to hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers. The rule defines “workplace violence” to include threats, harassment, and intimidating behavior not just physical assault. Oregon OSHA’s Discrimination Complaint Rule (OAR 437-001-0295) now includes reporting workplace violence incidents. Covered employers must record incidents on the Health Care Workplace Violence Incident…

Quick Hits The NJDOL proposes capping the difference between a posted range’s maximum and minimum at 60 percent of the minimum. The 60 percent cap was the most striking feature of the September 2025 proposed regulations. No other jurisdiction currently limits the size of an employer’s posted pay range beyond requiring a good faith estimate. The NJDOL’s FAQs also remove reference to the cap. New Jersey’s pay transparency statute took…

Quick Hits In Winn v. Blakeslee Vineyard Estate, Inc., 352 Or App 803 (2026), the Oregon Court of Appeals resolved a previously unsettled question under ORS 652.615 in the employer’s favor. The court affirmed the dismissal of the plaintiff’s class claims under ORCP 32 I’s notice-and-cure mechanism and separately affirmed the dismissal of her individual claims for failure to prosecute. Chief Judge Lagesen dissented, concluding that the plain text of…

Quick Hits New York City recently adopted final amended rules implementing the Fair Chance Act, which limits employers’ criminal history inquiries and consideration of criminal histories in taking adverse actions against applicants or employees being considered for promotion or transfer. The rules requires employers to allow at least five business days for candidates to respond to inquiries about their criminal history before revoking offers or taking adverse actions—up from three…

Quick Hits The U.S. Department of Labor recently updated its tipped-employee guidance to reflect the Fifth Circuit’s 2024 decision in Restaurant Law Center and the reinstatement of the original dual jobs regulation. The FAB withdraws outdated materials and clarifies how employers should distinguish tipped and non-tipped work. Among other things, the bulletin states that percentage-based limits on duties within a tipped occupation no longer reflect Department policy. The Dual Jobs…

Quick Hits In the event of a discriminatory rejection, employers in Germany are, in principle, liable for lost earnings under Section 15 (1) AGG. The claim ends once the affected person has become established in other employment. The chain of causation is broken once the person has taken up suitable new employment that has become established. Proportionality and the general risks of life limit liability. The Case—Age Discrimination in an…

Quick Hits B.C. employers that had fifty or more employees on January 1, 2026, must publish their first pay transparency report by November 1, 2026. Reports must disclose gender-based gaps in hourly pay, overtime, and bonuses, as well as the gender makeup of pay quartiles. Reporting is an annual obligation. Which Employers Must Report Unless exempted by regulation, an employer becomes a “reporting employer” based on its headcount on January…