Quick Hits The AI Act’s risk-based approach subjects AI applications to four different levels of restrictions and requirements, including “unacceptable risk,” which are banned; “high risk”; “limited risk”; and “minimal risk.” The AI Act treats the use of AI in the workplace as potentially high-risk. The AI Act is expected…
Quick Hits Mexico’s Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare (Secretaría del Trabajo y Previsión Social) (SLSW) recently enabled a module on the REPSE website in order to renew licenses for providers of outsourced specialized services. REPSE license holders have three months to complete the renewal process, with the start date…
Quick Hits The Minnesota Legislature is considering competing bills that would amend the statewide earned sick and safe time law. The legislature has also introduced bills that would hike punitive damages for violations of the Minnesota Human Rights Act and require employers with thirty or more employees to include salary…
Quick Hits On December 22, 2023, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board published additional modifications of the draft indoor heat illness prevention standard. The Standards Board’s agenda items showed that the Standards Board had planned to consider a version of the regulation that was essentially unchanged from a December 22, 2023, draft.…
Quick Hits OSHA’s “walkaround rule” has been approved by OIRA for finalization. The rule allows third parties, potentially not connected with the workplace, to accompany a CSHO during the inspection process/facility walkaround, if the CSHO considers such parties “reasonably necessary to the conduct of an effective and thorough physical inspection…
Quick Hits Effective February 13, 2024, the DOJ increased civil monetary penalties, including those related to immigration-related violations. While these increases are not as substantial as the immigration benefit request fees increase announced in January 2024, employers may still want to be aware of them. The increase adjusts for inflation,…
Quick Hits The NCAA March Madness men’s and women’s college basketball tournaments can be a distraction for employees that harms overall productivity. The rise of online sports betting has the potential to further increase the distraction of March Madness and raise concerns with gambling regulations and employer policies. From office…
Quick Hits OSHA’s proposed Emergency Response Standard—an overhaul of the decades-old Fire Brigades Standard—would apply to firefighting, emergency medical services, and technical search and rescue. The proposed standard’s lack of specific definitions, action levels, and exposure limits makes its compliance expectations less than clear for covered employers. The proposed standard’s…
Quick Hits The Eleventh Circuit ruled a Florida law that would prohibit employers from holding mandatory workplace training programs that discuss certain DEI-related topics was unconstitutional under the First Amendment. The restriction was part of a broader law known as the “Stop WOKE Act” signed by Governor Ron DeSantis in…
Quick Hits A federal district court in Tennessee recently issued a preliminary injunction enjoining enforcement of the NCAA’s NIL-recruiting ban with respect to student-athletes. The court found that the ban limited student-athletes’ negotiation leverage and prevented them from understanding “their true NIL value.” The court held that the recruiting ban…
Quick Hits Covered construction contractors may be required to provide additional data and documentation in response to the construction compliance review scheduling letter and itemized listing. Covered construction contractors may be required to provide additional information on Form CC-314 about new construction contract awards that exceed $10,000. Comments on the…
Quick Hits The Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) was set up in 2006 by the Ministry of Manpower, the National Trades Union Congress, and the Singapore National Employers Federation, to promote the adoption of fair, responsible, and progressive employment practices in Singapore. Since its inception, TAFEP…
Quick Hits The Supreme Court of Ohio issued a ruling confirming that Ohio municipalities did not violate the U.S. Constitution or the Ohio Constitution by taxing remote workers who lived outside of city limits during the COVID-19 pandemic. The ruling applies only to a temporary state law applicable during the…
Quick Hits A federal district judge in Vermont ruled that the ADA does not protect medical marijuana usage. Under the federal Controlled Substances Act, marijuana has “no currently accepted medical use” and therefore does not fall under the supervised use exception of the ADA. Marble Valley Regional Transit District terminated…
Quick Hits Despite repeated clarification regarding what the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury consider to be reasonable medical management techniques, the departments continue to identify plans that are out of compliance, creating barriers to contraceptive coverage. Medical management techniques within a specific contraceptive category…
Quick Hits The California Office of the Attorney General has been actively enforcing the CCPA since July 2023, and the California Privacy Protection Agency has indicated that it will take a very active role in CCPA enforcement. Covered businesses may be subjected to civil penalties or administrative fines of $2,500…
Quick Hits In a recent decision, a Massachusetts Superior Court judge held that a percent-of-profit incentive payment under a profit-sharing scheme is not a commission subject to the Wage Act. The court reasoned that an executive’s profit-sharing incentive was tied to the company’s profits, but not to revenue that he…
Quick Hits The EO directs the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, to set standards addressing access to Americans’ sensitive personal data by hostile nations and their affiliates through commonly utilized channels like employment, investment, vendor, and other commercial relationships. The EO…
Quick Hits Employer monitoring of workers must be carried out in a way that is lawful and fair to the workforce so as not to infringe on the rights of data subjects, the UK Information Commissioner’s Office said in updated guidance. In order to lawfully collect and process information from…
Total U.S. retail sales in June 2023 were down 1.2 percent from June 2022, according to data the U.S. Census Bureau released in September. In July 2023, a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) release showed compensation costs for civilian workers increased 1.0 percent for the three-month period ending in…
On September 14, 2023, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Employee Retention Credit (ERC) guidance placing a moratorium on processing new ERC claims due to a surge in questionable claim submissions. Claims already submitted will continue to be processed, but at a slower rate due to detailed compliance reviews. The…
On August 30, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) released two decisions that will make it more difficult for employers to implement past practices during a break in bargaining or at an impasse, opening the door for unions to hold employers hostage by dragging out collective bargaining. Quick Hits…
University athletic administrators all across the country are welcoming back their athletes for the 2023–2024 athletic season. Athletes and coaches alike will meet with compliance administrators for a refresher on National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) bylaws, nutritionists to discuss proper nutrition, and even media relations staff to discuss media obligations.…
Employers often go to great lengths to protect company documents and communications concerning and discussing confidential trade secret information. But what happens when employees leave, bring a whistleblower claim, and the employer learns they have sent themselves numerous confidential communications containing trade secret information? What about when an employee…