OSHA’s Proposed Emergency Response Standard: A Closer Look and an Analysis for Covered Employers

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:19 mins read

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…

DEI Under Scrutiny, Part VIII: Eleventh Circuit Strikes Down Florida Ban On Workplace DEI Training Under First Amendment

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:7 mins read

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…

Tennessee Federal Court Issues Preliminary Injunction Blocking NCAA’s NIL Restrictions

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:5 mins read

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…

OFCCP Proposes Changes to Construction Contractor Scheduling Letter and Contract Award Notification Requirement Form

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:4 mins read

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…

Singapore Employers, Are Your Hiring Practices in Order for the Next TAFEP Request?

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:5 mins read

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…

Ohio Supreme Court Rules That Municipalities Could Temporarily Collect Income Tax From Remote Workers During Pandemic

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:4 mins read

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…

Medical Marijuana Usage Is Not Protected Under the ADA, Vermont Federal Court Rules

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:4 mins read

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…

ACA-Required Coverage of Contraceptive Care Remains Agency Focus

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:5 mins read

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…

Employers, Beware: California Regulators Are Actively Enforcing the California Consumer Privacy Act

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:6 mins read

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…

Massachusetts Superior Court Finds Incentive Payment Under Profit-Sharing Scheme Is Not a Commission Under Wage Act

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:5 mins read

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…

Biden Administration Announces New Measures to Safeguard Americans’ Sensitive Personal Data

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:7 mins read

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…

UK Information Commissioner Publishes New Guidance on Employee Monitoring

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:4 mins read

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…

IRS Moratorium on New Employee Retention Tax Credit Processing

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:5 mins read

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…

Complying With Hazing Prevention, Training, and Reporting Requirements

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:7 mins read

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.…

Whistleblowers and Trade Secrets: Does the DTSA Protect Confidential Data?

  • Post category:Ogletree Deakins
  • Reading time:3 mins read

  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…