The General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”), Jennifer Abruzzo, has recently issued two memorandums significantly changing how employers must draft separation agreements and opining on the enforceability of noncompetition agreements. Can she do that?

 

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Abruzzo has been busy. Within the last few months, she has issued two notable memorandums that could have significant impacts on how employers must comply with the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”). It is important to note that certain provisions...

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: Labor Law, Post-Employment Restrictive Covenants
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The NLRB Reverses Course (again) on Employee Outbursts and Protected Concerted Activity

 

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What happens when an employee starts yelling at the boss, makes profane social media posts about work, or engages in other “abusive conduct?”  In many cases, employers can follow their own policy and impose discipline if appropriate.  But, where profanity...

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: At Will Employment, Discipline and Discharge, Labor Law, Workplace Violence
Can employers require employees to accept confidentiality and non-disparagement obligations in exchange for severance pay?

Can employers require employees to accept confidentiality and non-disparagement obligations in exchange for severance pay?

 

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Employee reductions and terminations are an unfortunate result of economic downturns. Even during good economic times, many companies face the need to reduce their workforce or terminate the employment of individual employees. In such circumstances, employers may seek to offer...

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: Employee Handbook / Policies, General, Labor Law, Post-Employment Restrictive Covenants

How the NLRA Applies to All Workplaces, Not Just Unionized Ones: Implications for Workplace Conduct Policies, Social Media Policies, and Employee Discipline (Including After the Supreme Court’s Abortion Decision)

 

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When the subject of the National Labor Relations Act (the “NLRA,” or, more succinctly, the “Act”) is broached, employment lawyers often hear a familiar refrain: “The Act doesn’t apply to me because my employees are not unionized.” This widespread belief...

POSTED IN Employee Handbook / Policies, Labor Law
As States Reopen, Can Employees Refuse to Return to Work Based on Fear of Exposure to COVID-19?

As States Reopen, Can Employees Refuse to Return to Work Based on Fear of Exposure to COVID-19?

 

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As many states progress through different phases of reopening, companies are preparing for their employees to return to work. Employers are also noting, however, that some states are seeing COVID-19 cases surge.  This has generated some concerns from employees who...

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: California Questions, Disability Discrimination, General, Labor Law, Retaliation, Unemployment Benefits
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What Do Employers Need to Know Following the Passage of California’s New Law on Independent Contractor Misclassification?

 

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On September 18, 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 5, which clarifies when workers should be considered “employees” under the California Labor Code and the California Unemployment Insurance Code, thereby entitling them to the protections afforded by...

VIEW ALL POSTS ABOUT: California Questions, General, Independent Contractors, Labor Law
Litigation may be Key in Response to Rising Denials of Employment-Based Visas. What Strategies Should Employers Consider when Hiring or Retaining Noncitizen Professionals?

Litigation may be Key in Response to Rising Denials of Employment-Based Visas. What Strategies Should Employers Consider when Hiring or Retaining Noncitizen Professionals?

 

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Many U.S. employers have recently experienced frustration over legal obstacles to keeping high quality foreign-national employees. These valuable employees have often been with the company since finishing a degree and sometimes even interning with the employer. Other employers experience delays...

POSTED IN General, International Employment Law, Labor Law, Litigation Issues
Second Circuit Holds Pro-Union Sentiment Outweighs Impropriety of Profanity-Laden Rant Against Supervisor, His Mother, and “His Entire ****ing Family”

Second Circuit Holds Pro-Union Sentiment Outweighs Impropriety of Profanity-Laden Rant Against Supervisor, His Mother, and “His Entire ****ing Family”

 

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Use of profanity by employees, whether in the workplace, outside the workplace, or on social media, presents difficult legal issues for the employer, as highlighted by a recent Second Circuit Court of Appeals decision overturning the firing of an employee...

POSTED IN Labor Law, Retaliation, Social Media