On May 16, 2016, the Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins, a case raising the procedural question whether any and all violations of a federal statute are sufficient for a plaintiff to file a lawsuit in federal court.
In keeping with Assistant Secretary of Labor Dr. David Michaels’ promise to “shame” employers into compliance, on May 12, 2016, OSHA published its final rule on electronic reporting of workplace injuries and illnesses.
On May 3, 2016, Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin signed a bill into law that prohibits most employers from requesting criminal history information on an employment application.
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf recently signed legislation authorizing the use of medical marijuana (the Medical Marijuana Act or MMA) in Pennsylvania.
On April 12, 2016, a district court in Nebraska rejected the religious accommodation claims advanced by a member of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
On April 21, 2016, Mayor Ed Lee signed an ordinance making San Francisco the first municipality to require private employers to compensate employees while on parental bonding leave.
On April 4, 2016, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo executed sweeping legislation as part of the 2016-17 state budget, implementing a complicated and staggered set of minimum wage increases, and creating a system of paid family leave benefits.
More and more employers, union and non-union alike, are getting ensnared in efforts by the National Labor Relations Board to aggressively expand employee rights under the National Labor Relations Act, to the detriment of employers.
