Labor

Expert Analysis

• How Cos. Can Weather Growing DOJ Labor Antitrust Scrutiny

  

  In light of of the U.S. Department of Justice's increasing antitrust scrutiny of labor markets and President Joe Biden's vow to eliminate most noncompetes, companies should customize their compliance plans and review employee agreements to mitigate risk, say Eric Grannon and Adam Acosta at White & Case.

• Employee Speech Considerations In The Age Of Remote Work

  

  With the pandemic requiring most workforces to operate remotely, employees are increasingly voicing their opinions on social media, which presents unique challenges for companies investigating worker complaints and navigating free speech protections, say Noa Baddish and Elise Bloom at Proskauer.

• Grocery 'Hero Pay' Mandates Are Unfair And Likely Illegal

  

  Though recently passed ordinances mandating "hero pay" for certain grocery store workers in California and Washington are well-intentioned, they do not protect essential workers equally and are likely illegal, says Anthony Caso at Chapman University's Fowler School of Law.

• Rulemaking Isn't The Answer To NLRB Policy Oscillation

  

  Recent activity at the National Labor Relations Board, such as the Trump administration's failed attempt to end Obama-era representation-case procedure, has not slowed the policy pendulum and shows that opting for rulemaking over adjudication poses the risk of judicial backlash, say former NLRB Chairman Mark Gaston Pearce, now at the Georgetown Law Center, and Amanda Jaret at the United Food and Commercial Workers.

• What Employers Should Consider As Union Legislation Looms

  

  A new Democratic majority in Washington means the U.S. may soon see legislation akin to the Obama-era Employee Free Choice Act that never passed into law, so employers would do well to take a lesson from Canada about collective bargaining and highlight for policymakers how inconsistencies in the EFCA run contrary to trade union principles, say attorneys at Borden Ladner.

• 6 Key Areas Of Compliance Change For NY Employers In 2021

  

  New York's employers have begun the new year facing a spate of new compliance issues that can vary from region to region and cover time off, sick leave, the minimum wage, the fast-food industry and employability, as the state's employment laws become ever more employee-friendly, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• 5 Major Drug And Medical Device Developments In 2020

  

  In addition to the increased activity and scrutiny COVID-19 brought to the drug and device industries in 2020, major developments included the continued momentum of snap removal and renewed U.S. Supreme Court interest in the scope of state courts' jurisdiction, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

• A Busy Year In Workplace Class Action Litigation Is Expected

  

  2020 presented new challenges and revealed new trends in employment class action filings, settlements and certification, which are likely to impact corporate America this year as employers navigate the pandemic, filings work their way through the court system and the regulatory landscape shifts, say Gerald Maatman and Jennifer Riley at Seyfarth.

• Right-Of-Recall Compliance Issues For Employers To Study

  

  With many jurisdictions passing or considering laws that give employees the right to be recalled to jobs they lost during COVID-19, employers should focus on five compliance issues in dealing with right-of-recall statutes, as well as on five challenges going forward, say Adam Karr and Kelly Wood at O'Melveny.

• Obama 2.0: What Employers Can Expect From Biden On Labor

  

  Employers must begin to prepare for an atmosphere on labor issues that is vastly different from the past four years when the Biden administration begins its planned return to — and possible amplification of — the Obama-era promotion of unionization, strict enforcement of labor laws against employers and pro-union labor initiatives, says Daniel Johns at Cozen O'Connor.

• Top 10 Employer Resolutions For 2021

  

  As the new year begins, employers will need to plan for several paradigm shifts, including the potential for tougher independent contractor classification standards, state-level medical and recreational marijuana legalization, and federal and state changes to paid and unpaid leave, say Allegra Lawrence-Hardy and Linda Spencer at Lawrence & Bundy.

• The Most-Read Employment Law360 Guests Of 2020

  

  Issues related to the pandemic, including furloughs, worker face covering requirements, workplace temperature taking and whistleblower claims, were among the most-popular employment topics in articles written by Law360 guest experts this year.

• How Biden May Save Gig Workers From California's Prop 22

  

  While it appears California's Proposition 22 could hinder President-elect Joe Biden’s plans to extend employment status to gig workers across the country, he still has several options for doing so, starting with moves toward defining interstate commerce in a way that results in preemption of state laws, says Ronald Zambrano at West Coast Employment Lawyers.