Labor & Employment Law Updates
On February 9, 2022, the Ninth Circuit resolved a decades long dispute involving claims under the California whistleblower protection statute in Wallen Lawson v. PPG Architectural Finishes Inc [1] The Court determined that the test prescribed in Cal. Lab. Code § 1102.6 is the correct legal framework for claims of whistleblower retaliation. [2]
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After the United States Supreme Court stayed the implementation and enforcement of the COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) requiring private employers to implement a mandatory vaccination or weekly testing and masking policy.[1] the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced its withdrawal of the ETS as of January 26, 2022.[2]
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On January 1, 2022, all Colorado employers—regardless of size—became subject to traditional paid sick leave requirements under the Healthy Families and Workplaces Act (“HFWA”).[1] This requirement differs from the 2021 version of the Act, which required only employers with 16 or more employees to provide paid sick leave.[2]
[1] C.R.S. § 8-13.3-403(1)(c).
[2] C.R.S. § 8-13.3-403(1)(b).
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On January 14, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a case where the outcome may require public employers to reevaluate their policies regarding employees’ unprotected speech. [1]
[1] Kennedy v. Bremerton Sch. Dist., 991 F.3d 1004, 1010 (9th Cir. 2021), cert. granted, No. 21-418, 2022 WL 129501 (U.S. Jan. 14, 2022).
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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have extended flexibility in complying with the Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) requirements until April 30, 2022 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
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A COVID-19 diagnosis alone, however, is not enough.
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A federal court has issued a nationwide injunction blocking the federal government from enforcing its upcoming vaccination requirements for employers awarded federal contracts.
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A new round of mandates leaves Douglas and Broomfield Counties as the only counties in the Denver metropolitan area who have not instituted a mandate.
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We’ll be back next week!
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The Fifth Circuit found OSHA exceeded its statutory authority in issuing the November 5, 2021, Emergency Temporary Standard applying COVID vaccination measures to all employers with 100 or more employees.
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Employers have no obligation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to accommodate a disabled employee’s problems outside the workplace and unrelated to her essential job functions
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OSHA has issued an Emergency Temporary Standard requiring employers with 100 or more employees to develop, implement, and enforce a COVID vaccination policy.
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The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s dismissal of a former firearms instructor’s lawsuit alleging he was demoted because of his age.
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The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals found that call center employees must be paid for the time (approximately two (2) minutes) they wait for their computers to boot up before they can clock in for work.
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Given President Biden’s executive order requiring companies with 100 or more employees to mandate the COVID-19 vaccination, unionized companies must consider whether the vaccine mandate is a mandatory subject of bargaining with its labor union or a management right to implement the rule.
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The Colorado Dept. of Labor and Employment (CDLE) has proposed three new sets of wage-and-hour rules to go into effect January 1, 2022.
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The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that an employee’s arbitration agreement was enforceable as to complaints of sexual harassment and retaliation against her supervisors that occurred before she entered into the arbitration agreement.
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