The Employment Brief | Employment Law | Kollman & Saucier, P.A.

Invalid RIF Agreement Results in Big Plaintiff Verdict

Darrell VanDeusen

12/20/2021

Back when I was a baby lawyer in the mid-1980s, I remember a client who assured us that, contrary to our advice, what the client wanted to do was legally just fine. “But it’s not what the law permits” we said. “It’s what [very large company name redacted] does,” was the reply. “And [very large company name redacted] just got hit with a multi-million dollar verdict against it for doing it,” we rejoined, “so do you want that...

Eric Paltell

12/18/2021

COVID-19

Late yesterday, United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit dissolved a nationwide injunction against OSHA's emergency rule requiring employers with at least 100 workers to mandate that their employees get vaccinated against Covid-19 or get tested regularly. This morning, the United States Department of Labor announced that employers have until January 10, 2022 to come into compliance with the rule, although it agreed to defer enforcing...

Eric Paltell

12/17/2021

Retaliation, Virginia Employment Law, Whistleblowers

When employers conduct investigations into suspected employee misconduct, they often place the employee on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation. The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia recently held that placing an employee on such a leave does not amount to an adverse employment action under the anti-retaliation provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Kashif v. PNC Bank, Civil Action No,...

Vincent Jackson

12/15/2021

Agency Activity, COVID-19

On December 14, 2021, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued updated guidance on when COVID-19 constitutes a disability under Title I of the ADA. Under the ADA, a person can be an individual with a disability in one of three ways: “Actual” Disability: a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity (such as walking, talking, seeing, hearing, etc.); “Record of” a Disability: the person has a...

Eric Paltell

12/13/2021

Labor Law

On December 7, 2021, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) announced that it will revisit the “community of interest” standard for determining an appropriate bargaining unit. American Steel Construction, Inc., 371 NLRB No. 41 (2021). In so doing, the Board expressed a willingness to consider a return to the “micro-units” that were allowed under the Specialty Healthcare standard it overruled in 2017. American Steel Construction...

Kollman & Saucier

12/09/2021

Labor Law, Public Sector Employment Law, Virginia Employment Law

On May 1, 2021, Virginia's new law permitting local governments to enact collective bargaining legislation for employees took effect. On November 15, 2021, K&S Partner Eric Paltell joined Virginia Senator Jennifer Boysko, Loudoun County Administrator Tim Hemstreet, and attorney Cynthia Hudson on a panel discussing the new law at the Virginia Association of Counties Annual Meeting in Norfolk. Eric's presentation focused on steps...

Vincent Jackson

12/08/2021

COVID-19

On December 7, 2021, a federal judge in Georgia issued a nationwide injunction blocking the implementation of the federal contractor vaccine mandate. The halting of Executive Order 14042, which requires all contractors and subcontractors performing work on certain federal contracts to ensure that their employees are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, presents yet another twist in the legal fights over the vaccine mandate. While previous...

Bernadette Hunton

11/30/2021

COVID-19

A federal court in Missouri has issued a preliminary injunction in a case brought by 10 states (Missouri, Nebraska, Arkansas, Kansas, Iowa, Wyoming, Alaska, South Dakota, North Dakota and New Hampshire) challenging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ interim rule issued on November 5, 2021. The CMS rule requires certain healthcare workers at providers that participate in Medicare and Medicaid to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19,...

Bernadette Hunton

11/29/2021

Religious Discrimination

Although religious institutions are generally required to comply with federal anti-discrimination laws, certain exceptions apply. One of those exceptions is the “ministerial exception,” a legal doctrine that shields religious institutions from liability for employment discrimination claims brought by a “minister” of the institution. The exception, grounded in the religious clauses of the First Amendment, seeks to protect the rights of...

Jordan Dunham

11/28/2021

COVID-19, Workplace Safety

In the effort to avoid writing yet another blog entry on COVID-19 related material, I am writing to inform our readers what they should do if an investigator from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) appears on at a jobsite. As you likely know, OSHA recently released a rule mandating that employers of 100 or more employees require all employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or subject to weekly testing. Our Randi Hyatt...

< 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 … 113 >

Email Updates

Invalid RIF Agreement Results in Big Plaintiff Verdict

OSHA Vax-or-Test Rule Reinstated

Placement on Leave Pending Investigation is Not Adverse Action

EEOC Issues New Guidance on When COVID-19 Qualifies as a Disability

NLRB to Revisit “Micro-units” Test

Eric Paltell Presents on Collective Bargaining at Virginia Association of Counties Meeting

Georgia Judge Issues Nationwide Injunction Halting Implementation of Federal Contractor Vaccine Mandate

Missouri Court is First To Block Healthcare Worker Vaccine Mandate Rule

Ninth Circuit Extends Ministerial Exception To High School Principal, Barring Race Claims Against Christian School

What to Do When OSHA Comes Knocking

Email Updates