APPLIES TO All Employers

EFFECTIVE July 29, 2020

QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call (888) 378-2456

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) stated in a recent case that employer policies preventing employees from linking to employer websites from personal blogs was under lawful Boeing Category 1(a), which refers to a set of standards used to determine if employer policies interfere with employees’ NLRA-protected rights.

Boeing Category 1(a), arising from a 2017 case involving The Boeing Company, includes rules the NLRB deems permissible for employers to maintain because (1) when reasonably interpreted, the rule does not prohibit or interfere with exercising NLRA-protected rights, or (2) the potential adverse impact on protected rights is outweighed by justifications associated with the rule.

In Shamrock Foods Co., the NLRB stated that a policy discouraging employees from linking to an employer’s website from a personal blog fell into this category.  The NLRB reasoned that the policy was intended to protect the company’s brand identity, integrity, and reputation, and to minimize the impression that the employee is endorsed by or speaking on behalf of the employer, and not to restrict employees’ NLRA-protected rights.

Action Items

APPLIES TO All Employers with LA Employees

EFFECTIVE August 1, 2020

QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call (888) 378-2456

Noncompete agreements are prohibited in Louisiana unless certain exceptions are met. For employers, an agreement that restricts employees “from carrying on or engaging in a business similar to that of the employer” and/or “from soliciting customers of the employer” is permitted, but only: (1) within an expressly identified territory consisting of specified parish(es), municipalit(ies), or their parts, provided that the employer engages in a like business there, and (2) not exceeding a period of two years from termination of employment.

Additionally, a corporation, partnership, or limited liability company may enter into agreements with their shareholders, partners, and LLC members to restrict them from taking equity stakes in a competing business (as shareholders, partners, or members) and/or merely becoming employees with the competing business.

Action Items

APPLIES TO Public Accommodations Facilities in Nevada Counties of 100,000+ People

EFFECTIVE Varies; See Below

QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call (888) 378-2456

As of August 11, 2020, SB 4 imposes new COVID-19 related worker safety requirements for certain employers, including limited-time protocols for mitigating transmission, cleaning facilities, implementing a response plan, mandated testing in specific circumstances, and paid time off. The director of the Department of Health and Human Services adopted corresponding regulations on August 31, 2020.

Eligibility. The new rules come with moderately complex eligibility provisions. First, the new protocols apply to public accommodations facilities, defined as hotel and casinos, resorts, hotels, motels, hostels, bed and breakfast facilities or other facility offering rooms or areas to the public for financial consideration.  Next, SB 4 applies only to counties with a population of 100,000 or more individuals, such as Clark and Washoe counties.  Finally, the director’s regulations apply (1) during any period of public health emergency due to SARS-CoV-2 as declared by the Governor, (2) any day that the positive rate of COVID-19 testing for any county exceeds 5% in a 14-day rolling period within the previous 90 days, or (3) any day the number of new cases in the county exceeds 100 per 100,000 residents in the same time periods.

APPLIES TO Varies

EFFECTIVE Varies

QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call (888) 378-2456

1. COVID-19: Executive Order Extending Unemployment Insurance
2. DOL Releases Guidance on Application of FFCRA to Federal Contracts
3. DOL’s Joint Employer Standard Struck Down
4. EEOC Releases Guidance on Managing Opioid Addition in the Workplace
5. 7^th Circuit: FAA Applies to Food Delivery Drivers’ Arbitration Agreements
6. Alabama: New Notice and Reporting Requirements for Separations and New Hires
7. California: Appeals Court Limits PAGA Filings
8. Connecticut: Masks Mandatory Everywhere
9. Kansas: Adds LGBTQ Protections to Anti-Discrimination Rules
10. Rhode Island: Clarifies When Employers May Terminate Employees for Refusing Drug Tests
11. Philadelphia, PA: Wage Equity Ordinance Unblocked, Enforcement Begins
12. Tennessee: New COVID-19 Isolation and Quarantine Guidelines
13. Washington: Supplemental Paid Sick Leave for Food Production Workers
14. Wisconsin: Mitigating Unemployment Insurance Charges for COVID-19

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APPLIES TO All Employers

EFFECTIVE June 13, 2020 and July 20, 2020

QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call (888) 378-2456

On July 20, 2020, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) revised its guidelines for when employees may return to work following infection or exposure to COVID-19. For non-healthcare settings, changes were made to the symptom-based strategy:

• Persons with COVID-19 who have symptoms and were directed to care for themselves at home may discontinue isolation under the following conditions:
• At least 24 hours have passed since resolution of fever without the use of fever-reducing medications; and 
• Improvement in other symptoms (e.g., cough, shortness of breath); and,
• At least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared.