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05 September 2023

Happy Halloween! EEO-1 Filing Opens October 31, 2023

Late last week the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that the 2022 EEO-1 Component 1 data collection will open on October 31, 2023. The deadline for employers to file their EEO-1 reports is December 5, 2023. The EEOC also stated that it will post updated information materials (including a 2022 EEO-1 Component 1 Instruction Booklet) beginning on September 6, 2023. The EEO-1 help desk will open on October 31, 2023.

31 August 2023

U.S. Department of Labor Proposes to Significantly Expand Eligibility for Overtime

On August 30, the U.S. Department of Labor proposed a new overtime rule that raises the salary threshold for the “white collar” exemptions to $1,059 per week, or $55,068 per year—almost $20,000 more than the current $35,568 annual salary threshold. The rule is still only “proposed,” but if it goes into effect the government estimates that more than three million additional workers will be eligible for overtime, and that total wages across the country will increase by more than $1 billion per year.

28 August 2023

NLRB Decision Makes Union Organizing Without an Employee Election Much Easier

For decades, the National Labor Relations Board has recognized the secret-ballot election as the preferred method for employees to determine if they desired union representation. That changed last week, with the Board making it much easier for unions to secure recognition based purely on union authorization cards and a simple demand for recognition.

15 August 2023

ERISA Update: Sixth Circuit Decision Reminds To Review Plan Documents Carefully

On August 1, 2023, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued its decision in Patterson v. United HealthCare Insurance Company.  The Court’s decision serves as a reminder to carefully scrutinize health plan provisions when dealing with plan reimbursement claims. Eric Patterson was injured in an auto accident.  United HealthCare paid for […]

08 August 2023

Demands/Settlement Offers from Trex Properties LLC

Several clients have received letters on behalf of Trex Properties LLC for alleged contamination associated with a former Detrex Corporation facility at 12886 Eaton Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. These letters claim the recipients are liable for response costs to investigate and remediate the contamination under CERCLA (Superfund) and Michigan law. The letters then make a […]

03 August 2023

NLRB Rolls Back Standard for Evaluating Employer Work Rules

Yesterday afternoon, the National Labor Relations Board issued its decision in Stericycle, Inc., nixing a Trump-era standard for workplace rules and returning to a modified version of its 2004 standard. The decision reverses a reasonable standard that incorporated full consideration of important business interests supporting employer workplace rules and policies. The decision creates risk and uncertainty for employers that many reasonable and common workplace rules will be viewed as unlawful under federal labor law.

27 July 2023

IRS Issues Guidance on Expenses Related to COVID-19 and Preventive Care

On June 23, 2023, the Treasury Department and IRS issued Notice 2023-37, which provides that for plan years ending after December 31, 2024, a high-deductible health plan (“HDHP”) will no longer be permitted to provide coverage for COVID-19 testing and treatment under the HDHP before the minimum HDHP deductible is met without jeopardizing a participant’s HSA eligibility. In addition, in Notice 2023-37, the Treasury Department and IRS clarified that the preventive care safe harbor does not include screening (i.e., testing) for COVID-19, effective as of June 23, 2023 (the date that Notice 2023-37 was issued). However, this clarification will not be relevant for HDHPs/HSAs until the first plan year ending after December 31, 2024.

13 July 2023

Supreme Court Modifies Employee Religious Accommodation Standard

In Groff v. DeJoy, the Supreme Court recently “clarified” the Title VII standard that a covered employer must use to navigate an employee’s religious accommodation request. Because the decision will change how courts assess religious accommodation cases, employers subject to Title VII must consider how their religious accommodation processes may require alteration.