On May 20, 2024, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) announced a final rule updating the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS). The amended rule (29 CFR 1910) better aligns with the United Nations’ Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS).

Read More >> OSHA Issues Final Rule on HazCom Standard

On April 29, 2024, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) published Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace (the “Guidance”). The Guidance took effect immediately and supersedes the EEOC’s previously published guidance from the 1980s and 1990s

Read More >> EEOC Publishes New Guidance on Workplace Harassment for the First Time in Twenty Years

On April 23, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor announced its final rule to increase the minimum weekly salary to qualify for the Fair Labor Standards Act white collar exemptions.  The final rule is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on April 26, 2024, and will become effective on July 1, 2024.

Read More >> U.S. Department of Labor Announces its Final Rule to Increase the Salary Level to Qualify for the White Collar Exemptions

In a 3-2 vote on April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued its final rule on non-compete clauses, declaring all non-compete clauses to be unfair methods of competition, resulting in a national ban on non-compete clauses.

Read More >> Non-Compete Clauses May Be A Thing Of The Past: Analyzing the FTC’s Final Rule Banning Non-Compete Clauses

After much anticipation, New York State lawmakers came to a final agreement on a budget bill, which contains several key changes employers should take note of. Three employment law provisions of Gov. Hochul’s executive budget proposal, which we reported on in January, survived in altered form. Others did not make it into the final approved budget bill.

Read More >> New York State Budget Bill’s Impact on the Workplace: New York Enacts Paid Prenatal Leave and Paid Breast Milk Expression Time, While Keeping Paid COVID-19 Sick Leave on the Books through Mid-2025

New York has long protected its residents from discrimination in the job hiring process with the New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL), which was originally passed in 1945.  New York City also has its own Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) that further covers discrimination in job hiring.

Read More >> Out of State, Keep Them in Mind: New York Anti-Discrimination Laws Extend to Nonresident Job Applicants and Employees

Each year, the EEOC collects workforce data from private sector employers with more than 100 employees (lower thresholds apply to federal contractors). This workforce data is collected through the EEO-1 Component 1 report and includes workplace demographic data such as sex, race and ethnicity, broken down by job category. Employers meeting the reporting thresholds have a legal obligation to provide the data; it is not voluntary. 

Read More >> 2023 EEO-1 Component 1 Data Collection Opening on April 30, 2024

On May 31, 2024, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) new “Walkaround” rule will take effect. The amended rule (29 CFR 1903.8(c)) is a sea change for employers, as it was written with the intent of allowing union representatives to participate in OSHA inspections, even in non-union workplaces.

Read More >> O.S.H.A. Stands for…the Organizing Safety And Health Administration? OSHA’s New ‘Walkaround’ Rule Provides Entry Point for Unions

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced that its Contractor Portal will open to receive Affirmative Action Program (AAP) certification submissions on April 1, 2024. The deadline for contractors to certify that they are in compliance with their AAP obligations for each establishment and/or functional unit is set for July 1, 2024.

Read More >> Alert for Federal Contractors – OFCCP Contractor Portal Will Open for AAP Certification on April 1 and Agency Released Updated Annual Veteran Hiring Benchmark

On March 8, 2024, the Eastern District of Texas issued a decision striking down the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB or Board) recently-adopted rule governing the standard for joint employer status, further delaying the rule’s implementation.

Read More >> Texas Federal Court Strikes Down NLRB Joint Employer Rule

As a reminder, beginning March 12, 2024, Labor Law 201-i prohibits employers from requesting, requiring or coercing an employee or job applicant to: (i) disclose a username and password or other login information in order to access a personal account; (ii) access a personal account in the employer’s presence; or (iii) reproduce information contained within a personal account through unlawful measures. This new legislation also prohibits an employer from discharging or disciplining an employee or refusing to hire an applicant for failure to disclose such information.

The legislation is subject to certain exceptions and limitations. For example, an employer may require disclosure of information to access nonpersonal accounts that allow admission to “the employer’s internal computer or information systems.”[1] Employers may also view, access and rely on information that is publicly available.

The law also sets forth certain notice and acknowledgement requirements which employers must closely review. Specifically, under Section 5(i), an employer may obtain login information for accounts provided by the employer where the account is used for business purposes and the employee was provided prior notice of the employer’s right to inquire about such information. An employer is also permitted to access an electronic communications device which is “paid for in whole or in part by the employer where the provision of or payment for such device was conditioned on the employer’s right to access.”[2] However, the employee must have received prior notice of the condition and explicitly agreed to it. Nonetheless, the employer is prohibited from accessing any personal accounts on the device.

This law excludes law enforcement agencies, fire departments and departments of corrections and community supervision.

If you have any questions regarding the NLRB’s new rule, please contact Kali Schreiner, any attorney in Bond’s labor and employment practice or the Bond attorney with whom you are regularly in contact.

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[1] N.Y. Lab. Law § 201-i (2)(b).

[2] Id. at § 201-i (5)(iii).

On March 1, 2024, New York City’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) released its newly expanded Workers’ Bill of Rights.

The Workers’ Bill of Rights provides information about the rights and protections of employees, independent contractors, and prospective employees in New York City under City, State and federal laws.

By July 1, 2024, employers are required to provide a copy of the Workers’ Bill of Rights to each of their current employees. Thereafter, employers must provide the Workers’ Bill of Rights to each new hire on an employee’s first day of work. Also by July 1, 2024, employers will be required to post the provided poster in a conspicuous location that is accessible and visible to employees. The Workers’ Bill of Rights should also be posted online or on the employer’s mobile application “if such means are regularly used to communicate with [the employer’s] employees.” The distribution and posting must be provided in English and in any language spoken as a primary language by at least 5% of employees, if the DCWP has the Workers’ Bill of Rights available in that language.

Employers that fail to adhere to the posting requirement will incur a $500 penalty, but first-time violators will be given a 30-day window to cure any violation.

If you have any questions about the information presented in this memo, please contact Mallory Campbell, any attorneys in Bond’s labor and employment practice or the Bond attorney with whom you are regularly in contact.