As many readers have likely experienced, some workplaces are permeated with overtime abuse by hourly workers. Whether this overtime abuse is intentional or not, it can lead to employers incurring unexpected (and avoidable) labor costs and other employees feeling a sense of resentment toward those co-workers that are ‘milking’ the system. All of the below articles are worth a read, but I call particular attention to the EmpLAWyerologist article on the topic.
As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week.
Following the 2018 Election, What Can Employees & Employees Expect From the New Congress
On Tuesday, pro-business and pro-employer stalwarts, Bruce Rauner (Republican Governor of Illinois) and Scott Walker (Republican Governor of Wisconsin), were voted out of office after their reelection bids were sidelined by their Democratic challengers. While the employment and labor law future for employers in those states look bleak, Fisher Phillips published an article with an eye on how the U.S. Congress is likely to handle employment and labor law related legislation now that Democrats took control of the House while Republicans held onto the Senate. The entire article is worth a read, but long story short, things are likely to grind to a halt in Congress while there is likely to be more progress at the statewide and local levels.
Predictive Scheduling: Not Quite a National Phenomenon...Yet
A few years ago, I highlighted predictive scheduling ordinances that had started to pop up around the country. In short, these ordinances are aimed at mandating predictive schedules for workers a few weeks in advance and imposing penalties if employers change the schedules. HR Dive has a well researched article that reviews the current predictive scheduling laws in place around the country. Of note, each city or state that has enacted a predictive scheduling ordinance has a link to the actual ordinance itself for readers to review further, if interested.
Employee Overtime Abuse...What Can An Employer Do?
Unfortunately, something that many employers often see is overtime abuse by their employees. The EmpLAWyerologist took a close look at the matter and suggested a few things that employers can do to help curb overtime abuse. While several suggestions are provided, I think one of the paramount ideas is that employers actually implement and (evenly) enforce an overtime policy. Picking and choosing when and to whom to apply an overtime policy to can lead to avoidable issues down the road. Employers, be smart.
Should Non-Smoking Workers Get Extra Vacation Days? Perhaps
USA Today reported earlier this year that approximately 42% of non-smoking workers believe they should receive between 3-5 extra vacation days a year. Before you call this idea outlandish, consider the strain on employers that have employees that take smoke breaks. A study found that the average smoker wastes 6 days each year taking smoke breaks at work. Six days...that is no small potatoes. In fact, one company in Japan has implemented a policy to give 6 extra vacation days a year to its non-smoking employees. While that idea might not catch on stateside, it does show that at least one employer has found a way to ‘reward’ non-smoking employees that are not continually consuming work time to step outside for a smoke break.
The Ongoing Conflict Over Employee Protections For Marijuana Use: State Laws v. Federal Law
Readers will recall that over the past several years, there have been a wide range of developments across the country in regard to an employee's use of marijuana and whether an employer could discipline (or even terminate) an employee for their off the clock usage. In perhaps one of the more well known cases, Coats v. Dish Network, the Colorado Supreme Court in 2015 found that while the state lawfully allowed marijuana usage, the fact that federal law barred it meant that the employee could be lawfully terminated for his off the clock usage. On the other hand in Callaghan v. Darlington Fabrics, the Rhode Island Superior Court held last year that an employer unlawfully discriminated against hiring an applicant for an internship position once it became known she was a medical marijuana cardholder. A recent article from The National Law Review shines a further light on the unsettled nature of the matter and how courts across the country are issuing conflicting rulings as to an employee's off the clock marijuana usage. Employees, take note. Depending the state you work in, an employer *might* be able to lawfully terminate you for your off the clock marijuana usage...even if off the clock marijuana usage is lawful under your state's laws.
Massachusetts & Its New Non-Compete Law
Perhaps this should have been The National Law Review edition this week? Some readers might have heard that Massachusetts has a new non-compete law that has been in place for about a month now. As noted, The National Law Review took a look at four different portions of the new law and how things are playing out so far. Even for those readers not in Massachusetts, this is a good article that parses some of the more nuanced portions of non-competes.
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