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What I’ve Been Reading This Week

 

With spring right around the corner (after all, Daylight Saving Time is this weekend), it is about the time of year when Girl Scouts will be outside your local grocer selling cookies.  That leads to an article I highlighted below which addresses whether an employer can allow a group like the Girl Scouts on their property while prohibiting other non employees (such as a union).  I will bury the lede and let readers find out more in the below article.

As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week.


Girl Scouts vs. Unions...Can An Employer Lawfully Exclude One From the Premises But Not the Other?

I am sure many readers have gone to the grocery store before and seen Girl Scouts (or sometimes Boy Scouts) selling cookies outside the entrance or exit.  However, in my experience, I cannot recall ever seeing a labor union handing out pamphlets outside these same grocery store doors.  That begs the question:  Can an employer lawfully exclude one group from its premises while allowing another?  As Matthew Christoph writes, that answer is a resounding yes.  A National Labor Relations Board 2019 decision, Kroger Limited Partnership, held that an employer may bar non employees from protesting against businesses on the employer’s property while allowing non protest activities (such as solicitations for charitable donations or civic groups.)  So for those readers that are looking to load up on Girl Scout cookies this spring when making a run to their local grocer, you are in luck!


With Texas Governor Doing Away With Mask Requirement, OSHA Considerations For Employers Remain

Earlier this week, Texas Governor Greg Abbott decided to lift the mask mandate for Texans, much to the chagrin of many across the state.  For the purposes of this post, I would call attention to an article from The National Law Review which noted that even with the mask mandate being lifted, employers in the state still need to be wary of their obligations under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (“OSHA”).  As readers might recall, OSHA sets out certain workplace safety requirements that employers must comply with.  In the case of the coronavirus pandemic, OSHA recently published guidance that suggests using masks in the workplace can slow the spread of the coronavirus.  While Governor Abbott’s measure impacts state law, OSHA is a federal law that employers in the state still need to follow.  For the time being, doing away with a mask requirement in the workplace might not be the best option.

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