The Majority Opinion: Legal Blog

Hazard pay has been a recurring topic over the past year .   Readers will recall reading about developments on that front a few times .  A recent article from Politico provides a bit of an update on the matter but although there is a bit of a silver lining...some employers are feeling the pinch.  That particular article is worth leading things off this week. As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week. Long Beach’s Hazard Pay For Grocery Workers Spurs Others to Follow Suit Alexander Nieves over at Politico wrote a recent article in which he recognized that following the Long Beach City Council approving an additional $4/hour in pay for grocery workers back in January, 37 other cities and counties followed suit and approved additional pay (in the $4 - $5/hour range) for grocery and front line retail workers.  While the article notes that this has proven to be a success (in drawing in and retaining workers), there is also a wary nod to the fact that some smalle

  Today, President Joe Biden is expected to announce that all federal employees and contractors will be required to get the coronavirus vaccine or alternatively submit to mandatory testing and other mitigation efforts. Readers might recall that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) had previously stated that employers that require coronavirus vaccinations is a lawful condition of employment.  The EEOC went one step further and stated that an employee could be fired for refusing to get the coronavirus vaccine.  ( In fact, we recently saw a case where a judge threw out a lawsuit in which employees sued their former employer after they were terminated for refusing to get the vaccine .  According to the judge in that case, these employees had no actionable cause of action against their former employer.)  Other employers, such as New York City, have recently announced a requirement that all workers for the City be vaccinated as a condition of employment. The specifics of how

  As with many labor & employment law related cases (and bills) being litigated around the country, there are always a few that stand out.  This is one to keep an eye on. Some readers might be diligently watching the Olympics every evening (or morning, depending upon your schedule).  As a bit of a tie in with the Olympic events, a recent piece of legislation was introduced in the U.S. Congress by Senators Maria Cantwell and Shelly Moore Capito which seeks to obtain equal pay for all members of the U.S. Olympic team. The legislation, aptly named the Equal Pay for Team USA Act, would ensure equal pay for all U.S. athletes that compete in international sporting events, regardless of gender.  The legislation further stipulates that all athletes would be entitled to equal medical care, travel budgets, and reimbursement of expenses. Readers might recall that the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team has been the “poster child” for the equal pay fight among athletes in recent years.  Similar

  Yesterday, President Joe Biden spoke at an event at the Rose Garden, marking 31 years since the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), in which he pushed for those suffering long term symptoms as a result of the coronavirus to be protected by the ADA. As readers might know, the ADA prohibits discrimination against those workers that are considered to be “disabled” (as defined by the ADA) and requires certain reasonable accommodations for these workers.  As President Biden remarked, some people who contract the coronavirus end up with long term side effects, many of which are still being discovered.  Consequently, President Biden urged for these workers that experience long term side effects following contracting the coronavirus to be covered under the ADA. It is worth noting that no specifics were given by President Biden (or the White House) following yesterday’s remarks about how the ADA would be amended, but I would expect specifics to follow in the coming weeks or months. For a

  On July 21st, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (“CDLE”) issued a revised Interpretative Notice & Formal Opinion #9 in regard to covered employers under the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, Part 2 (“EPEWA”). Under Formal Opinion #9, the CDLE stipulated that covered employers will now have to post wage and benefit information for all covered promotional opportunities and job openings.  Of note, this applies to remote jobs that can be performed anywhere.  However, one carve out is this does not apply to work that is specifically tied to a non Colorado worksite. I would suggest Colorado employers review Formal Opinion #9 for further information and guidance on how the CDLE is now interpreting the EPEWA. For additional information:   https://cdle.colorado.gov/sites/cdle/files/INFO%20%239%20Equal%20Pay%20Transparency%20Rules%20%28revised%207-21-21%29.pdf

  If readers are looking for a key takeaway/development from this week, I call your attention to the confirmation of President Joe Biden’s nominee to serve as General Counsel to the National Labor Relations Board.  While I would not necessarily call the confirmation a surprise, the close confirmation vote further solidifies a divided Congress (and the intent of Democrats to revamp the NLRB in a much more labor friendly version.) As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week. Park City Ski Resorts Hiking Minimum Wage Rates Stop me if you have heard this before:  There is a growing labor shortage nationwide, especially among blue collar and hourly positions.  This article from The Park Record notes that several ski resorts in the Park City area are hiking hourly minimum wage rates to $15/hour in an effort to ensure proper staffing heading into the upcoming ski season.  It should come as no surprise that tourist/resort areas like Park City routinely rely on minimum

  Today, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions will hold a hearing on the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (“the PRO Act”), an extremely labor friendly bill working its way through Congress. For those unfamiliar with the PRO Act, it is an expansive piece of legislation which serves as a “wish list” of sorts for Democrats and organized labor.  In relevant part, the PRO Act would outlaw right to work laws currently in place in over half the country and make it easier for workers to unionize, among other lofty labor friendly proposals. However, with the PRO Act stalling a bit in Congress, there has been increased speculation that Democrats will add the PRO Act to the proposed $3.5 trillion infrastructure bill which only requires 50 votes to be approved.  (As a stand-alone bill, the PRO Act is subject to a filibuster and a necessary 60 vote majority for passage...neither of which Democrats can overcome.) The hearing taking place today is one more step in Democ

Last Friday, over 80 House Democrats sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and requested that paid leave be included in the proposed bipartisan infrastructure legislation making its way through Congress. The House Representatives, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ted Lieu, Andy Levin, and Jerry Nadler, among others, cited the growing need for paid leave for workers across the country as one of the reasons why Congress needed to act swiftly.  Notably, the Representatives cited reports that approximately 100 million workers currently do not have access to paid leave, including many in lower wage jobs.  The letter went on to point out that with the coronavirus pandemic still in play in many parts of the country, the long term side effects of the pandemic necessitates the need for paid leave to be implemented at once. Whether this letter will spur any serious movement remains to be seen.  However, with Democrats having majority control of b

  As things start to get back to normal (in terms of courts holding in person hearings and trials), I suspect the work from home routine of the past 15 months will change a bit.  With that increased travel comes a bit less time to read through articles like I had been used to lately.  This week was no exception with an in person trial taking place...which is quite the change from doing things virtually via Zoom, Teams, etc.  However, there were still a few good articles worth highlighting. As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week. Minimum Time Off: The Next Big Thing? MTO (or minimum time off) is a trend that is starting to take hold in some workplaces.  As this article from HRDive notes, some employers have unlimited paid time off..although that time off policy is not necessarily all it is cracked up to be.  The article points out that some studies have found that workers with unlimited paid time off actually take off less time compared to those that recei

  Recently, the Iowa Supreme Court issued a ruling which upheld and also invalidated Waterloo, Iowa’s ban the box measure . In the Supreme Court’s ruling, the Court upheld a section of the measure which prohibits businesses in Waterloo with more than 15 employees from asking about an applicant’s criminal history until a conditional offer of employment is made.  However, the Court invalidated a portion of the measure which allowed employers to make hiring decisions solely on the basis of an applicant’s criminal history. Following passage of the Waterloo measure, business groups sought to contest it on the grounds that Iowa law prohibits cities and counties in the state from implementing rules for hiring practices.  That legal challenge was struck down when the District Court held that because the Iowa law did not specifically mention Waterloo’s ban the box measure, the measure could remain in place.  The subsequent appeal to the Iowa Supreme Court followed. For additional information:  

  As with many labor & employment law related cases (and bills) being litigated around the country, there are always a few that stand out.  This is one to keep an eye on. A recently introduced bill in the Massachusetts Legislature, H 1234, seeks to change laws in the state by ensuring that all app based drivers can be designated as independent contractors (rather than employees). Unsurprisingly, opposition has started to mount to this legislation as workers and labor friendly groups have called for H 1234 to be struck down.  The argument follows that if app based drivers would be designated as independent contractors rather than employees, these workers would be ineligible for minimum wage, paid time off, and unemployment insurance, among other benefits employees enjoy.  However, some drivers have indicated their support for being classified as independent contractors rather than employees.  For one, being classified as independent contractors allows the drivers to control their ow

Remote work has been a common topic in the workplace for well over the past year and a half.  With remote work comes the topic of where these workers will work when not physically present in the office.  A recent article from Vox takes a look at the topic and where (or rather where not) many of these workers have chosen to live in the age of the remote workplace. As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week. Southwest Airlines Raises Hourly Pay Rate to $15/Hour for 7,000 Workers Effective August 1, Southwest Airlines is expected to raise the hourly pay rate for nearly 7,000 workers to $15/hour.  The move, intended to attract and retain workers, comes as the company sees a ramp up in travel following well over a year of slowdowns as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.  Will other airlines follow suit?  Perhaps, but with Southwest being one of the few airlines to post a profit in Q1, others such as Delta, American, and United might not have the funds to do so. S

  Readers might recall that a few months ago, a group of workers at a Portland area Voodoo Doughnut location sought to unionize .  Although that unionization effort fell short, all is not quiet at the Portland location. A week or so ago, eleven workers at the downtown Portland location (that sought to unionize) staged a walk out on the grounds that the temperature inside the store was too hot and created an unsafe work environment.  (The workers claimed that the temperature inside the store was around 95* and management failed to take steps to protect them.  Voodoo Doughnut released a subsequent statement stating that if they felt there was a risk, steps would have been taken to protect customers and employees.  According to Voodoo Doughnut, they provided workers with extended breaks and shifted production to early morning and late evening hours.)   Although the eleven workers that walked out indicated that they would return the next day, seven of the eleven workers have apparently bee

  Last week, Michigan State Representative Adbdullah Hammoud introduced a bill that would guarantee severance pay to employees when their employers closes their doors or scales down operations. Under the proposal, employees that are let go in mass layoffs (including bankruptcy), would be guaranteed one week of severance pay for every year worked.  The proposal would impact employers in the state with at least 100 employees that let go at least half their employees. Readers might recall that the Workers Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988 (“WARN Act”) requires that companies give 60 days’ notice ahead of mass layoffs.  However, if the company is filing bankruptcy, the debts of secured creditors are paid off first with often very little, if anything, left to go toward the workers.  This proposal would seek to drastically change that. However, with a Michigan Legislature that is controlled by Republicans, this proposed bill has a ways to go before it stands a realistic chan

  Equal pay and pay disclosure laws have become somewhat of a hot button topic across the country in recent years.  A recent development out of Colorado on the topic is worth noting and leading things off this week. As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week. New Colorado Pay Disclosure Law Keeps Some Employers Away Chip Cutter over at The Wall Street Journal wrote an article a few weeks ago that is worth recognizing.  In the article, Cutter points out that while many employers are hiring workers for remote work positions around the country, many are choosing to avoid Colorado as a result of a recent pay disclosure law that went into place.  That law, among other things, requires employers with only just a few workers in the state to disclose the expected salary or pay range...including for remote work positions.  That has left some employers choosing to stay out of the state so as to not fall within the scope of this new law. EEOC Releases Guidance Regarding