Insights

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Category: Agency Enforcement

OSHA Issues Proposal To Reinstate Controversial “Union Walkaround Policy”

The U.S. Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has proposed revising its regulations to expressly permit employees to designate third parties, such as labor union officials, to accompany OSHA compliance officers on walkaround inspections of an employer’s workplace. The proposal essentially seeks to reinstate an Obama Administration policy that was ruled unlawful because it was not adopted through...
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Category: Agency Enforcement

OFCCP Posts New “CSAL” List Targeting 1,000 Establishments for Compliance Audits

Following recent actions by the Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) that include adoption of a burdensome scheduling letter and revised evidentiary standards for alleged compliance violations, OFCCP has posted online a new Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL) targeting 1,000 federal contractor establishments for an upcoming compliance evaluation. The related methodology indicates that the list consists primarily of federal contractors in...
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Category: Government Contracts

New Law Banning TikTok on Government Devices Is Impacting Federal Contractors

The “No TikTok on Government Devices Act”—which Congress passed in December as part of the omnibus spending bill—has compliance implications for federal contractors. A few weeks ago, the Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council published an Interim Rule to implement the new law. The interim rule requires federal contracting agencies to insert into new contracts a clause prohibiting the contractor from...
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Category: ADA

Fourth Circuit Affirms That Expanded Damages/Jury Trials Not Available for ADA Retaliation Claims

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has ruled that equitable relief is the only type of remedy available for retaliation claims brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). On August 16, 2023, the Fourth Circuit held in Israelitt v. Enterprise Services that the ADA’s anti-retaliation provisions do not provide for compensatory or punitive damages or a...
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Category: Agency Enforcement

OFCCP Sues DISH Network Over Suspended 2018 Audits

The Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has filed a formal enforcement action against DISH Network, alleging that since 2018 the company has rebuffed OFCCP’s attempts to schedule its establishments for compliance evaluations. OFCCP initially declined to proceed with a formal enforcement action due to lack of jurisdiction, but the complaint asserts that DISH has once again...
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Category: Discrimination and Harassment

California High Court Rules Third-Party Vendor Can Be Sued for Discrimination Under State Law

The Supreme Court of California has ruled that a third-party vendor performing job application screening services for an employer can be sued directly for discrimination under the state’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). The ruling in Raines v. U.S. Healthworks Medical Group aligns California law with the federal courts’ interpretation that Title VII and other federal antidiscrimination statutes extend...
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Category: FLSA

DOL Proposed Rule Would Make Millions of White Collar Workers Eligible for Overtime

The Department of Labor (DOL) has released its long-expected proposal to revise the regulations governing the minimum wage and overtime exemption for salaried employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The proposed rule would increase by nearly 55 percent the current salary threshold under which an otherwise exempt white collar worker would qualify for overtime pay. Specifically, the minimum...
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Category: ADA

DOJ Proposes Expanded Web Accessibility Regulations for Public Sector Websites

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has proposed revisions to its rules governing the accessibility of state and local government websites under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The proposed rulemaking would not apply to private sector employers, which are covered by ADA Title III, but it sends a strong signal about DOJ’s attitude toward website accessibility,...
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Category: Affirmative Action and Diversity

Fresh After Affirmative Action College Admissions Case Win, Plaintiffs Turn to Private Sector

Affirmative action opponents are following their successful Supreme Court challenge of the admissions policies of Harvard and the University of North Carolina by suing entities in the private sector for allegedly discriminatory race-based employment practices. The American Alliance for Equal Rights filed lawsuits against two major law firms, alleging race-based discrimination in their fellowship programs for summer interns. A separate...
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Category: Discrimination and Harassment

5th Circuit Rules Ultimate Employment Decision Not Required for Title VII Disparate Treatment Claim

The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has reversed its own precedent and ruled that an employee can allege a disparate treatment claim under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act even if the claim does not involve an ultimate employment decision such as termination, denial of a promotion, or the setting of pay. In reversing a...

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