Under new federal regulations issued by the Department of Labor (DOL) effective as of July 1, 2024, employees who are not paid a salary of at least $844 per week ($43,888 per year) are eligible for overtime pay, irrespective of the nature of the work the employee is performing and the level of authority the
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Supreme Court Rulings Bolster Employers’ Ability to Challenge Administrative Agency Actions
By Tracey Levy
Employers’ and business organizations’ legal challenges to recent federal agency determinations in the areas of employment, labor, and wage and hour laws have all been bolstered by the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo (June 28, 2024), which overturned the deference the courts historically have applied to federal agency rulemaking. Days…
Alert to NYS Employers: Extensive Paid Break Time Required Daily for Nursing Employees
By Tracey Levy
Employers face substantial additional payment obligations for employees who need to express breastmilk in the workplace under the terms of a model policy issued by the New York State Department of Labor (“DOL”) that implements recent amendments to the state’s law on this subject. How the Law Has Changed Existing New York law had granted…
FTC Invalidating Non-Competes: Wait and See or Act Now?
By Tracey Levy
Unless blocked by a court order, most non-compete agreements issued by employers throughout the United States will be impermissible as of September 4, 2024. New rules issued by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC): Invalidate current non-compete agreements, except for select senior executives; Ban all new non-compete agreements, for all employees and executives; and Require employers…
Pay Protections for NYS Freelance Workers Take Effect May 20
By Tracey Levy
New York State’s new “Freelance Isn’t Free Act” (FIFA) takes effect on May 20, 2024, adding new legal protections for freelance workers to ensure they are timely paid. In most respects, this new law in New York State aligns with the version that New York City enacted seven years ago. Contracting organizations in New York…
New York Increasingly Protects Those Convicted of Crimes to Enable Future Employment
By Tracey Levy
Do you conduct background checks on your employees? What do you check for and why? Do you have clearly defined criteria on what types of information gleaned from a background check will be disqualifying for a potential new hire? New York law, at the state level and particularly at the city level, sets a range…
NYS Restricts Hush Money for Workplace Complaints of Harassment and Discrimination
By Tracey Levy
Are our case studies too obvious? Are we now at a point where everyone understands that sexual harassment is not acceptable? Should our harassment prevention workshops be focused less on harassment and more on the subtleties of bullying behaviors? In the summer and early fall of 2017, those were the questions I was debating with…
DEI or IED? Will Renaming Save Diversity Initiatives?
By Tracey Levy
How important is a name? It is a question driven to the forefront by the recent backlash against “DEI” – diversity, equity and inclusion programs that many employers put in place to diversify their workforces. After an explosion of such initiatives in 2020 following the murder of George Floyd, there has been a strong backlash…
Rising Pay Thresholds May Impede Classifying NYS Employees as Overtime Exempt
By Tracey Levy
With recent increases that took effect January 1, 2024, the minimum wage in New York is now $16 per hour in New York City and the immediately surrounding suburban counties, and $15 per hour in the rest of the state. Connecticut is at $15.69 and New Jersey is at $15.13 per hour, both statewide. Contrast…
Legacy of an Unsung Hero: Move Beyond a Medical Diagnosis to Reach Talented Individuals
By Tracey Levy
This week our family buried an intellectually brilliant, fiercely determined, infallibly kind individual who lived a far longer, fuller life than any doctor might have predicted. Diagnosed with a progressive, increasingly degenerative medical condition decades ago, this individual consistently focused on leveraging equipment and technology, and the support of family, kind aides, and friends to…