On July 3, 2024, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas (Hon. Ada Brown, U.S.D.J.) issued a Memorandum Opinion and Order (the “Order”) enjoining the enforcement of the FTC’s Non-Compete rule.

Read More >> District Court Enjoins FTC Non-Compete Ban, But With a Catch

Effective June 19, 2024, New York State Labor Law Section 206-c requires all private and public employers to provide 30 minutes of paid break time for employees to express breast milk when the employee has a reasonable need to express breast milk. Prior to enactment of this law, New York State employers were only required to provide reasonable unpaid break time for breast milk expression.

The New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) has issued guidance FAQs on the amended law. NYSDOL’s guidance provides that paid break time must be permitted as often as an employee reasonably needs to express breast milk. NYSDOL has issued a template Policy on the Rights of Employees to Express Breast Milk in the Workplace which provides:

HOW OFTEN DURING THE WORKDAY CAN I TAKE BREAKS TO PUMP BREAST MILK? The number of paid breaks an employee will need is unique to each employee. Your employer must accommodate you whenever you reasonably need to take a break to express milk.

Employees must also be permitted to use existing paid break or meal time if they need additional time for breast milk expression beyond the paid 30 minutes, and employers may not require employees to make up this missed work time. Employees are entitled to paid breaks for breastmilk expression for up to three years following childbirth.

Employers are required to provide written notice of breast milk expression rights to all employees at the time of hire and then annually thereafter. Additionally, notice must be provided when an employee returns from childbirth leave.

Employees must provide reasonable advance notice of their need for lactation breaks. As a reminder, employers must continue to provide a room or other location to express breast milk once an employee submits a written request to their direct supervisor or an individual designated by the employer to process lactation room requests. Employers must respond to lactation room requests in writing within five days.

Lactation rooms must have the following:

• Be close to an employee’s work area
• Provide good natural or artificial light
• Be private – both shielded from view and free from intrusion 
• Have accessible, clean running water nearby
• Have an electrical outlet (if the workplace is supplied with electricity)
• Include a chair
• Provide a desk, small table, counter or other flat surface
• Ability to store pumped breast milk in a refrigerator if one is available

Employers are prohibited from discriminating in any way against an employee who chooses to express breast milk in the workplace.  

If you have any questions about the information presented in this news alert, please contact Laura Harshbarger, Lance Willoughby-Hudson, any attorney in Bond’s labor and employment practice or the Bond attorney with whom you are regularly in contact.

On May 20, 2024, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) announced a final rule updating the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS). The amended rule (29 CFR 1910) better aligns with the United Nations’ Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS).

Read More >> OSHA Issues Final Rule on HazCom Standard

On April 29, 2024, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) published Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace (the “Guidance”). The Guidance took effect immediately and supersedes the EEOC’s previously published guidance from the 1980s and 1990s

Read More >> EEOC Publishes New Guidance on Workplace Harassment for the First Time in Twenty Years

On April 23, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor announced its final rule to increase the minimum weekly salary to qualify for the Fair Labor Standards Act white collar exemptions.  The final rule is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on April 26, 2024, and will become effective on July 1, 2024.

Read More >> U.S. Department of Labor Announces its Final Rule to Increase the Salary Level to Qualify for the White Collar Exemptions

In a 3-2 vote on April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued its final rule on non-compete clauses, declaring all non-compete clauses to be unfair methods of competition, resulting in a national ban on non-compete clauses.

Read More >> Non-Compete Clauses May Be A Thing Of The Past: Analyzing the FTC’s Final Rule Banning Non-Compete Clauses

After much anticipation, New York State lawmakers came to a final agreement on a budget bill, which contains several key changes employers should take note of. Three employment law provisions of Gov. Hochul’s executive budget proposal, which we reported on in January, survived in altered form. Others did not make it into the final approved budget bill.

Read More >> New York State Budget Bill’s Impact on the Workplace: New York Enacts Paid Prenatal Leave and Paid Breast Milk Expression Time, While Keeping Paid COVID-19 Sick Leave on the Books through Mid-2025

New York has long protected its residents from discrimination in the job hiring process with the New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL), which was originally passed in 1945.  New York City also has its own Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) that further covers discrimination in job hiring.

Read More >> Out of State, Keep Them in Mind: New York Anti-Discrimination Laws Extend to Nonresident Job Applicants and Employees

Each year, the EEOC collects workforce data from private sector employers with more than 100 employees (lower thresholds apply to federal contractors). This workforce data is collected through the EEO-1 Component 1 report and includes workplace demographic data such as sex, race and ethnicity, broken down by job category. Employers meeting the reporting thresholds have a legal obligation to provide the data; it is not voluntary. 

Read More >> 2023 EEO-1 Component 1 Data Collection Opening on April 30, 2024

On May 31, 2024, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) new “Walkaround” rule will take effect. The amended rule (29 CFR 1903.8(c)) is a sea change for employers, as it was written with the intent of allowing union representatives to participate in OSHA inspections, even in non-union workplaces.

Read More >> O.S.H.A. Stands for…the Organizing Safety And Health Administration? OSHA’s New ‘Walkaround’ Rule Provides Entry Point for Unions

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced that its Contractor Portal will open to receive Affirmative Action Program (AAP) certification submissions on April 1, 2024. The deadline for contractors to certify that they are in compliance with their AAP obligations for each establishment and/or functional unit is set for July 1, 2024.

Read More >> Alert for Federal Contractors – OFCCP Contractor Portal Will Open for AAP Certification on April 1 and Agency Released Updated Annual Veteran Hiring Benchmark

On March 8, 2024, the Eastern District of Texas issued a decision striking down the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB or Board) recently-adopted rule governing the standard for joint employer status, further delaying the rule’s implementation.

Read More >> Texas Federal Court Strikes Down NLRB Joint Employer Rule