Labor

  • January 16, 2025

    Insured Atty Says Strike Trade Issues Need Special Coverage

    Union leaders and management for ports and shipping companies reached a tentative deal to avoid a major strike, a close call that highlighted how losses from trade disruptions can fall through the cracks of standard insurance coverage. Stephen Raptis, a partner at Reed Smith LLP's insurance recovery practice, spoke to Law360 about the kinds of losses that can result from a strike-induced supply chain disruption, where the usual coverage options fall short and what policyholders in the maritime trade can do to minimize their risks.

  • January 16, 2025

    Ex-MGM Worker Awarded $133K In COVID Vax Bias Suit

    A Michigan federal jury on Thursday awarded $133,000 to a fired MGM Grand Detroit warehouse worker who had alleged he was improperly denied religious accommodation from the company's COVID-19 vaccine policy.

  • January 16, 2025

    Trump's First Days May Bring Quick Changes To NLRB

    President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House Monday is expected to usher in some immediate changes at the National Labor Relations Board, including key leadership moves that may lead to less heat on employers.

  • January 16, 2025

    Abruzzo Memo Outlines How NLRA Overlaps With EEO Laws

    The National Labor Relations Board's lead prosecutor laid out guidance Thursday for instances in the workplace when the National Labor Relations Act and equal employment opportunity laws intersect, explaining how employers can tweak workplace rules and approach investigations to comply with these statutes.

  • January 16, 2025

    Ogletree Hires Jackson Lewis Atty, Former NBA Counsel

    Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC has hired a former Jackson Lewis PC attorney, who also has experience working in-house for the National Basketball Association as an associate counsel, the firm announced Tuesday.

  • January 16, 2025

    DOL Says Workers Received Millions In Back Wages In FY24

    Workers got back millions of dollars in the last fiscal year while unlawfully employed minors received the protections they deserved after the U.S. Department of Labor stepped in, Solicitor of Labor Seema Nanda said in her office's last enforcement report before the new presidential administration takes office.

  • January 16, 2025

    Blank Rome Adds Stevens & Lee Employment Duo In Philly

    A pair of labor attorneys looking to bolster their practices' national reach have joined Blank Rome's Philadelphia office, after more than six years with Stevens & Lee PC.

  • January 15, 2025

    FTC Won't Disqualify Commissioners From PBM Insulin Case

    The Federal Trade Commission denied bids from Caremark Rx, Express Scripts and OptumRx that sought to bar the commission's Democratic members from participating in a case accusing the pharmacy benefit managers of inflating insulin prices.

  • January 15, 2025

    Starbucks Says NLRB Spats Force Cos. Into 'Box' With Raises

    Separate rulings from the National Labor Relations Board and an agency judge about the legality of granting or withholding raises at unionized Starbucks stores "force employers into a box" because they contradict each other, the company claimed, requesting additional briefing to the board on the issue.

  • January 15, 2025

    Pa. Justices Won't Review Order Allowing Post-Gazette Picket

    The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania won't take up an appeal from the publisher of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which is seeking to block striking union workers from picketing outside a newspaper distribution center, the court announced Wednesday.

  • January 15, 2025

    Allegiant Air Improperly Requiring Trainings, Teamsters Say

    Allegiant Airlines is violating the Railway Labor Act by forcing pilots to complete a series of training sessions while bargaining with the Teamsters' Airline Division is ongoing, the union alleged in an injunction petition filed in Nevada federal court, saying the airline must maintain the status quo during negotiations.

  • January 15, 2025

    Mozilla Settles NLRB Refusal-To-Hire Claim For $300K

    Mozilla Corp. settled an unfair labor practice case accusing the maker of the Firefox web browser of turning down an applicant who posted on social media about her job search, with the company agreeing to shell out $300,000 to the worker.

  • January 15, 2025

    Trump Chooses Former DOL Official As Its Deputy Secretary

    President-elect Donald Trump said late Tuesday he plans to nominate former EEOC Commissioner and Department of Labor official Keith Sonderling for deputy labor secretary, the second-in-command at the DOL.

  • January 14, 2025

    GOP Objects To FTC Move To Protect Unionizing Gig Workers

    The Democratic-led Federal Trade Commission held its final meeting before President-elect Donald Trump takes office next week, moving to protect unionizing gig workers and examine investor holdings in the single-family-housing market, while the Republican waiting to take the helm said the body should stop announcing new plans.

  • January 14, 2025

    New Probe Opened Into UAW Misconduct Claims, Report Says

    A court-appointed monitor overseeing the United Auto Workers as part of a corruption case settlement said he launched a new investigation into misconduct claims against union officials, while noting the union has handed over requested documents.

  • January 14, 2025

    Pilot Can Seek Arbitration Without Union, Alaska Judge Rules

    The Railway Labor Act allows a commercial air pilot to independently pursue in arbitration his claim that a commercial air carrier fired him without just cause even after a union refuses to do so, an Alaska federal court ruled Tuesday.

  • January 14, 2025

    8th Circ. Says Arb. Board Must Decide Worker Vacation Issue

    A Missouri federal judge should have let an arbitration board decide whether a wrongfully fired railroad conductor qualified for paid vacation time after his reinstatement, the Eighth Circuit said Tuesday, reversing the judge's decision that the worker qualified and remanding the issue to the arbitration board.

  • January 14, 2025

    UFCW Units Fight NLRB Subcontract Clause Order At 9th Circ.

    United Food and Commercial Workers locals in California urged the Ninth Circuit to nix a National Labor Relations Board finding that a clause barring subcontracting in a labor contract with Ralphs Grocery Co. is unlawful, challenging the board's reference to a 1980s agency precedent about such provisions.

  • January 14, 2025

    FTC Issues Second Report On PBMs, Expanding Study Scope

    The Federal Trade Commission released a second "interim" report on pharmacy benefit managers and their effects on specialty drug prices Tuesday, claiming that the companies have driven up prices well over acquisition costs and continue to squeeze independent pharmacies out of the market through low reimbursement rates.

  • January 14, 2025

    New Hampshire Electric Co. Snubbed Union, NLRB Says

    A New Hampshire electric company refused to bargain with its employees' newly installed union as a way to challenge the union's certification in court, the National Labor Relations Board said, ruling the company violated federal labor law and ordering it to begin negotiations.

  • January 13, 2025

    Amazon, NLRB Attys Challenge Union Representation Ruling

    National Labor Relations Board prosecutors and Amazon have challenged a decision that the company tainted a union representation election at an Alabama warehouse, with prosecutors saying the NLRB judge should have identified more labor law violations and Amazon saying its opposition to the union campaign was legal.

  • January 13, 2025

    Boston Hotel Illegally Pulled Recognition, NLRB Judge Says

    A Boston hotel violated federal labor law by withdrawing recognition from a UNITE HERE affiliate, a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled Monday, saying the company did not prove that the union lost majority support.

  • January 13, 2025

    SEIU Rejoining AFL-CIO Gives Labor Boost Before Trump

    The Service Employees International Union's reunion with the AFL-CIO last week, experts said, will make it easier for the labor movement to coordinate as it enters what is expected to be a challenging time for unions and organizing.

  • January 13, 2025

    9th Circ. Won't Revive Salmon Processing Workers' OT Suit

    The Ninth Circuit declined to reinstate a lawsuit brought by former workers for a salmon processing company who accused it of failing to pay them overtime wages when it required them to be on call during the COVID-19 pandemic, finding the workers were not often called to return to work.

  • January 13, 2025

    Yellow Corp. Says Pension Funds Set Liability Too High

    Bankrupt trucking company Yellow Corp. told a Delaware bankruptcy judge on Monday that the administrators of its union pension funds have set the company's liability for ending its contributions too high.

Expert Analysis

  • Handbook Hot Topics: Workplace AI Risks

    Author Photo

    As generative artificial intelligence tools penetrate workplaces, employers should incorporate sound AI policies and procedures in their handbooks in order to mitigate liability risks, maintain control of the technology, and protect their brands, says Laura Corvo at White and Williams.

  • Water Cooler Talk: Investigation Lessons In 'Minority Report'

    Author Photo

    Tracey Diamond and Evan Gibbs at Troutman Pepper discuss how themes in Steven Spielberg's Science Fiction masterpiece "Minority Report" — including prediction, prevention and the fallibility of systems — can have real-life implications in workplace investigations.

  • NCAA's Antitrust Litigation History Offers Clues For NIL Case

    Author Photo

    Attorneys at Perkins Coie analyze the NCAA's long history of antitrust litigation to predict how state attorney general claims against NCAA recruiting rules surrounding name, image and likeness discussions will stand up in Tennessee federal court.

  • SAG-AFTRA Contract Is A Landmark For AI And IP Interplay

    Author Photo

    SAG-AFTRA's recently ratified contract with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers introduced a framework to safeguard performers' intellectual property rights and set the stage for future discussions on how those rights interact with artificial intelligence — which should put entertainment businesses on alert for compliance, says Evynne Grover at QBE.

  • How Dartmouth Ruling Fits In NLRB Student-Athlete Playbook

    Author Photo

    A groundbreaking decision from a National Labor Relations Board official on Feb. 5 — finding that Dartmouth men's basketball players are employees who can unionize — marks the latest development in the board’s push to bring student-athletes within the ambit of federal labor law, and could stimulate unionization efforts in other athletic programs, say Jennifer Cluverius and Patrick Wilson at Maynard Nexsen.

  • What's At Stake In High Court NLRB Injunction Case

    Author Photo

    William Baker at Wigdor examines the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to hear Starbucks v. McKinney — where it will consider a long-standing circuit split over the standard for evaluating National Labor Relations Board injunction bids — and explains why the justices’ eventual decision, either way, is unlikely to be a significant blow to labor.

  • Employer Lessons From NLRB Judge's Union Bias Ruling

    Author Photo

    A National Labor Relations Board judge’s recent decision that a Virginia drywall contractor unlawfully transferred and fired workers who made union pay complaints illustrates valuable lessons about how employers should respond to protected labor activity and federal labor investigations, says Kenneth Jenero at Holland & Knight.

  • Workplace Speech Policies Limit Legal And PR Risks

    Author Photo

    As workers increasingly speak out on controversies like the 2024 elections and the Israel-Hamas war, companies should implement practical workplace expression policies and plans to protect their brands and mitigate the risk of violating federal and state anti-discrimination and free speech laws, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • Where Justices Stand On Chevron Doctrine Post-Argument

    Author Photo

    Following recent oral argument at the U.S. Supreme Court, at least four justices appear to be in favor of overturning the long-standing Chevron deference, and three justices seem ready to uphold it, which means the ultimate decision may rest on Chief Justice John Roberts' vote, say Wayne D'Angelo and Zachary Lee at Kelley Drye.

  • Trends That Will Shape The Construction Industry In 2024

    Author Photo

    Though the outlook for the construction industry is mixed, it is clear that 2024 will bring evolving changes aimed at building projects more safely and efficiently under difficult circumstances, and stakeholders would be wise to prepare for the challenges and opportunities these trends will bring, say Josephine Bahn and Jeffery Mullen at Cozen O'Connor.

  • A Focused Statement Can Ease Employment Mediation

    Author Photo

    Given the widespread use of mediation in employment cases, attorneys should take steps to craft mediation statements that efficiently assist the mediator by focusing on key issues, strengths and weaknesses of a claim, which can flag key disputes and barriers to a settlement, says Darren Rumack at Klein & Cardali.

  • 3 Areas Of Focus In Congressional Crosshairs This Year

    Author Photo

    Companies must prepare for Congress to build on its 2023 oversight priorities this year, continuing its vigorous inquiries into Chinese company-related investments, workplace safety and labor relations issues, and generative artificial intelligence, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Water Cooler Talk: Insights On Noncompetes From 'The Office'

    Author Photo

    Troutman Pepper’s Tracey Diamond, Evan Gibbs, Constance Brewster and Jim Earle compare scenarios from “The Office” to the complex world of noncompetes and associated tax issues, as employers are becoming increasingly hesitant to look to noncompete provisions amid a potential federal ban.

Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Employment Authority Labor archive.