This Foley Executive Briefing program examined significant changes in employment law. President Barack Obama is considered by some to be the most union-friendly president in generations, and with 58 Democrats leading the new Congress, a rewrite of employment laws is surely on the docket.
The program covered these proposed bills:
- Healthy Families Act — Requires seven paid sick days for employers with 15 or more employees
- Family Leave Insurance Act — Provides workers with paid benefits under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
- Paycheck Fairness Act — Requires employers to justify economically any differences in pay between men and women
- Independent Contractor Proper Classification Act — Permits the Secretary of the Treasury to review a worker’s complaint that he or she is not an independent contractor
- Employee Free Choice Act — May bring unions to every employer’s doorstep
- Re-Empowerment of Skilled and Professional Employees and Construction Tradeworkers (RESPECT) Act — Redefines “supervisors” under the National Labor Relations Act and could change the composition of many bargaining units
- Arbitration Fairness Act — Outlaws mandatory arbitration agreements between employers and employees
- Equal Remedies Act — Eliminates caps on damages in Title VII and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) cases
These and other bills were addressed in an informal, interactive session led by Ellen C. Kearns, Labor & Employment Of Counsel in Foley’s Boston office and one of the firm’s most experienced wage and hour law attorneys. This program included steps you should take as a Human Resources Department to ready your company for the coming changes.
The New Administration and Congress: Are New Employment Laws Coming? is part of the Foley Executive Briefing Series.