iEmployment Law This Week® - Episode 155 March 18, 2020
It’s #WorkforceWednesday. This weekly newsletter provides you with a cost-free, convenient way to quickly browse the most significant news impacting your workforce.
Watch the week’s top workforce management and employment law news and read further below:
COVID-19 Pandemic
The efforts to contain the coronavirus in the United States have entered a new phase, with broad implications for the workplace. Last week, the World Health Organization designated COVID-19 a global pandemic, triggering a wave of travel restrictions and business closures in the United States.
Amended Election Rules Challenged
As expected, the National Labor Relations Board has seen the first challenge to its amendments reversing the “quickie election” rules. The challenge comes from the AFL-CIO, which filed suit to stop the amendments from going into effect on April 16, 2020.
EEOC Limits General Counsel's Authority
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) voted to limit the authority of its General Counsel to decide which cases to pursue. This decision follows an aborted attempt from the EEOC last year to revoke the General Counsel’s litigation authority completely.
Other Highlights
Coronavirus’s Impact on Immigration and Employee Benefits
- Working from home could negatively affect the status of employees who are under H-1B, H-1B1, and E-3 status. Read more in our March Immigration Alert.
- The Internal Revenue Service will allow a high-deductible health plan (“HDHP”) to permit testing for, and treatment of, COVID-19 without a deductible, or with a deductible below the minimum deductible for an HDHP. Here’s more.
NJ Medical Cannabis Users Protected
The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that employees who legally use cannabis, as permitted by the state’s medical marijuana law, may not be fired because they use medical cannabis and that such employees are entitled to reasonable accommodation.
In Case You Missed It: Coronavirus (COVID-19): How to Manage the Impact on Your Global Workforce
In a Deloitte Dbrief webcast, Erika Collins and Susan Gross Sholinsky, Members of the Firm, participated in a panel discussion with members of Deloitte Legal, providing best practices for multinational employers in responding to a global pandemic. Please click here to view the recording of this presentation.
