Resource Center

July 30, 2016 – by Jim Spencer For several years, the EEOC has interpreted Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) as forbidding any employment discrimination based on sexual orientation. The EEOC’s position is that even though Title VII doesn’t say anything about sexual orientation, the […]

July 29, 2016 – by Jim Spencer By now, most of us are tired of hearing about new federal regulations on employers. But the regulators in Washington aren’t getting tired.  Instead, they’re picking up steam during the last months of the current administration. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is […]

May 18, 2016 – Jim Spencer After months of anticipation and dread from employers, the U.S. Department of Labor has announced the content of its updated regulations governing the exemption of executive, administrative, and professional (“EAP”) employees from minimum wage and overtime requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The new rules […]

Earlier today, the Department of Labor announced that the definition of “Spouse” under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is changing, effective March 27, 2015.  The current definition of “Spouse” looks to the place of residence – i.e., where an employee lives – in determining whether an employee is married.  The new […]

To view this Alert in pdf, click here. On March 25, 2014, in the case of U.S. vs. Quality Stores, Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court held that severance payments to employees are “wages” that are subject to FICA withholding (i.e., withholding for Social Security and Medicare taxes). In our experience, it […]

Earlier this summer, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a key section of the Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”), which had limited the federal government’s definition of “spouse” to opposite-sex spouses. This decision has far-reaching implications and affects more than one thousand provisions in federal law. The Family and Medical […]

One year ago, we published an Alert on a new rule issued by the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”), requiring virtually all employers to post a notice about employees’ rights under the National Labor Relations Act. (Click here to view that Alert.) The rule was supposed to take effect in […]

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Family & Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) on February 5, 2013, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) has issued new FMLA regulations that will take effect on March 8, 2013. Employers should immediately review the changes to the regulations and then make necessary revisions […]

The National Labor Relations Board (the “NLRB”) is becoming increasingly active in its efforts to address unionization. Last August, the NLRB issued a new rule that requires almost all employers – even those without unions – to post a notice about employees’ rights under the National Labor Relations Act (the […]

Married couples have available to them greater (and more advantageous) estate planning options than unmarried couples. Yet unmarried couples face many of the same estate planning concerns as married couples. So they must engage in special planning to ensure that their decisions regarding asset distribution and health care are carried […]