On August 20, 2024, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a Memorandum Opinion and Order setting aside, on a nationwide basis, the Federal Trade Commission’s (“FTC”) Non-Compete Rule (Ryan LLC v. Federal Trade Commission (3:24-cv-986)). The Court decided that the FTC’s Non-Compete Rule was unlawful and
Labor & Employment
Fierce Competition – Update on Litigation of FTC’s Non-Compete Ban
As we discussed in an earlier post, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued a final rule prohibiting post-employment non-compete clauses for workers in the United States. FTC’s final rule takes effect on September 4, 2024. However, the rule is currently being litigated in several jurisdictions, including applications for preliminary injunction to prevent it from…
Fierce Competition – Update on Litigation of FTC’s Non-Compete Ban
As we discussed in an earlier post, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued a final rule prohibiting post-employment non-compete clauses for workers in the United States. FTC’s final rule takes effect on September 4, 2024. However, the rule is currently being litigated in several jurisdictions, including applications for preliminary injunction to prevent it from…
“A Rose By Any Other Name”, The Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act
The Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (“GENDA”) was signed into law by Governor Cuomo in January 2019. The law added gender expression and gender identity to the State’s Human Rights Law as a protected class and prohibits unlawful discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations based on a person’s gender identity or expression.
GENDA defines gender…
NLRB Issues Guidance Regarding Severance Agreement Provisions
As discussed in my recent blog, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in its McLaren Macomb decision has ruled that confidentiality clauses which prohibit an employee from disclosing the terms of her or his severance agreement and clauses that prohibit an employee from disparaging their employer as conditions to receipt of a severance payment…
NLRB Limits Certain Severance Agreement Provisions
It has long been common practice for employers to require a terminated employee to sign a separation agreement as a condition to receiving a severance payment. Such agreements usually include, among other things, the amount and timing of such payments, a general release in favor of the employer (including specific age discrimination waivers if the…
“Construction Labor Providers” In New York City Must Obtain a License
Effective as of June 9, 2022, the Administrative Code of the City of New York[1] was amended to require that “certain businesses that supply their employees to clients for the performance of construction work or manual labor on the client’s construction site, in exchange for compensation, be licensed.”[2]
These businesses are defined as…
New York State Now Requires All Health Care Workers to Receive a COVID-19 Booster Shot
New York state now requires all health care workers to receive a COVID-19 booster shot within two weeks of becoming eligible. An individual is considered eligible for the booster five months after receiving the second shot in a two-dose regime (either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine) or two months after receiving the J&J single dose…
New York Dramatically Expands Protections for Private-Sector Whistleblowers
New York Governor Kathy Hochul recently signed S.B. 4394, an amendment of Section 740 of the New York Labor Law that amounts to a significant expansion of safeguards for whistleblowers. Effective January 26, 2022, the new law broadens the definition of retaliation, creates new notice and reporting requirements, extends certain protections to former employees and…
Its High Time to Fix Employer’s Half-Baked Marijuana Use Policies
As we discussed in an earlier related blog post, effective March 31, 2021, the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (“MRTA”) legalized the use of recreational marijuana for adults who are 21 and older and amended New York Labor Law 201(d), among other revisions, to prohibit employers from discriminating against an employee for such employee’s…