The American First Legal Foundation and other organizations like it, have taken the position that all diversity, equity and inclusion programs are illegal since the Students for Fair Admissions Inc. decision from the U.S. Supreme Court. The groups have already filed actions against several companies for polices that include goals for the placement of people of color and women in leadership and leadership pipeline positions to match community demographics by a certain year; employee training and apprenticeship programs focused on underrepresented groups; and quantitative representation metrics for leadership incorporated into annual incentive compensation awards for senior leadership.
New York State DOL Issues Amended WARN Regulations
The New York State Department of Labor (NYS DOL) amended its Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act (NY WARN) regulations, which took effect on June 21, 2023. Both NY WARN and its federal counterpart require covered businesses to provide advance notice of closures and layoffs to the Commissioner of Labor and affected employees. The NY WARN regulations are more expansive than the federal WARN regulations, defining “covered business” as any private business employing 50 or more full-time employees in New York. As outlined below, it also has stricter notice requirements.
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UK Employment Law Update: Family Acts, UK Government Legislative Proposals and Recent Case Developments
In May, the UK government passed three family-related Acts that employers should be aware of: the Neonatal Care Act; the Protection from Redundancy Act; and the Carer’s Leave Act. UK courts have also made notable rulings on noncompete restrictions, and COVID-19-related health and safety detriment claims.
UK Government Releases Second Statement of Changes of 2023
On 19, July 2023, the UK government released its second Statement of Changes of 2023 that include changes to the Ukraine Scheme Visa, the Visa Nationals List, the EU Settlement Scheme Route, the Student Visa Route, among others.
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Next Stage Considerations About the Supreme Court’s Affirmative Action Decision: How to Put the Warning Letter from the State Attorneys General in Context
As higher education institutions, state and local governments, private employers and federal contractors grapple with understanding the impacts of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. President & Fellows of Harvard College, No. 20-1199 (U.S. June 29, 2023), it is not surprising that elected officials — including 13 state attorneys general — have markedly different views about the philosophy and effects of affirmative action and other race-conscious policies. So, what should potentially affected organizations do in response to this legal uncertainty? We suggest taking a breath and bringing method to the madness.
For the full alert, visit the Faegre Drinker website.
California Supreme Court: Whistleblower Statute Protects Employees Who Disclose Allegedly Unlawful Conduct Even When it is Already Known to the Employer
Recently, the California Supreme Court ruled in The People ex rel. Lilia Garcia-Brower v. Kolla’s Inc. that California’s whistleblower protection statute (Labor Code § 1102.5) protects employees who disclose unlawful conduct, even when the recipient of the disclosure is already aware of the conduct. This ruling expands the definition of “disclose” such that the law now covers a wider array of employee retaliation claims against employers.
Background
Section 1102.5(b) states that employers may not retaliate against an employee for disclosing information (or because the employer believes that the employee has disclosed or will disclose information) about conduct which the employee reasonably believes is unlawful.