Laborsphere

Ontario Moving to Step 2 of its Reopening Plan on June 30

Effective June 30, 2021, all public health units in Ontario may move to Step 2 of the province’s Roadmap to Reopen. On June 30, all public health units in Ontario will be subject to the requirements established by O. Reg. 263/20, Rules for Areas in Step 2, as amended by O. Reg. 488/21, along with any other conditions that may apply in specific public health units. Due to a recent surge of COVID-19 cases in certain regions, including the Region of Waterloo, not all public health units will move into Step 2 at this time.

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Supreme Court Decides Cedar Point Nursery et al. v. Hassid et al.

On June 23, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Cedar Point Nursery et al. v. Hassid et al., holding that a California regulation that granted labor organizations a right to take access to an agricultural employer’s property to solicit support for unionization constitutes a per se physical taking.

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Visa Options and Immigration Strategies for Manufacturers

Many visa options exist to enable U.S. manufacturing companies to employ talented professionals, researchers and managers who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents. This article will introduce the primary nonimmigrant (temporary) visa categories used by U.S. manufacturing companies to employ foreign national workers. The article will also provide key information about the permanent residency (green card) process. Manufacturing employers typically employ foreign nationals initially in a temporary nonimmigrant visa category. Thereafter, the manufacturer may begin working on a permanent residency case once the company has determined that it wishes to try to employ the foreign national on a permanent basis.

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Luxembourg Extends Cross-Border Tax and Social Security Agreements with Neighboring Countries

Over the past fifteen months, many countries have introduced creative new approaches to address the economic realities of the COVID-19 pandemic. As employees continue to work remotely and employers reconsider whether employees must return to the workplace at all, some jurisdictions have implemented measures to accommodate the needs and interests of both employers and employees in the ever-changing and evolving employment environment. Luxembourg is an example of a country that has sought to develop solutions with its neighboring nations to ease the economic burden of the COVID-19 pandemic on workers.

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Summary of Cal/OSHA’s Revised COVID-19 ETS Adopted on June 17, 2021

On June 17, 2021, the California Occupational Safety & Health Standards (Cal/OSHA) Board voted to re-adopt its COVID-19 prevention emergency temporary standards (ETS) incorporating changes Cal/OSHA noticed on June 11, 2021 (revised ETS).

The revised ETS (which will make changes to California Labor Code Sections 3205 through 3205.4) are aligned with the latest guidance by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). The revised ETS are also aligned with Governor Newsom’s guidelines to reopen California as of June 15, 2021. Following Cal/OSHA’s vote, Governor Newsom signed an Executive Order on June 17, 2021, enabling the revised ETS to take effect without the normal 10-day review period by the Office of Administrative Law.

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Accrued but Unused Vacation Pay Must Be Paid Out Upon Termination of Employment in Colorado

Colorado’s Supreme Court found that Colorado employees receiving vacation time must be paid out accrued but unused time when their employment is terminated. In Carmen Nieto v. Clark’s Market, Inc., the state Supreme Court held that if an employer chooses to provide vacation pay, all accrued but unused vacation pay must be paid to employees upon termination and that no agreement to the contrary will be enforced.

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