Laborsphere

California Employers: Required Security Screening May Be Compensable Work Time

Employees must be paid for time spent waiting for, and undergoing, searches of their bags, packages and personal technology devices, the California Supreme Court ruled February 13, 2020, in Amanda Frlekin, et al. v Apple, Inc., Case No. S243805, answering a question posed to it by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in a case involving Apple. This decision marks a signature departure from the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, under which time spent undergoing mandatory security screenings is not compensable, the U.S. Supreme Court previously held in Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc. v. Busk, 574 U.S. 27 (2014). This is yet another example of the greater protection that California state laws typically offer employees.

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Third Circuit Upholds Philadelphia Ban on Salary History Inquiries

In early February 2020, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals decided that a Philadelphia ordinance passed years ago could go into effect and that Philadelphia employers will no longer be able to ask job applicants about their salary history in job interviews and related contexts.

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Coronavirus: An Employer’s Action Guide

Daily headlines about the growing coronavirus threat have many employers concerned that they are not doing all they should to protect employees without undue disruption to operations. Here are some answers that may inform your own response plan.

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U.K. Immigration Updates

The Immediate Post-Brexit Landscape

The new relationship between the United Kingdom (U.K.) and the European Union (EU), set in motion by the U.K.’s official departure from the EU, will very likely lead to significant changes to the U.K.’s immigration system, and we are beginning to see a few indications of where the U.K. might be headed.

Currently, we are in a transition period where all rules will stay the same until 31 December 2020. Although little will change until then, negotiations between the U.K. and the EU will begin imminently on the new relationship for 2021. Last week, the British government unveiled a new Global Talent visa route, and the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) released their report on the future immigration system.

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USCIS Announces Change to Overseas Services

On January 31, 2020, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that, effective February 1, 2020, the majority of its international field offices will no longer accept I-130 immigrant petition filings by locally resident U.S. citizens on behalf of their immediate relatives, absent exceptional circumstances meeting a limited definition. Of note, the field offices in Accra, Ghana, and London will continue to accept such filings until April 1, 2020. The announcement is not entirely unexpected as USCIS has given notice previously of its intention to adjust its international footprint. However, the issuance of the news on a Friday before cessation of service the next day was sudden.

Following the end dates described above, unless they meet the limited definition of exceptional circumstances, all I-130 immediate relative petitions will need to be filed online or with the relevant USCIS lockbox in the United States.

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USCIS Issues New Form I-9, Required of All Employers by May 1, 2020

On October 21, 2019, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released a new version of the Form I-9. Employers may use the new version starting on January 31, 2020, but will be required to use the new version starting May 1, 2020. Using earlier versions of the form will not be acceptable after that date.

The Form I-9 is a document that employers must complete to verify the identity and employment authorization of every new hire (both citizens and noncitizens), hired after November 6, 1986, to work in the United States. Employers are liable for all errors on the form (even errors made by the employee in completing Section 1), and employers must retain I-9s for inspection for a certain period of time after an employee leaves the company (either one year after the date of termination or three years after the hire date, whichever date is later).

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