The United States Supreme Court has indicated that it will finally settle the circuit-splitting issue of whether gay and transgender status falls under the protection of Title VII. The court signaled this when it agreed recently to hear three cases that have been appealed to the high court. The three…

Q:  My company offers floating holidays to employees.  Can we have a “use it or lose it” policy for unused floating holidays?  Do they have to be paid out at termination?  What about personal days?

A.  Like many wage and hour questions, the treatment of floating holidays and personal days is governed by state law. As explained in more detail below, in most states, treatment of floating holidays and personal days is governed by the employer’s policy.  However, in California, treatment is governed by state law.

Q: I heard there are some recent changes to New Jersey’s laws regarding employee leave benefits.  Will they affect my company’s employment policies?

A: On February 19, 2019, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation that amends and expands some of the state’s leave laws, including the Family Leave and SAFE Acts, as well as available benefits under New Jersey Family Leave Insurance.  Some of the changes are effective immediately, while others will take effect at a later date. Below are some of the key changes resulting from the recent amendment.

Q.  I heard that the United States Department of Labor is planning to raise the salary threshold for exempt status again. What is the new rule and when does my company have to comply?

A.  On March 7, the U.S. Department of Labor issued its long-anticipated proposed rule that would…

Last week, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) issued its long-awaited proposed change to the minimum salary threshold for the white-collar exemptions under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The new minimum salary threshold is $35,308/year (or $679/week).

This new rule is not finalized nor in effect now. Rather, the…

Q: Is it lawful to require employees or applicants to style their hair in a certain manner?

A: As with most employment-related questions, the answer is it depends.  While employers are generally allowed to adopt basic grooming policies, employers should seek to adopt policies that do not have a disparate impact on minorities and other persons protected by anti-discrimination laws.

Arbitration agreements with employees are a hot topic – and continue to make headlines. As we covered in Part 1 of this blog series, there are many practical and legal considerations involved in deciding whether your business should require employees to arbitrate employment-related disputes (as opposed to resolving them…

Q.  Our company has a policy providing for mandatory arbitration of employment claims. I heard recently that some companies are moving away from these types of policies.  What are the pros and cons of requiring all employees to submit their employment claims to arbitration?

A.  There are a number of issues to consider regarding whether a company should require its employees to submit all employment claims to arbitration. These types of policies have been in favor since the 2018 United States Supreme Court opinion in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, which endorsed mandatory arbitration agreements even where they resulted in employees waiving their rights to pursue claims in a class or collective action.