Labor and Employment Newsletter

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What legal issues are keeping you up at night?

We are continuing to monitor key trends and significant updates that affect employers across a wide variety of industries. We want to make sure we touch upon issues that are of concern to you. We invite you to take a moment and let us know what you would like to hear more about in this newsletter. Click below to email our team of attorneys.

Updates

32-Hour Workweek? Not Just Yet, California Legislature Says

Mercury in retrograde or a sign of the end times? In a rare win for employers, the California legislature this past week failed to advance Assembly Bill 2932—mandating a 4-day workweek for large employers in the state—after the California State Assembly's Labor and Employment Committee declined to set it for a policy hearing. Sponsor and assembly member Evan Low (D-Campbell) stated AB 2932 was shelved because there was too little time to fully study its implications before taking the next legislative step—an acknowledgment of the wide-ranging effects of and the significant opposition to a law that would be the first of its kind in the United States (and many developed countries).

To Submit or Not to Submit: OSHA Is Asking the Question

On March 28, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced a proposed rule to amend its occupational injury and illness recordkeeping regulation. The proposed amendment will require certain employers, according to their size and industry, to electronically submit injury and illness information to OSHA. Specifically, establishments with 100 or more employees in certain designated industries will be required to electronically submit information from their OSHA Forms 300, 301, and 300A once per year. If the proposed rule is finalized, OSHA intends to make some of the data obtained from these annual electronic submissions available to the public on a searchable online database.

Education Roundup: Addressing FMLA Administration Challenges for Teaching Staff: The FMLA's Special School Rules

Schools face unique issues when coordinating leaves of absence for teaching staff. Although teachers are entitled to take up to 12 consecutive weeks of leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) for covered reasons, honoring their right to take such leave can be challenging for school administrators who are trying to minimize disruption to the classroom.

Attorney Spotlight

Benjamin Stockman: Labor and employment practice is one of the very few legal specialties that demands analysis of an organization's core purpose, policies, and people. I was drawn to this practice because it affords me the opportunity to learn about a wide variety of my clients' businesses and industries while also keeping me grounded in the day-to-day messiness of the workplace. Every employment lawyer understands the expression "You can't make this stuff up." The key to success for the modern employer is to maintain consistency toward their people even in moments like the present, when we all find ourselves saying, "You can't make this stuff up" about the world around us.

About the Labor and Employment Group

The bicoastal, 40-person Labor and Employment team at Venable provides guidance and support across the full spectrum of workplace dynamics – helping employers control costs, avoid disputes, and defend themselves when litigation arises. As co-editors of this newsletter, Michael Volpe and Doreen Martin invite you to share the content with your colleagues and reach out with any questions.