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Daily Archives: August 13, 2021

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Simon Paschal Says: Flexibility is Key

It’s August 2021.  We all thought COVID would be behind us at this point.  We are all exhausted.  We are all mentally drained.  And as employers, you’ve spent the last nearly year and a half dealing with workplace changes, new laws, and constantly changing agency guidance.  Unfortunately, though, it looks like the rest of 2021 could be more of the same.  We’re here to tell you that you can handle it.  The key is flexibility. While you may be ready to return to the office, with variant surges and fewer public mandates in place, the best approach might be to Read more
Simon Paschal August 13, 2021 , , 354 1 Read more
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Is the Biden Administration Eliminating Non-Compete Agreements?

On July 9, 2021, President Biden signed an Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy.  The EO outlines a need to create a fair, open, and competitive marketplace.  A lot of the areas identified are non-employment related areas such as cable/internet providers and costs, farming, and government contracts.  The EO does, however, contain a paragraph addressing non-compete agreements.  Specifically, the EO states that “the Chair of the FTC is encouraged to consider working with the rest of the Commission to exercise the FTC’s statutory rulemaking authority under the Federal Trade Commission Act to curtail the unfair use of Read more
Simon Paschal August 13, 2021 , , , , , , 365 0 Read more
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Federal Court in Texas Confirms Employers Can Mandate COVID-19 Vaccine

In June, a judge in the U.S. District Court of Texas – Southern Division, confirmed employers can terminate employees for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine.  In a lawsuit brought by more than 100 employees at Houston Methodist Hospital, U.S. District Judge Hughes granted Methodist’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit.  The employees attempted to allege that they were being forced to take a vaccine that they deemed “experimental.”  This argument was summarily dismissed as the Judge noted that Texas law only protects employees from being terminated for refusing to commit an act carrying criminal penalties to the worker.  Receiving a Read more
Simon Paschal August 13, 2021 , , , 381 0 Read more
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Changes Employers Need to Know Regarding Texas Sexual Harassment Law

Starting on September 1, 2021, Texas’ sexual harassment law will have some fairly significant changes.  This past summer, both the Texas state house and senate passed amendments to Section 21 of the Texas Labor Code. The most significant change is that the law will now apply to companies with one employee or more (previously the law only applied to employers with 15 or more employees). The new law now covers every employer in Texas.  The definition of employer is also expanding to include individuals who act “directly in the interests of an employer in relation to an employee.”  This means Read more
Simon Paschal August 13, 2021 , , , , , , , , 461 0 Read more
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Amazon Abandons Arbitration: Should My Company Follow Suit?

You are likely already bound by many mandatory arbitration clauses tucked away in your contractual agreements, whether as an employer, employee, or even a consumer. This has traditionally been the route for companies hoping to deter class action claims from customers and employees, and to keep their disputes out of the public eye. However, after facing an unreasonable amount of individual arbitration demands by consumers regarding the Echo Dot device, Amazon jumped ship on arbitration due to the impending massive costs. Because of this decision, consumers can now file individual claims against the company or even group together in a Read more
Simon Paschal August 13, 2021 , , , 451 0 Read more
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