Legal Blog

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The NLRB in a Non-Union Setting

Many non-union employers fail to realize that the National Labor Relations Act still applies to them.  While the NLRA is most often applied in the union setting, at its most basic level, the NLRA protects the right of employees to engage in protected concerted activity.  Such protected concerted activity can occur in a union or non-union setting.  With that in mind, we want to go over a few of the more common situations in which the NLRA affects the non-union workplace. One of the most common affected areas is employee handbooks.  Many employers remember several years ago when the National Read more
Simon Paschal March 12, 2021 , , , , , 213 0 Read more
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Do Texas Employers Have to Pay Employees for Work Missed Due to Inclement Weather?

The recent 2021 winter storm in Texas shut down a large portion of the state for the week.  Lack of electricity forced the closing of many businesses.  Those businesses that were able to stay open had numerous absences from employees who could not travel to work because of the snow and ice or could not work remotely because of the lack of electricity at home.  A common question from employers is whether or not they are required to pay employees for work due to inclement weather. The answer depends on a couple factors.  First, is the employee a non-exempt (often, Read more
Simon Paschal March 12, 2021 , , , , , , , , 346 0 Read more
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Transacting Business in Multiple States

Are you registered to do business in every state in which you provide services? What about those states in which your client is based but you provide all your services remote? Or that state in which you have a remote employee who moved away from your corporate office when most businesses transitioned to remote workers in response to COVID-19?  For a lot of business owners, they assume that once they have established their company entity, they are free to transact business as they please (whether they established the entity in the state where their corporate office is located or in Read more
Simon Paschal March 12, 2021 , , , , , , , , , , 230 0 Read more
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How to Conduct a Remote Workplace Investigation

Given that many workplaces continue to operate with a largely or entirely remote workforce due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important for employers to understand the basics of conducting a thorough and effective remote workplace investigation. Many employers in Texas have developed methods and strategies for workplace investigations more generally, but some of those procedures may need to shift for a remote workplace investigation. It can be difficult to conduct a professional and effective remote workplace investigation interview over the computer, but it is certainly possible. The following are tips for employers who are conducting remote workplace investigations. Invest Read more
Simon Paschal February 25, 2021 , , , , 729 0 Read more
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Back to the Basics: Protecting Trade Secrets

When you hire employees to work for your company, it is essential that you know how to protect trade secrets and to ensure that employees do not use information they learn while working for your company in ways that ultimately could harm your business. One of the first topics of examination in any litigation over non-compete agreements, non-solicitation agreements, or theft of trade secrets is whether or not the employer took appropriate steps to protect its trade secrets.  What do you need to know about protecting trade secrets in your Texas business? You should understand how the law defines a Read more
Simon Paschal February 15, 2021 , , , , 762 0 Read more
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The Importance of Job Descriptions & Standard Operating Procedures

Every employer in Texas should understand the importance of job descriptions and standard operating procedures (SOPs) in running a business. Attempting to run a business and to hire employees without these guiding documents can create a variety of problems for your company. You should think of job descriptions and SOPs as roadmaps that provide a working structure for your company. These documents make clear how you are planning for the business to operate and how employees will work in varying positions to ensure that the business functions as you have designed it. Without job descriptions and SOPs, you could end Read more
Simon Paschal January 26, 2021 , , , , 822 0 Read more
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What is the WARN Act in Texas?

Employers in Texas need to learn about the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, and how it applies to employees in the state. While some states have their own state-specific versions of the WARN Act that provide additional protections to employees, Texas does not have one of these laws. Accordingly, employers need to be familiar with the federal WARN Act and any notifications they must provide under federal law to employees prior to a layoff or a plant closing. If you run a business with fewer than 100 employees, the notice requirements for mass layoffs or plant closures Read more
Simon Paschal January 26, 2021 , , , , 1172 0 Read more
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How Will the New I-9 Form Affect Our Hiring?

Whether you are planning to make a couple of new hires in the coming months or you are expanding your business significantly and will bring on many new employees, you may be wondering if the new I-9 form will affect your hiring practices. As you know, an I-9 form is used to verify an employee’s identity and to confirm that the employee is legally authorized to work within the U.S. You likely also know that the federal government announced changes to the I-9 form that have been in effect since May 2020. In addition, as a result of the COVID-19 Read more
Simon Paschal December 30, 2020 , , , , 652 0 Read more
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Can I Video Record an Interview? Are There Legal Issues to Consider?

Employers in Texas who are planning to hire new employees might be thinking about ways to revisit the interviews prior to making a hiring decision. In some cases, members of the hiring team might not be able to be present for all of the interviews, so you might be considering options for ensuring that everyone has the ability to assess candidates for a new position. One potential option some Texas employers might consider is video recording all of the interviews so that it is possible to review the interviews in the coming days before making a decision about an offer Read more
Simon Paschal December 18, 2020 , , , , 666 0 Read more
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What are the Legal Risks of “Joint Employers”?

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is a federal law that governs wage and hour issues for employees across the country. The FLSA has specific requirements when it comes to overtime pay and minimum wage, and all employers must abide by the FLSA when paying employees. Specifically, the FLSA requires all non-exempt employees to be paid one and one-half times his or her hourly wage for any hours worked beyond the 40-hour workweek, and to be paid at least the minimum wage of $7.25 per hour in Texas. Generally speaking, an employer must comply with the FLSA to ensure that Read more
Simon Paschal November 19, 2020 , , , , 742 0 Read more
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