Employers subject to state-level COVID-19 workplace safety standards are wondering what the CDC’s recent “vax or mask” rule means for them. Virginia, for example, is one of a handful of states with a state-level workplace… Read more
Recent Posts
Virginia’s New Overtime Wage Act: Employee Classifications Matter More Than Ever
Although passed with little fanfare, the Virginia Overtime Wage Act (OWA) becomes effective on July 1, 2021. Employers should be aware of this new law because it makes misclassifying employees as exempt from overtime requirements… Read more
Employers May Now Be Required to Report Reactions to COVID-19 Vaccines!
Update May 25, 2021: OSHA revised its FAQs to indicate it will not enforce the recording requirements for COVID-19 vaccine side effects through at least May 2022. We will keep you updated with any new… Read more
Legal Marijuana and Your Workplace: It’s Going to Get Complicated
How high is too high? For the longest time, the answer was easy: “Come to work high and you will be disciplined up to and including termination!” Now the landscape for Virginia workplaces is changing… Read more
Public Sector Unions Are Coming to a Town Near You
Guidance for Local Governments on Collective Bargaining with Public Employees Local governments across Virginia soon will be able to authorize collective bargaining with public sector unions. House Bill 582 legalized public sector bargaining in 2020… Read more
Virginia’s COVID-19 Emergency Standards Are Now Permanent
Virginia’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards Are Now Permanent The Virginia Department of Labor and Industry (DOLI) has enacted a Permanent Standard to replace the Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) (pdf) that became law for Virginia employers… Read more
Storming the U.S. Capitol! Can you fire an employee for rioting?
The World Has Turned Upside Down, But Your Business Should Not! Last week a mob assaulted our democracy and the rule of law in this country. American citizens angry about the results of the 2020… Read more
Can Employers Require Employees to be Vaccinated Against COVID-19? (Coronavirus and the Law)
Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine was approved by the FDA last Friday and distribution has already begun. Yet in a November Gallup Poll, only 58 percent of Americans said they would get a COVID-19 vaccine, up from… Read more
Retaliation: “I know it when I see it!” But do you really?
Retaliation or, at least, the perception of retaliation is on the rise. Has a manager approached you saying an employee should be fired because that employee is abusing COVID leave? Has an employee claimed he… Read more
Collective Bargaining for Public Employees Arrives in the Commonwealth—Virginia HB 582
Public school teachers, firefighters, police officers, and most other local government employees will gain new rights next year. In May 2021, Virginia will permit local governing bodies to engage in collective bargaining with its employees…. Read more