- Written by: John E. Falcone
Several months ago we alerted you to the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that you give a written notice to all employees about the new health insurance Exchanges by October 1, 2013. It is important to remember that you must also give the notice to each new employee at the time of hire or no later than within 14 days of an employee’s start date. The U. S. Department of Labor (DOL) has provided a model Exchange notice for employers who offer a health plan to some or all employees, and a separate model notice for employers who do not offer a health plan. Those model notices are found on the DOL’s web page with other information about the Act" . Employers may use one of those models or may use another form of notice, provided that the notice contain the required information as described on the DOL’s information page.
- Written by: John E. Falcone
Two federal Courts of Appeal recently struck down the National Labor Relations Board rule that required employers covered by the National Labor Relations Act to post a new notice of labor rights. The courts ruled that the NLRB had exceeded its legal rule-making power in promulgating the rule. In a statement released January 6, shortly after the deadline for filing a petition for certiorari with the U. S. Supreme Court, the Board announced that it “decided not to seek Supreme Court review of two U. S. Court of Appeals decisions invalidating the NLRB’s Notice Posting Rule, which would have required most private sector employers to post a notice of employee rights in the workplace.”
The litigation concerning the poster requirement now appears to be ended. Although employers are not required to post the notice, they may do so voluntarily. The 11 by 17 inch poster is available on the NLRB website.
- Written by: John E. Falcone
Open enrollment under the Affordable Care Act’s new health insurance Exchanges will begin on October 1, 2013, with coverage to begin on January 1, 2014. The Act requires employers to give a written notice to employees about the Exchanges by October 1. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has provided a model Exchange notice for employers who offer a health plan to some or all
- Written by: John E. Falcone
The federal 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, which includes Virginia, has struck down the National Labor Relations Board rule that required employers covered by the National Labor Relations Act to post a new notice of labor rights. Under this rule, most private-sector employers would have been required to display a poster in the workplace, plus post the notice on an employer’s Intranet if that is where they normally display workplace policies. The 4th Circuit ruled that the NLRB had exceeded its legal rule-making power in promulgating the rule. This decision follows a similar decision of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals which also struck down the rule.
- Written by: John E. Falcone
The U.S. Treasury Department announced yesterday that the Affordable Care Act’s “Pay-or-Play” mandate is being delayed one year to 2015. The mandate requires larger employers (50 or more full-time employees, including full-time equivalents) to provide health insurance to all employees or face yearly penalties. The regulations implementing the mandate have not yet been finalized, and the Treasury cited concerns of business owners about the law’s reporting requirements as the reason for the delay.
- Written by: John E. Falcone
Employers should be aware of a new Virginia law set to take effect July 1. Under the new statute, employers are not required to disclose the “personal identifying information” of current and former employees to third parties unless one of the specified exceptions applies. As signed into law on March 18, Virginia Code § 40.1-28.7:4 defines “personal identifying information” as home telephone number, mobile telephone number, email address, shift times, or work schedule.” There are four exemptions specified in the law, allowing release of a current or former employee’s personal identifying information when it is required (1) pursuant to federal law that preempts the statute; (2) by a court order; (3) pursuant to a judicially issued warrant; or (4) by a subpoena in a pending civil or criminal case or by discovery in a civil case.
- Written by: John E. Falcone
New regulations regarding the Family and Medical Leave Act issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) will go into effect tomorrow, March 8. These new regulations are not as extensive as others issued in the past, and many of the changes focus on military members and their families. For example, the regulations expand the definition of a qualifying exigency arising from a military
- Written by: John E. Falcone
Part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) involves preventive care and wellness. Prior to the PPACA, company wellness programs such as smoking cessation or weight loss programs have been limited by restrictions of the Americans with Disabilities Act and HIPPA. As guidance to the PPACA, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued concerning how employers can structure and operate their wellness programs. The programs can include incentive payments and premium discounts. Along with the proposed regulations, the DOL released a research paper, “,” which provides more information about wellness programs.
- Written by: John E. Falcone
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has released an Employee Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), a 16-page, plain language booklet designed to answer common FMLA questions and clarify who can take FMLA leave and what protections the FMLA provides. Although the booklet is entitled “Employee Guide”, it contains some valuable basic information for employers. The Guide can be accessed on the Wage and Hour Division’s website: CLICK HERE.
- Written by: John E. Falcone
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued a new guidance concerning the use of criminal background checks in the employment application process. The EEOC has cautioned employers in the past about the use of criminal background checks to automatically disqualify employment applicants, because of its potential discriminatory impact on certain minority groups. The new guidance discourages blanket exclusions of applicants who have been convicted of crimes, and encourages the use of “individualized assessments” to determine whether the exclusion of an applicant because of a criminal record is job related and consistent with business necessity.
- Written by: John E. Falcone
The Acting General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has issued a third report in its series on social media cases brought to the agency. The report, issued on May 30, 2012, covers seven cases involving employers’ social media policies governing the use of social media by employees. The NLRB found some of the policies to be unlawful, and cautioned that it believes