On May 17, 2022, the Mayo Clinic was sued by a former employee who believes her religious freedoms were violated by the Clinic’s workplace vaccine policies. Notably, Mayo Clinic accepted the plaintiff’s request for a religious exemption from its vaccine requirement. But the employee, Sherry Ihde, claims Mayo Clinic’s requirement that employees exempt from the
Proposed Michigan Bill Banning Discrimination Based on Hair Texture and Race-based Hairstyles Stalls
A Michigan bill to amend Michigan’s principal anti-discrimination statute to explicitly ban race-based hair discrimination, e.g., prohibiting discrimination based on hair texture and style, has stalled in the state legislature.
Specifically, Michigan House Bill 4275, also called the CROWN Act (an acronym standing for Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair), was introduced
OSHA to issue Vaccine and Testing Mandates to Large Employers
On September 9, 2021, the Biden Administration announced the U.S. Labor Department (DOL) will issue an emergency rule requiring companies with 100 or more employees to ensure employees are either fully vaccinated or test negative for Covid-19 at least once a week.
This emergency rule was one part of a series of aggressive initiatives to
President Biden to Even Playing Field by Targeting Noncompete Restrictions
President Biden signed an Executive Order broadly targeting anti-competitive tactics that disadvantage smaller businesses and people.
One aspect of this order targets the use of noncompete agreements. Under the Order, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is encouraged to ban or limit noncompete agreements.
Michigan Launches COVID-19 Ambassador Program to Educate Michigan Businesses on Workplace Safety Guidelines
Michigan’s Dept. of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) and Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) launched a new program focused on supporting Michigan businesses to reopen safely in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The program is called the MIOSHA Ambassador Program. It offers education and one-on-one guidance to help businesses understand regulations on workplace
Coronavirus Restrictions Implemented at Michigan U.S. District Court for the Eastern District
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan announced on March 11, 2020, visitor restrictions for entering its five courthouses to prevent the spread of the virus.
The full restrictions are available here. These restrictions were issued in response to Governor Whitmer’s State of Emergency, which we discussed here.
In sum,
Responding to Sexual Harassment – Half-Ass May be Status Quo for Politicians but not Companies
The results of a sexual harassment internal investigation by the Michigan Senate’s human resource office concluded that Michigan State Senator Pete Lucido likely engaged in “inappropriate workplace behavior.” That is troubling. But, equally troubling is the response from the top Senate Leader.
The sexual harassment investigation and report.
The sexual harassment investigation was launched after
Governor Snyder Limits Scope of Voter Approved Measures for Increasing Minimum Wage and Requiring Paid Sick Time
Depending upon your perspective, Michigan voters were given a big lump of coal or Michigan businesses got an early Christmas present.
Specifically, this week Governor Snyder signed bills to delay and limit the scope of voter-approved ballot measures that would have increased the minimum wage and required employers to provide paid sick time to their
EEOC Data Shows Increase in Sex Harassment Claims
At the beginning of 2018, we advised our business clients to expect sexual harassment claims to increase. This advice was in response to various high profile sexual harassment claims and the #MeToo Movement against sexual harassment and sexual assault in the workplace.
Consistent with these predictions, it was reported on 9/17/2018 by Chris Opfer for
Two Metro Detroit Employers Settle with DOL Over FLSA Violations
Two Metro-Detroit employers have recently agreed to settle wage and hour violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) involving overtime compensation and misclassification issues.
Specifically, Belle Tire agreed to pay over $340,000.00 for violations under the FLSA. Payments will be made to employees in approximately hundred stores in Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio.
According to