On June 30, Governor Kasich signed Sub. H.B. 27, the BWC Budget Bill. As its title suggests, the legislation approved funding for the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC).
New York’s Paid Family Leave Law (PFLL) will provide employees with wage replacement while away from work in order to bond with a child, care for a close relative with a serious health condition, or help with family duties when someone is called to military service.
In August 2017, an Ohio federal court certified a class of 7,000 American Family Insurance agents who claimed they were misclassified as independent contractors.
Some may say that it was only a matter of time. On September 7, 2017 Equifax, one of the country’s three main credit reporting agencies, reported that it has been hacked.
The federal district court in Connecticut recently considered whether federal law prevents enforcing Connecticut’s Palliative Use of Marijuana Act (PUMA), which permits the use of medical marijuana for certain conditions.
On August 29, 2017, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) immediately halted the EEOC’s revisions to the EEO-1 form that were to take effect in March 2018.
Ohio Governor John Kasich signed in June Am. Sub. House Bill 49, which allowed for the creation of transportation financing districts, a new economic development incentive.
Several central Ohio auditors have recently released updated property appraisals used to determine property taxes to be paid over the next three years.
The Missouri legislature recently enacted significant changes that raise the bar on proving discrimination and whistleblower claims; cap compensatory and punitive damage; eliminate individual liability for supervisors; and preempt local minimum wages. They become effective on August 28, 2017.
The judge in a recent court case ordered the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to develop the administrative record supporting rewards of up to 30% of the cost of health coverage for participation in wellness programs. If the EEOC is unable to defend the size of the reward, the EEOC may have to change its wellness program rules.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) recently released an updated draft of its Special Publication (SP) 800-53, Security and Privacy Controls for Information Systems and Organizations that sets forth cybersecurity guidance for securing devices and software commonly referred to as the “internet of things.” The draft represents NIST’s latest attempt to produce a unified information security framework for the federal government that is now also bleeding into the private sector.
The Eighth District Court of Appeals surprised many Ohio practitioners this month by applying a fiduciary exception to the attorney-client privilege in Dueck v. The Clifton Club Company.
Effective July 2017, Vermont joined the growing list of state and local jurisdictions to “ban-the-box” and limit employer access to a prospective employee’s criminal record. Eight other states (Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon and Rhode Island) have removed criminal history questions from job applications for private employers.
Effective October 1, 2017, Connecticut employers will be required to provide reasonable accommodations to pregnant employees and job applicants. The new "Act Concerning Pregnant Women in the Workplace" generally requires an accommodation unless providing one would cause an undue hardship.
Congressmen Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Tim Murphy (R-PA) recently introduced the Overdose Prevention and Patient Safety Act (the act), a measure that would align the Confidentiality of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Patient Records regulations (42 C.F.R. Part 2) with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended (HIPAA).
The Bureau of Workers’ Compensation is considering a new rule to discourage the use of opioid medication and surgery for low back injuries in favor of conservative treatment.
For years, pet owners have implanted RFID (radio frequency identification) microchips in their dogs and cats to help track the animals if they get lost.
