Scott Rechtschaffen suggests law firms interested in building and selling technology products should become more nimble. 

ABA Journal

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House Education and Labor Chairman Bobby Scott (D-VA) recently introduced legislation that seeks to provide aid to multiemployer pension plans (MEPs) facing insolvency. Entitled the Emergency Pension Plan Relief Act (EPPRA), the bill would fund this aid directly from the U.S. Treasury.

On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed into law the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, which includes the Butch Lewis Emergency Pension Plan Relief Act of 2021.  This law is designed to forestall the insolvency of approximately 100 multiemployer pension plans that were expected to run out of money necessary to pay vested benefits over the next 20 years.  Included among these funds is a particularly large fund that – absent congressional intervention – would have gone insolvent by 2025, leaving millions of retirees without their expected monthly pension. 

Sarah Bryan Fask explains how the special financial assistance will affect union-brokered pensions.

Bloomberg Law

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The U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the Second Circuit’s decision in Laurent v. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, which held that retirees could receive money damages in the form of recalculated benefits in a class action over how the company’s cash balance pension plan calculated lump-sum benefits.

As February comes to a close, Littler is capping off our celebration of Black History Month with a special podcast highlighting the voices of some of our Black attorneys. Kimberly Dobson (Long Island, NY) talks with fellow Littler attorneys, Kim Carter (San Diego, CA), Jason Byrd (New York City, NY), and Taylor Lawson (Memphis, TN) about how they’ve experienced – and seen the impact of – Black resistance in their personal and professional lives.
 

Kimberly Doud of Littler’s Orlando office, Chelsea Lewis of Littler's Miami office, and Kameron Miller of Littler's Charleston office present episode one of the Allied Behavior podcast series. Allied Behavior is focused on cultivating conscious conversations about inclusion, equity, diversity, and allyship in a corporate environment. In this episode, Kimberly, Chelsea, and Kameron discuss the importance of effective allyship and provide suggestions to turn allyship into meaningful action in the workplace.
  

Kimberly Doud of Littler’s Orlando office, Chelsea Lewis of Littler's Miami office and Kameron Miller of Littler's Charleston office present episode two of the Allied Behavior podcast series. Allied Behavior is focused on cultivating conscious conversations about inclusion, equity, diversity, and allyship in a corporate environment. In this episode, Kimberly, Chelsea and Kameron discuss Juneteenth, the factors shaping our perceptions about race, and how to foster meaningful interactions in the workplace.
  

In Schachter v. Citigroup, Inc.,¹ the California Supreme Court rejected claims that an incentive plan that conditioned the earning of restricted stock based on continued service was unlawful where the employee voluntarily elected to participate in the plan, and the employee quit before the date on which the incentive was earned. The plan was lawful even though the incentive plan was funded from wages that the employee would have otherwise received in cash.

In this pro bono podcast, Littler’s Lavanga Wijekoon speaks with Ellen Miller of the National Immigrant Justice Center, Jodi Ziesemer of the New York Legal Assistance Group and Laura Lunn of the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network about the work being done across the country to help immigrants and their families who are in desperate need of immigration protections.
   

On August 18, 2022, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) issued a revised version of its Directive 2022-01 - Advancing Pay Equity Through Compensation Analysis, which was originally issued on March 15, 2022.

Philip Berkowitz weighs in on the Anti-Money Laundering Act’s whistleblower protections that took effect this year.

SHRM Online

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Natasha Adom discusses measures FCA, PRA and BoE regulators are considering to improve diversity and inclusion in the financial services sector. 

Investment Week

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As workplace issues have become more complex, human resource professionals and managers often turn to employment lawyers for advice in sorting out matters involving the interaction between business requirements and the requirements of employment laws and regulations. When is such advice protected from disclosure under the attorney-client privilege?

On June 1, 2023, in United States ex rel.

Attorneys Colette Kopon and August Johannsen join Pro Bono Committee Member Lavanga Wijekoon in discussing their participation in Littler’s pro bono clinic, held in collaboration with the National Immigrant Justice Center, focused on assisting migrant families seeking asylum in the U.S.

Pro Bono Committee Member Jenny Schwendemann is joined by Associate Don Nguyen, Customer Success Senior Coordinator Megan Gunn, Director Christie Bhageloe (Veterans Consortium Discharge Upgrade Program) and Associate Corporate Counsel Kate Brown (Amazon) to discuss Littler’s pro bono collaboration with Amazon in support of The Veterans Consortium.

On October 4, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services (Case No. 23-1039) to decide whether plaintiffs who are members of historically majority communities asserting “reverse discrimination” claims under Title VII must show there are “background circumstances” that support the inference that the defendant is the “unusual employer who discriminates against the majority.”

The “Background Circumstances” Requirement

Rod Fliegel says he's seeing an uptick in negligent hiring concerns because of the growth of gig work.

SHRM Online

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We recently reported on the saga that followed the Constitutional Court's ruling of February 8, 2024 on the conditions for applying the partial exemption from payment of withholding tax for employers organizing shift work (CIR/92, art. 275/5). 

The ruling of February 8, 2024, had given rise to fears among many employers whose successive shifts fluctuate in size that they would simply lose the tax advantage, which can represent a reduction of 10 to 15% in the wage costs associated with shift workers. 

On April 12, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court addressed whether the Federal Arbitration Act’s (FAA) transportation exemption—meaning the FAA would not apply—only relates to workers within the transportation industry. In Bissonnette v. LePage Bakeries Park St., LLC,¹ the Supreme Court unanimously held Section 1 of the FAA exempts classes of workers who are actively engaged in interstate transportation, even if the individuals are not employed by a company in the transportation industry (the “Transportation Exemption”).

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services recently announced that it is clarifying the validity period of off-campus employment authorization for international students pursuant to the Special Student Relief (SSR) package.

Alyesha Asghar and Julian G.G. Wolfson explain “background circumstances,” which are required as evidence in cases of reverse discrimination, and the implications for employers and IE&D.

Wolters Kluwer

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Emily Haigh, U.S. Army veteran and co-founder of Littler's Veterans Initiative, speaks with Littler attorneys Michael Kibbe, Caroline Lutz and Jonathan Heller, about how their military experience has had a positive impact on their legal practice.
  

Stephan Swinkels discusses a major reversal in reforms to Dutch tax law that would have impacted the recruitment and mobility of highly skilled foreign talent.

Global Mobility Lawyer

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