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Unanimous Supreme Court expands whistleblower protections
March 1st, 2024
The current Supreme Court has been increasingly criticized in recent years for restricting and even eliminating core rights, as illustrated by the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization opinion discussed in a prior blog post. In sharp contras…
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Workplace democracy remains only a dream for many – but there is reason for hope
February 1st, 2024
The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics recently released startling data about union membership in the United States. Specifically, union membership in 2023 declined to 10% of the workforce in the private and public sectors combined. This may be…
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DOL targets gig economy abuses
January 15th, 2024
The United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) recently announced the adoption of an administrative rule that better addresses the escalating problem of employee misclassification. In particular, companies increasingly misclassify employees as ind…
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Rampant child labor violations associated with prominent corporations underscore the need for coordinated enforcement
December 22nd, 2023
The United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) is currently investigating approximately 700 child labor cases around the country. In one such case, the DOL found that the corporation under investigation employed over 100 children across nearly 10…
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Employers increasingly using stay-or-pay “contracts” that facilitate exploitation
November 27th, 2023
Since the declaration of the global pandemic in 2020, awareness about fundamental disparities in the labor market between employers and employees has grown significantly. Consequently, and as an example, States like Minnesota have outlawed non-compet…
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EEOC providing long-overdue enforcement guidance
October 9th, 2023
The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) recently issued proposed guidance for enforcement of anti-harassment and anti-discrimination protections under Title VII, the civil rights statute governing employers across the c…
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DOL seeks to expand the right to overtime pay significantly
September 5th, 2023
On the eve of the Labor Day weekend, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) issued a proposed rule that – if adopted – will dramatically increase the number of people who have the right to overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLS…
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Minneapolis joins other visionary cities to combat gig economy exploitation
August 21st, 2023
The Minneapolis City Council recently adopted an ordinance that requires increased pay and other protections for rideshare drivers who work for Uber, Lyft, and similar gig economy businesses. To that end, the ordinance compels rideshare companies to…
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Crosscurrents in Federal labor law create challenges and opportunities
July 23rd, 2023
In one of the most significant labor law cases in recent memory, Glacier Northwest, Inc. v. Int’l Bhd. of Teamsters Loc. Union No. 174, 143 S.Ct. 1404 (2023), the Supreme Court narrowed the scope of the Garmon preemption doctrine. This doctrine…
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Minnesota enacts landmark legislation that leads the nation in promoting workplace fairness
June 1st, 2023
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz recently executed comprehensive and progressive reforms to labor & employment law passed by the Minnesota Legislature during the 2023 legislative session. This transformative legislation, SF3035, enacts numerous and im…
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