Insights
Employment Laws and Proposed Legislation Minnesota Employers Should Review in 2023
Minnesota’s CROWN Act—Enacted
Minnesota’s Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (CROWN) Act amended the definition of “race” under the Minnesota Human Rights Act (MHRA). Race, as a protected class under the MRHA, is now “inclusive of traits associated with race, including but ...Read More
Crime and Employment – Navigating State And Federal Law On Job Applicants And Employees With Criminal Histories
One of the more common issues faced by employers and hiring managers when seeking new employees involves job applicants’ criminal backgrounds and histories. One of the reasons this remains a prevalent issue is due to the commonality of Americans with criminal records, which the ...Read More
Avoiding Retaliation Liability – The Difference Between What and Why
Retaliatory discharge is a claim that an employee was fired, not for a legitimate business reason, but rather in retaliation for the employee taking some legally protected action such as: making a workers’ compensation claim, taking FMLA leave; or reporting harassment, unsafe working conditions, ...Read More
The NLRB goes after handbooks . . . again.
With the return of Democrat control of the National Labor Relations Board, the pendulum is swinging back so fast, it might hit some employers on the chin. In particular, the NLRB is undoing many of the changes made by the Trump NLRB as to ...Read More
Interview Do’s and Don’ts for Employers
There are many areas of a job applicant’s life that a person may be curious about, but an employer should steer clear of. This article identifies some of the questions employers should avoid (Interview Don’ts) and things employers you should remember and do when ...Read More
Employees Using THC – Legally? Navigating Employee Drug Testing In The Post-Legalization Era
The Road to Legalization?
The road to our current legal field began with the federal 2018 Farm Bill, which legalized the cultivation and sale of hemp at the federal level. Specifically, any hemp containing a maximum of 0.3% THC by weight was now considered “legal” ...Read More
Attention Employers: Frontline Worker Pay Employee Notice Due June 23, 2022
The Frontline Worker Pay application period opens for employees on June 8, 2022 and will run 45 days until July 22, 2022. All eligible workers will have until the closing of the application period to apply for Frontline Worker Pay and applicant support will ...Read More
Employer Obligations Under Minnesota’s New Frontline Worker’s Payment Act
On April 29, 2022, Governor Tim Waltz approved a new bill authorizing pandemic payments to hundreds of thousands of frontline workers, with implications for Minnesota employers.
Senate File 2677 applies to employers and employees in fifteen specified “frontline sectors,” including: (1) long-term care and home ...Read More
An Employers Obligation To Reasonably Accommodate Sincerely Held Religious Beliefs
On March 1, 2022, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated guidance regarding reasonable accommodations for sincerely held religious beliefs. This update answers important questions raised by employers following the publication of federal and state COVID-19 vaccination and testing emergency standards. The Occupational Safety ...Read More
Non-Compete Agreements: Growing Hostility and Suspicion
The field of employee non-compete agreements (“NCA”) is changing, broadly reflecting a growing concern about the adverse effects of NCAs on employee labor prospects and market competition. Employers must stay abreast of the legal status of NCAs in Minnesota as well as the general ...Read More