On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) proposed a new rule that would restrict the use of non-compete clauses in employment contracts. Non-compete clauses are intended to prohibit employees from working for competitors of their current employer for a certain period of time after leaving their job. According to the overview of the... Continue Reading →
Recent surveys show a significant demand for professionals skilled in design and related construction disciplines. While the demand by architecture firms to add staff is intense at this time, it is likely to cool significantly in the next year because of the realities of inflation and the fears of recession. Within a few years, this... Continue Reading →
The FDA’s approval of COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use will result in employers considering the adoption of mandatory vaccination policies for their employees. Firms operating remotely may attempt to require employees to return to an office location by relying on a mandatory vaccination policy. However, the FDA’s position is that federal law prohibits mandatory use... Continue Reading →
Design firms are businesses. As businesses, they are subject to federal, state, and local laws that mandate employment practices that are fair and compliant with governing statutes and regulations. The requirements often vary by firm size, but all firms should be aware that during the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, compliance is becoming more... Continue Reading →
The Fair Labor Standards Act requires that employees who work in excess of 40 hours in a work week are paid at 1.5 times their regular rate of pay for those hours worked in excess of 40 hours. If the employees are employed in a bona fide executive, administrative, or professional capacity (white collar exemption)... Continue Reading →
As the holiday season approaches, many firms will be planning holiday parties for their staff and/or their clients, and these parties often involve serving alcohol. Serving alcohol may encourage bad behavior and could result in employment liability claims. Drinking too much and then returning to work could result in poor professional decisions, culminating in professional... Continue Reading →
In an age of rising benefit costs and other constraints on the operations of professional service firms, some firms are turning to a range of tactics to reclassify workers to take them off the formal payroll and, therefore, lower their costs and administrative burdens. However, doing so may subject the employer to state and federal... Continue Reading →
The Internal Revenue Service recently settled a five-year-old case where a former employee, a Sikh, was dismissed for carrying into the workplace a 3-inch ceremonial dagger. The blunt blade, known as a kirpan, is protected under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act as a symbol of faith indicating resistance to evil and defense of truth. Recently... Continue Reading →
