Blog Archives

Update on Local Sick Pay Laws in Texas

Posted on June 10, 2019 by David Barron — No Comments ↓

The Texas legislative session has come to a close, and the much expected law banning cities from implementing sick leave ordinances and similar employment laws failed to make it to the Governor’s desk. The reason for the collapse of the…

Tagged with: human resources, sick leave, Sick Pay
Posted in Benefits, Labor & Employment, Wage and Hour

Five Tips for Protecting Your Company’s Trade Secrets

Posted on August 8, 2018 by David Barron — No Comments ↓

Protecting your trade secrets and proprietary information is a vital part of your business. Every company needs to have policies and agreements in place to prevent employees from stealing property, and wrongfully soliciting your employees and customers when they leave…

Tagged with: employment agreements, human resources, loyalty agreements
Posted in Labor & Employment

Seventh Circuit Recognizes Sexual Orientation as Protected Class

Posted on April 10, 2017 by David Barron — No Comments ↓

This week, the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit became the first Federal Court of Appeals to hold that discrimination based on sexual orientation is actionable under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. A news article about…

Tagged with: EEOC, human resources, sex discrimination
Posted in Discrimination, Federal Government, Labor & Employment

White House Pushes for Ban on Non-Competes

Posted on October 26, 2016 by David Barron — No Comments ↓

The enforceability of employee restrictions on competition has traditionally been up the states, with some, like California, largely banning such agreements, while others, like Texas, allowing them with reasonable limitations. On Tuesday, October 25, the White House took the unprecedented…

Tagged with: employment agreements, human resources, non-competes
Posted in Federal Government, Labor & Employment

Anti-Trust Laws Can Impact HR Departments

Posted on October 25, 2016 by David Barron — No Comments ↓

You can add anti-trust laws to the long list of legal risks that must now be managed by corporate HR departments. According to a recent guidance document prepared by the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice, the following…

Tagged with: employment agreements, human resources
Posted in Federal Government, Labor & Employment, Wage and Hour

Update on Legal Challenges to DOL Regulations

Posted on October 4, 2016 by David Barron — No Comments ↓

This year, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced new regulations that would double the minimum threshold for a salaried employee exempt from overtime from $455 per week to $913 per week (or $47,476). The regulations also tied the salary threshold to inflation…

Does Your Company Need a Pokémon Policy?

Posted on July 20, 2016 by David Barron — No Comments ↓

The latest craze is Pokémon Go, an app for smartphones that allows people to “catch” Pokémon creatures by integrating the real world with the virtual world. So what do you do if you see one of your employees wandering around…

Tagged with: human resources, pokémon, videotaping
Posted in Labor & Employment

Seminar | The New Overtime Regulations: Practical Strategies and Tips for Compliance

Posted on June 29, 2016 by David Barron — No Comments ↓

Please join us on Wednesday, July 13, as David Barron, a member of Cozen O’Connor’s Labor & Employment Department, and a panel of Human Resources Professionals from Briggs & Veselka Co., along with other industry professionals, host a seminar on…

New Overtime Regulations Put Spotlight on Incentive Plans

Posted on May 23, 2016 by David Barron — No Comments ↓

One of the few concessions made by the Department of Labor (DOL) to employers in the new overtime regulations is permission to count non-discretionary incentive payments towards the minimum salary threshold for exempt employees. Our firm’s alert on the new…

Tagged with: Department of Labor, DOL, exempt, human resources, non-exempt, overtime
Posted in Federal Government, Labor & Employment, Wage and Hour

Is Your Sexual Harassment Training Making Things Worse?

Posted on May 11, 2016 by David Barron — No Comments ↓

A recent article about a study on the effectiveness of sexual harassment training caught my eye. The article (link here) explains: “Some researchers believe trainings have no positive effects, tend to be more about legal cover than meaningful prevention or…