Since the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses that took an economic hit due to the shelter-in-place orders have sued their insurance providers for denying coverage of their claims. While most of the lawsuits were initially filed in state […]
As we head toward year-end and look forward to 2022, there are planning tips for businesses and individuals to consider in order to retain current U.S. immigration benefits and the ability to travel internationally and return to the U.S. The ability […]
On, November 30, 2021, a district court in the Sixth Circuit entered a stay of the mandate affecting federal contractors, linked here. The decision affects contractors in Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee, but there are similar court cases pending in […]
OSHA Ordered to “Take No Steps to Implement or Enforce the Mandate."1 Fifth Circuit Stay of Vaccine-Mandate ETS Continues through Court’s Temporary Injunction Issued 11/12/2021. OSHA Rule Denigrated as “One-Size-Fits-All Sledgehammer.”2
On Friday, November 12, 2021, the Fifth Circuit entered its temporary injunction against the “Mandate” also referred to as the “emergency rule” or “ETS.” This swift shut down of both the rule and its enforcement by OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Administration), followed the appellate court’s original emergency stay, entered less than one week ago, on November 6, which came just one day after the official issuance of the OSHA rule.
Scarcely two days after OSHA had issued its emergency rule or "ETS" mandating COVID vaccinations in the workplace, the Fifth Circuit on November 6, 2021, granted an emergency stay of the entire rule - stopping in its tracks the federal government (OSHA), from proceeding with a very lengthy rule and, some contended, a rather oppressive mandate, all fashioned through the auspices of OSHA. The just-inked ETS mandated that employers with 100 or more employees had to act as the government's COVID vaccination enforcers so that their employees were either fully vaccinated against COVID or tested, at least, weekly, if an employee was unvaccinated, to ensure that he/she was not COVID-positive. At this point, the entire OSHA rule is suspended while the courts consider the matter further. The Fifth Circuit decision is linked here.
Today, November 4, 2021, the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) issued several rules related to vaccine mandates. Critical to private employers with 100 or more employees, the OSHA rule […]
As part of his plan to combat the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, President Biden previously announced that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) would implement an emergency temporary standard (“ETS”) requiring […]
What started with Bitcoin in 2009 has developed into a market of over 6,500 digital assets increasingly competing with traditional products offered by financial institutions. The rapid expansion of digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, has led […]
Mandatory Employee Vaccination Rules Present Challenges when Considering Religious Exceptions to the Rule.
As we reported earlier (see the KRCL blog post, here), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) is in the process of developing an “emergency” temporary standard, requiring employers with more than 100 employees to mandate that their employees be fully vaccinated or, if the employee is excused from the mandate, to produce a negative COVID-19 test at least once per week. Although it is not clear when OSHA’s temporary rule will be issued (and there will likely be several state challenges to the anticipated rule), a number of employers are already implementing mandatory vaccine policies in the workplace.
In May 2021, as part of the American Families Plan, the Biden Administration proposed that financial institutions should report consumer and business account activity exceeding $600 annually. Proponents of the legislation claim that it will give the […]
By: Dennis P. Duffy1
In an en banc decision that the dissent predicted will wreck needless and excessive suffering to the “oyl biddness,” the Fifth Circuit held that a day rate—even for employees earning over $200k a year—does not meet the salary basis test for exempt status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), unless the employer also provides a minimum weekly guarantee that the employee must earn regardless of hours worked. Hewitt v. Helix Energy Solutions, No. 19-20023 (5th Cir. September 9, 2021) (en banc).
On September 9, 2021, President Biden announced a six-pronged plan to combat the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. The first prong of the plan is "Vaccinating the Unvaccinated." A central component of this first […]