On May 28, 2019, the New York City Council held a public hearing regarding proposed amendments to New York City’s Earned Safe and Sick Time Act (“ESSTA”) which would require employers to provide eligible employees with “personal time.” The bill also would provide more protections for employees, including protections against retaliation and the addition of monetary penalties for employer violations.

The most sweeping change in the new ESSTA bill would be the requirement that all employers with five or more employees, and all employers of one or more domestic workers, would be required provide 1 hour of paid personal time for every 30 hours worked. Employers not meeting this threshold still have to provide unpaid “personal time.” The maximum accrual per year would be 80 hours, and employees would be permitted to carryover up to 80 hours to the next calendar year. However, employers could prohibit the use of more than 80 hours of personal time in a calendar year.

The expanded form of the ESSTA also states that “personal time” may be used for absence from work for any reason, and that employees are not required to provide documentation supporting their use of personal time. For employers that already provide paid vacation or other paid time off as a benefit, the proposed bill does not require those employers to provide an additional 80 hours above and beyond the benefit already provided. However, the paid time off provided must be allowed for the same purposes as “personal time” is allowed under the ESSTA.…
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Join Shipman & Goodwin employment attorneys Zach Hummel and Keegan Drenosky for this complimentary CLE webinar outlining the steps employers should take to conduct legally sound workplace investigations arising from complaints involving discrimination, harassment, sexual misconduct, bullying, violence, whistleblowing, retaliation, fraud and other activities. The value of an effective workplace investigation can’t be overstated.  A…

Join Shipman & Goodwin employment attorneys Zach Hummel and Keegan Drenosky for this complimentary CLE webinar outlining the steps employers should take to conduct legally sound workplace investigations arising from complaints involving discrimination, harassment, sexual misconduct, bullying, violence, whistleblowing, retaliation, fraud and other activities. The value of an effective workplace investigation can’t be overstated.  A…

The Connecticut Appellate Court ruled this week that an employee’s request for extended intermittent leave is not a “reasonable” accommodation under the state’s anti-discrimination laws. You can download Barbabosa v. Board of Education here.

The decision provides some much needed guidance to an area that has been increasingly litigated — namely whether a medical leave, above and beyond FMLA leave, is required as a reasonable accommodation.

The background on the case is fairly straightforward and might be familiar to some who have dealt with employees.…
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The Conflict between U.S. and Foreign Marijuana Legalization Laws and U.S. Federal Drug and Immigration Laws

The use of legalized marijuana for medicinal purposes is legal in 33 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, and the recreational use of marijuana is legal in 10 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Other U.S. states are currently considering the enactment of similar legalization of marijuana laws. Numerous foreign countries, such as Canada where the Cannabis Act came into effect on October 17, 2018, also have decriminalized marijuana use. However, as a matter of U.S. federal law, marijuana is still classified as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 (“CSA”). Therefore, the possession, cultivation, distribution, purchase and sale of marijuana remain illegal under the CSA.…
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On April 17, Peter J. Murphy and Gregory A. Jones presented a complimentary webinar on the topic of difficult employees and strategies for managing those individuals.  The webinar reviewed various types of difficult behavior, including absenteeism, insubordination, and even violent employees, and gave supervisors strategies for de-escalating tense moments and promoting a healthy atmosphere in…

Join Shipman & Goodwin labor and employment attorneys Peter Murphy and Greg Jones for this complimentary CLE webinar reviewing effective legal strategies for dealing with difficult employees and the importance of a meaningful approach with regard to employee discipline. Presenters will discuss real life scenarios to aid legal counsel, human resource professionals and supervisory personnel…

Join us for our annual spring seminar for public sector clients and friends, when we will address issues facing school districts, municipalities and other government agencies. The program begins with a plenary session covering a timely topic, followed by a choice of two breakout sessions allowing for issue discussion in a small setting.

When:…

This post is about three simple rules that all employers should follow.  While there are always new topics in the world of employment law that are worth writing about, such as recent Department of Labor regulatory proposals on exempt employees or FMLA opinion letters, the following rules can apply to just about any employment situation. …