Season 5 of From Lawyer to Employer kicks off with new host Sarah Niemiroski! In her debut episode, Sarah welcomes fellow Shipman attorney Peter Murphy to explore what employers can learn from religious vaccine exemption litigation – and why those lessons extend well beyond the pandemic.
They discuss how the Supreme Court’s decision in Groff
The NLRB just made it a lot easier for employers to discipline employees who act out during union or other protected activities. On September 23, 2026, in Lion Elastomers LLC, 375 NLRB No. 41, the Board’s new Republican majority flipped back to an older, more employer-friendly rule called Wright Line
On September 2, 2026, the Second Circuit handed employers a win in Siren Retail Corp. v. NLRB, No. 24-3168, rejecting the NLRB’s Tesla test and calling for a more balanced approach to evaluating workplace dress code restrictions.
Background
Back in 2022, several employees at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in New York City wore
Connecticut employers, mark your calendars: the state’s minimum wage will rise again on January 1, 2027. Connecticut’s minimum wage is adjusted each January 1 based on the Employment Cost Index change for the 12-month period ending June 30 of the prior year. This system was adopted in 2019, and the DOL generally publishes the new
Connecticut employers have just a few months to prepare for sweeping new workplace laws taking effect this fall.
In this episode of From Lawyer to Employer, host Dan Schwartz is joined by Shipman attorney Sarah Niemiroski to break down the most significant employment law changes from the 2026 Connecticut legislative session. Together, they discuss
What Changed. On June 30, 2026, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) voted to rescind two agency policy documents that had been in place for roughly 40 years: the Guidelines on Affirmative Action Appropriate Under Title VII (29 C.F.R. Part 1608) and Compliance Manual Section 607 – Affirmative Action. Together, these documents provided
As the 2026 legislative session comes to a close, the Connecticut General Assembly has passed a sweeping bill impacting many aspects of the employer-employee relationship for private and public sectors alike. From wage transparency and training repayment agreements to lactation accommodations, an “Act Concerning Workforce Development and Working Conditions in Connecticut” –
Maybe.
In a novel decision, the New Jersey Supreme Court held in Rutgers v. AFSCME, Local 888, that the 2020 Title IX regulations preempted the grievance procedure in a collective bargaining agreement with a state university because the grievance procedure was in direct conflict with Title IX regulations. The decision tracks the well-known principle
In a significant decision for Connecticut employers, the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled in Del Rio v. Amazon.com Services, Inc. (SC 21109) that employees must be compensated for time spent undergoing mandatory security screenings on their employer’s premises. The unanimous decision establishes that Connecticut wage laws are more protective than federal law on this issue.
On January 22, 2026, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission voted 2-1 to rescind its 2024 Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace effective immediately. The recission comes as no surprise, as Chair Andrea Lucas of the EEOC signaled her opposition to portions of the guidance almost a year ago. Although the development is technically