On April 24, 2020, Governor Whitmer reaffirmed the stay-at-home measures set forth in Executive Order 2020-42, amended the scope of that order, and extended the duration of such measures through May 15, 2020 (unless modified earlier). While many of the restrictions from her prior executive orders remain in place, Executive Order 2020-59 includes some easing of in-person operation restrictions as well as some corresponding requirements for those operations ...
COVID-19 has undoubtedly occupied the minds of employment lawyers and businesses over the past 12 months; however, what else has happened in the world of employment law that we might have missed? In our webinar, we looked at the changes that have taken place in the employment context over the past year and we looked ahead at the changes we can expect to see in 2021. Looking back... Section 1 changes A number of key changes took place in April 2020 ...
The Covid-19 outbreak is not only a huge challenge for health care, but also has enormous consequences for the economy. Different sectors (such as the hospitality, tourism and transport sectors and many others) will not be able to overcome the difficult times that we are currently facing without public support. Many Member States have already adopted exceptional aid measures and many more will follow, but public support for undertakings must still comply with the EU State aid rules ...
25 July marks World In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) day (or World Embryologist Day) recognising the day in 1978 the first baby was born following successful IVF treatment. To mark the day, we ask what employers can do to support employees undertaking IVF. Background Louise Joy Brown was the first ever baby in the world to be born following IVF treatment ...
President Trump signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA” or “the Act”) into law on March 18. The Act requires employers with fewer than 500 employees to provide their employees with paid sick leave and expanded Family and Medical Leave Act rights, subject to exceptions for certain healthcare providers, emergency responders, and businesses with fewer than 50 employees if compliance would jeopardize the business as a going concern ...
With virtual currencies such as Bitcoin becoming ever more popular and accessible, it is important that South African taxpayers carefully consider the tax and exchange control uncertainties that accompany the incorporation of these relatively new systems into businesses and/or investment portfolios. We highlight below some of the tax and exchange control consequences arising from transactions involving Bitcoin ...
The government announced that as of 20th April 2020, masks (or alternative face protections) are mandatory when going outside (for authorised reasons only) when the required interpersonal minimum distance of 2 meters cannot be guaranteed. This measure is also applicable in the work environment. On 17th April 2020, a new grand-ducal regulation introducing a series of health and safety measures to fight against Covid-19 entered into force ...
The rapid rise in COVID-19 infection rates and a shift to Adjusted Alert Level 4 in South Africa have heightened many employees’ fears and reluctance about physical work interactions, returning to and/or continuing to work in traditional workplaces. Employers must prepare to manage these concerns properly and be informed of their rights and obligations regarding remote working arrangements. The stakes have never been higher ...
The UK political temperature is rising. With a General Election in the offing next year, and Labour now ahead in opinion polling, UK business would be wise to consider what a change in government could mean for employment law. A recent indication of Labour’s current thinking on employment policy was given by Deputy Leader Angela Rayner, in her speech to the Trade Union Congress (TUC) on 12 September 2023 ...
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people have been forced to work from home and this has created new opportunities and very fertile ground for the emergence of cyber threats. Accordingly, on 29 April 2020, the Intermediaries Supervision Department of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) issued a circular (Circular) containing examples of controls and procedures firms can put in place to manage their cybersecurity risks ...
On March 11, 2023, the West Virginia State Legislature enacted the Student Journalist Press Freedom Protection Act (the “Act”), Senate Bill 121. The Act requires “public high schools, colleges, and universities [to] allow for the free expression of student journalists in school sponsored media ...
General Provisions When must an Employer’s First Report of Injury be filed? The employer must submit information about the injury to the insurance carrier within five (5) days of the employee's notice of injury. What is the statute of limitations for the filing of an employee’s claim? An employee has six (6) months after suffering a work-related injury to file a workers’ compensation claim ...
The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia upheld the constitutionality of the Workplace Freedom Act in a 5-0 decision, with one justice dissenting in part. The decision removes the cloud over the state’s right-to-work law, which was passed in 2016 but was enjoined by a trial court for a substantial period of time, determined to be unconstitutional, in part, by the same trial court and now takes full effect ...
Overturns Lower Court’s “Monumental Failure of Legal Reasoning” The West Virginia Supreme Court has dissolved the preliminary injunction of a lower court prohibiting the enforcement of the state’s right to work law. The majority agreed to remand the litigation to the lower court for a decision on the merits of the AFL-CIO’s constitutional challenge to the West Virginia Workplace Freedom Act ...
In further response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia entered an order late Sunday night that declares a statewide judicial emergency applying to all lower courts in all 55 counties. As a result of the declaration, all non-emergency proceedings, including jury trials, are stayed through April 10, 2020. All deadlines and statutes of limitation that were set to expire between March 23 and April 10 are similarly tolled until April 11, 2020 ...
The West Virginia legislature is considering bills to amend the Consumer Credit and Protection Act (“WVCCPA”) and they can affect how lenders, creditors, collectors, and others interact with consumers in financial transactions. The WVCCPA is the primary statute in West Virginia that regulates how lenders, creditors, collectors, and others deal with consumers in financial transactions ...
In a busy Legislative Session, one bill passed that may go unnoticed, but will be of help to Boards of Education. Through House Bill 3146, the Legislature adopted the Uniform Public Meetings During Emergencies Act (“the Act”). The Act was proposed by the Uniform Law Commission (“ULC”), which provides states with non-partisan legislation that attempts to bring clarity and stability to state statutory law ...
The Joint Select Committee on Marcellus Shale (the “Committee”) reported a 121 page bill governing horizontal wells that utilize 210,000 gallons of water or more per month or that involve surface disturbance of 3 acres or more. The final version of the bill was posted to the West Virginia Legislature’s website on November 18, 2011 (the “Bill”) ...
The 2018 West Virginia Legislative Session ended last week, and the legislature has rejected two bills that would have modified the Consumer Credit and Protection Act (“WVCCPA”), the primary statute in West Virginia that regulates how lenders, creditors, collectors, and others deal with consumers in financial transactions. House Bill 2768 The legislature knocked down House Bill 2768, which would have amended section 46A-5-101 – the penalties provision of the WVCCPA ...
The West Virginia Legislature has brought West Virginia more in line with its neighbors in regulating how employers must pay former employees upon the employee’s departure. Historically, West Virginia has imposed different standards for providing an employee his or her final pay depending on whether the employee quit, quit with notice, was laid off, or was terminated ...
Overall, West Virginia’s mid-term election easily can be described as a Red Wave rising, with historic GOP wins in legislative races. At the same time, voters remained cautious when it came to policy decisions, soundly rejecting all four constitutional amendments on the ballot in spite of strong support from the Republican Party and business community. That dichotomy likely will puzzle election watchers for a while ...
When debt is reduced or written off, certain adverse tax consequences may arise for the debtor. The tax provisions dealing with the debt relief rules are contained in section 19 and paragraph 12A of the Eighth Schedule to the Income Tax Act, 1962 (the “Act”). The current debt relief rules were introduced by the Taxation Laws Amendment Act, 2017 and are applicable in respect of years of assessment commencing on or after 1 January 2018 ...
Pursuant to Israeli employment law, an employer cannot employ workers on their weekly rest day unless it obtains a special permit from the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. A weekly rest is 36 consecutive hours. Under certain circumstances, it is possible to shorten shift workers' weekly rest to 25 consecutive hours. For Jewish workers, the weekly rest day is Saturday (ie, from the beginning of the Sabbath on Friday evening until Saturday evening) ...
