As expected, President Biden last week signed into law the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021. The law, which went into effect immediately upon the President’s signature, amended the Federal Arbitration Act to prohibit mandatory arbitration in sexual assault and harassment cases, thereby allowing victims to bring their dispute…
Read More »Congress has passed legislation invalidating and rendering mandatory arbitration clauses unenforceable in cases relating sexual harassment or sexual assault disputes. With passage, the bill was sent to the White House where President Biden is expected to sign it into law. Once enacted, it will apply to “any dispute or claim that arises or accrues on…
Read More »To set the backdrop, Starbucks baristas have now initiated union organizing activities in over 100 individual stores in the Starbucks network across 26 different states with the vast majority of those already having petitioned the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) for union representation elections. The Mesa Arizona union initiative was set to be the next…
Read More »It seems a bit ironic that it will officially take effect on Independence Day, but New York City’s new ‘just cause termination law’ will require a fast-food employer to prove a valid or just cause reason before terminating an at-will employee effective July 4, 2021. The law provides that once an employee has survived a…
Read More »Apparently incapable of recognizing the unprecedented difficulties that fast food franchisees are facing throughout the course of the coronavirus pandemic, New York City seems intent on adding misery to misery. Just before the Christmas holiday, the New York City Council passed a pair of bills targeting franchised fast food chains. The first – and perhaps…
Read More »Earlier this year, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) ruled in the Epic Systems decision that mandatory arbitration agreements containing class action waivers were legal provisions of an employment agreement. Notwithstanding that decision, on a vote of 25-12, the California state senate approved AB 3080 and sent it to Governor Jerry Brown this…
Read More »By a 5-4 decision released earlier this week, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) confirmed that employers have the right to require employees address grievances through arbitration and not class action litigation. With so many recent frivolous issues being litigated against small business employers recently (butter v. margarine, real blueberries v blueberry filling,…
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