employment
Virginia becomes 15th state to ban the box
After last month’s Senate vote to pass statewide ban-the-box legislation, the Virginia House of Delegates approved the new measure and Gov. Terry McAuliffe signed it into law on April 3. The new law requires state government job applications to remove all questions about an applicant’s criminal history. The law allows for background checks to be…
Read MoreWhat obligations do businesses have when it comes to avoiding religious discrimination?
The Supreme Court is expected to determine that, likely within the next few months. In the meantime, employers can avoid getting sued for religious discrimination by erring on the side of caution. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission protects applicants or employees from being discriminated against due to religious garb and grooming practices, and employers are…
Read MoreUtah becomes 18th state to pass sexual orientation, gender identity anti-discrimination laws
passing legislation preventing employers from discriminating against potential or current employees on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. Gov. Gary Herbert signed the bill that will amend the Utah Antidiscrimination Act. The law does have some exceptions when it comes to defining which employers are required to adopt this law; due to the…
Read MoreFebruary 2015: mining industry sees decrease in jobs, unemployment rate continues to drop
the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate has decreased slightly since January. The unemployment rate is now 5.5 percent, leaving 8.7 million people out of work. In February, 295,000 new jobs were added across several fields, including healthcare, food and drinking establishments and business services. Only an average of 266,000 jobs were created per…
Read MoreKansas revokes Executive Order preventing sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination
President Obama’s Executive Order Final Rule, which was intended to prevent federal contractors from discriminating against potential employees on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Meanwhile, just last month Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback chose to rescind an Executive Order that was signed in 2007 by former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, which prohibited Kansas state…
Read MoreJanuary 2015: unemployment rate holds strong, new jobs created
December’s numbers, according to a news release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The only demographic that saw an increase in its unemployment rate was teen workers. While the unemployment rate remained steady overall at about 5.7 percent, January saw 257,000 new jobs added. Those 257,000 jobs include positions in retail, health care, financial services…
Read MoreEmployers: Here’s one penalty you’ll want to avoid this tax season
Tax season is looming on the horizon. In addition to fearing audits, there’s another reason for employers to be freaked out this year: the Internal Revenue Service and National Labor Relations Board are cracking down on employers that may have misclassified employees as independent contractors in order to avoid paying taxes. There are several tests…
Read MoreDecember 2014 employment: A strong finish to a good economic year
5.8 percent in November. An estimated 8.7 million people remain unemployed, though the number of unemployed people declined by 383,000 between November and December. The Bureau’s demographic information showed that it was adult women that saw the biggest surge in employment opportunities in December. Employment for the other demographics remained stable compared to previous months.…
Read MoreSupreme Court: employers do not have to pay employees for preliminary, postliminary job activities
In December, the Supreme Court overturned a previous decision by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals regarding whether employers are required to pay employees and contractors for the time they spend in security prior to or following their working shift. The Supreme Court stated that employers do not have to compensate employees for their time…
Read MoreImmigration Executive Order brings changes for employers
stated intentions to reduce illegal immigration along the U.S. border, and streamline the legalization process so that long-time resident immigrants will be able to obtain documentation that would allow them to work legally in the United States. The goal of the Order is to “make it easier and faster for high-skilled immigrants, graduates and entrepreneurs…
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