Starting the new year with a gift to employers, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) issued a decision overturning its prior, controversial standard for reviewing employee handbooks and policies.

Overturning more than 30 years of precedent, the NLRB recently set forth a new standard for a finding of “joint employment,” which could dramatically affect any business using contract/temporary labor or in a franchisor/franchisee relationship.  See Browning-Ferris Industries of California, Inc., 362 NLRB No. 186 (Aug. 27, 2015). 

One of the most common questions we get as employment attorneys is: “Is an employee in [insert job title] exempt or do I have to pay overtime?”  Alternatively, sometimes we get asked, “If I pay an employee a salary, doesn’t that make that employee exempt?”

As you have may have experienced firsthand, our initial (and understandably frustrating) answer is often: “It depends.”

Although federal and New York State Law already prohibit gender-based pay discrimination, the New York State Assembly and Senate have passed a new bill (A06075, S00001) intended to “ensure that women receive the wages they were always entitled to.”  Governor Cuomo has indicated that he will sign the bill.

Welcome to the new world of labor relations.

On April 14, 2015, new union election rules from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) went into effect, signifying a dynamic shift in the way unionization efforts can play out in work places across the country.