EverythingPeople This Week!

There is a growing argument that there should be three types of people considered under COVID-19 protocols:  unvaccinated, vaccinated, and previously infected.  This argument claims that because they were infected, they have the antibodies similar to vaccinations, and in certain studies, better protected than those who are vaccinated.

As we wait for the OSHA guidance detailing how employers (over 100 in employment) can implement mandated vaccination for employees, employers need to keep in mind how they require vaccination and testing may impact proper pay for non-exempt employees.

TalentLMS, a leading learning management system backed by Epignosis and Workable, released a report which reveals that 72% of tech workers in the U.S. are thinking of quitting their job in the next 12 months. Top reasons include a lack of flexibility and lack of learning and development opportunities.

The holidays are coming, yet Americans are quitting jobs at a record rate according to a recent Labor Department report.  “Quits jumped to 4.3 million in August, the highest on records dating back to December 2000, and up from 4 million in July.  That’s equivalent to nearly 3% of the workforce.  Hiring also slowed in August, the report showed, and the number of jobs available fell to 10.4 million, from a record high of 11.1 million the previous month.”

OSHA ETS submitted to OIRA for review:  On October 12, 2021, OSHA submitted to the White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (“OIRA”) an emergency temporary standard requiring private employers with more than 100 employees to implement vaccine mandates or testing. 

A new Randstad USA survey found that workers have health and safety concerns around returning to work. The survey revealed three main findings:

With the many interruptions and re-prioritizations being forced upon employers due to COVID-19 for the past 18 months or so, employee development has lagged in many organizations. Employers and employees have had to work through:

U.S. Department of Health & Human Service (HHS) issued additional guidance concerning how HIPAA rules intertwine with the COVID environment.  The guidance provides greater clarity to employers as to when HIPAA does and does not apply in various situations. The following is a rundown of the guidance.

ASE is a member of the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA). Recently, the PBSA, along with the HR Research Institute, completed a research report, “Background Screening: Trends in the U.S. and abroad 2021.”  Of the responding employers with locations in the U.S., 95% stated that their company does some type of background screening, and 77% of those companies have a documented screening policy.

 

In a recent LinkedIn review of over 100,000 U.S. hiring decisions involving people with “chief” in their job titles -- chief executive officer, chief operating officer, and chief finance officer remain the top three.  But it’s no surprise that chief diversity and inclusion officer saw the biggest gain of all hires at 111%, chief people officer came in as the 3rd most hired position at 61%, and chief talent officer at 36%. This ranking is a clear indicator of the shift...

Monday started the U.S Supreme Court's new year. Though it has some incredibly impactful cases in other areas of the law, it marks the start of this year’s docket looking at four workplace law questions.

As the pandemic continues to unfold, the ability of employers to have a positive impact on employee health and resiliency cannot be understated according to a recent Mercer Survey, Health on Demand.

What are ‘Gig’ workers?  And what is a ‘Gig’ Economy?  New trends in the business world? Maybe; however, it has actually been a thing since 2009 when New Yorker editor Tina Brown, defined the “gig economy” as knowledge economy workers pursuing “a bunch of free-floating projects, consultancies, and part-time bits and pieces while they transacted in a digital marketplace.” With the holiday season approaching quickly, many...

Last month, the Supreme Court declined to take up the issue of whether the nation's schools must allow students to use the bathroom that matches their gender identities.  In that case, a 4th Circuit Court of Appeals decision, the court ruled in favor of Gavin Grimm, a transgender man who sued his Virginia high school for barring him from using the boys’ restroom.  Grimm stated that “[b]eing forced to use the nurse’s room, a private bathroom, and the girl’s...

Does fully vaccinated include booster shots?  No one knows yet.  "I think we're still in the no man's land in terms of if this will be a requirement," said Steve Bell, a partner at Dorsey & Whitney LLP.  On September 22, the Food and Drug Administration approved a third dose of Pfizer and BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine for older adults and people at high risk of severe COVID-19. The authorization does not cover individuals who received vaccines developed by Moderna or...