Golan Christie Taglia is thrilled to announce 11 of the firm’s attorneys were named to the 2022 Illinois Super Lawyers and Rising Stars lists.

On January 13, 2022, the Supreme Court issued opinions entering a temporary injunction on enforcement of the OSHA ETS and halting a temporary injunction on the CMS Mandate.

On December 17, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit lifted the Fifth Circuit’s stay of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS). The ETS requires covered employers to develop, administer and enforce a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy or mandate employees to submit to weekly COVID-19 testing and requires employees wear face coverings when indoors.

On November 4, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (the “ETS”), requiring certain employers to develop, administer and enforce a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy or mandate employees to submit to weekly COVID-19 testing and to wear face coverings when indoors.

Historically, domestic workers have been excluded from protection under state and federal law. Over the past few years, the federal government, Illinois and many other states and cities have sought to change that.

On August 13, 2021, Governor Pritzker signed into law amendments to the Illinois Freedom to Work Act, which impose significant restrictions on non-competition and non-solicitation employment agreements starting January 1, 2022.

The Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act (the “Act”) requires employers to pay every employee all wages earned. Upon separation from employment, the employer is required to pay the final compensation of the employee in full, if possible, but no later than the next regularly scheduled payday. Should an employer fail to make such payment, the Act imposes penalties and individual corporate officers may be held personally liable for such non-payment of wages.

Golan Christie Taglia attorneys successfully represented a kosher caterer before the Beit Din Rabbinic Court of the Chicago Rabbinical Council.

In June 2021, the Illinois House of Representatives and Illinois Senate unanimously voted to amend the Illinois Freedom to Work Act to impose significant restrictions on non-competition and non-solicitation agreements. Governor Pritzker is expected to sign the bill into law and, if so, this amendment will be effective January 1, 2022.

As employers continue to cope with the fallout from the pandemic, new considerations need to be made for employees as return-to-work plans and their manifold implications lie just around the corner.

IRS Notice 2021-31 released on May 19 provides guidance on the government subsidy of COBRA continuation coverage that is available to employees and their covered dependents who lose group health coverage as a result of reduced hours of employment or involuntary termination of employment.

On March 23, 2021, Governor Pritzker signed the Employee Background Fairness Act (the “Act”), imposing several new obligations and restrictions on Illinois employers. The new law amends the Illinois Human Rights Act to significantly limit employers’ ability to disqualify a job applicant or current employee based on the individual’s criminal record.

The period provided for COBRA premium waivers under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) has begun. This six-month period began on April 1, 2021, and runs through September 30, 2021. Action by employers and their COBRA service providers is required by May 31 – and it may make sense to take action as soon as May 1.

With COVID-19 forcing many employees to work from home, there is a question of whether remote work will become a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). GCT’s Employment Group investigates these uncertainties in a new article.

GCT’s Employment Group examines the legal implications of vaccination mandates for employees in an all-new article.

Disruptions are getting in the way of business as usual. Many businesses are using this time to be creative and find new ways to reach their markets. In other words, they are undergoing Innovation Transformation. Join us for this informative Webinar where we’ll explore the Innovation Transformation of different types of businesses and how GCT helps implement and protect creative solutions.

The Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) announced temporary flexibility for Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As we reported in our previous alert announcing Chicago’s new predictive scheduling measure, Chicago’s Fair Workweek Ordinance went into effect on July 1, 2020.

PLEASE RSVP TO kkussmann@gct.law

Since we published our initial alert regarding the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, both the Department of Labor and the IRS have updated their guidance interpreting the complicated new law.

The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“Families First Act”), is the first federal emergency relief bill that addresses the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Act creates two new temporary laws – the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (“EFMLA”) and the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (“EPSLA”).

Many new laws and regulations significantly impacting companies and their employees became effective in 2019, or will become effective in 2020. GCT Partner, Ashley L. Orler, will provide a summary of these new laws and regulations, including what employers must know to comply with them.

If you haven't updated your sick leave or paid-time-off policy, now is the time!! Join us for an hour-long information session with our knowledgeable employment attorneys, followed by cocktails and snacks, to address some of the more complicated questions that have arisen as our clients try to integrate the new rules into their existing leave policies.

The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Section 3 of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, may impact same-sex couples’ ability to file a joint petition for bankruptcy.