On July 31, 2018, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Labor (DOL) signed an agreement that sets guidelines for inter-agency collaboration to combat suspected employer non-compliance with immigration laws. The agencies have agreed to share resources, including records, and education and training where necessary, and refer cases to one another when an agency learns of employer non-compliance.
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Age Discrimination in the Workplace
It is no secret that more U.S. workers are electing to put off retirement and remain in the workforce longer. Given the current labor shortage (lowest unemployment rate in 18 years), this is great news for companies as retaining experienced
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Utilizing Arbitration Agreements Effectively
By now, most, if not all, of you are familiar with the Supreme Court’s decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, 138 S. Ct. 1612 (2018), which upheld the validity of waivers of FLSA collective actions in arbitration agreements. The United States District Court for the District of South Carolina recently issued an order expanding on Epic Systems.
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Yesterday’s SCOTUS Ruling on the Travel Ban
In a 5-4 decision, the United States Supreme Court reversed the Ninth Circuit’s grant of a preliminary injunction on President Donald Trump’s September 2017 proclamation – Proclamation No. 9645, more commonly known as the “travel ban.” Proclamation 9645 restricted entry into the United States by citizens of Iran, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Chad (subsequently removed from the list), Libya, Yemen and Venezuela. The majority held that the authority to suspend the entry of aliens into the United States flows from the clear statutory language of §1182(f) of the Immigration and Naturalization Act, which “enables the President to suspend the entry of all aliens or any class of aliens whenever he finds that their entry would be detrimental to the interests of the United States.”
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Proposed Termination of International Entrepreneur Parole Program
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (Department) recently issued a notice proposing to terminate the international entrepreneur parole program (IE Program) in accordance with Executive Order 13767, entitled Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements, because the IE Program represents an overly broad interpretation of the Department’s parole authority, lacks sufficient protections for U.S. workers and investors, and is not the appropriate vehicle for attracting and retaining talented international entrepreneurs.
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Recent Changes to USCIS Policies May Impact Foreign Students
In May 2018, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) made two changes affecting foreign students – (1) calculating unlawful presence for students in the U.S. and (2) third-party placements for STEM OPT students.
Calculating Unlawful Presence
“Unlawful presence”
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South Carolina Pregnancy Accommodations Act
The South Carolina Pregnancy Accommodations Act, found here, was signed into law on Friday, May 18, 2018. The Act amends the South Carolina Human Affairs Law. In passing the legislation, the General Assembly stated,
It is the intent of the General Assembly by this act to combat pregnancy discrimination, promote public health, and ensure full and equal participation for women in the labor force by requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees for medical needs arising from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. Current workplace laws are inadequate to protect pregnant women from being forced out or fired when they need a simple, reasonable accommodation in order to stay on the job. Many pregnant women are single mothers or the primary breadwinners for their families; if they lose their jobs then the whole family will suffer. This is not an outcome that families can afford in today’s difficult economy.
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Using Offer Letters Correctly
South Carolina is an employment at will state. This means that, absent a written contract guaranteeing employment, employers are free to terminate employees at any time, without notice, for any reason (so long as that reason does not violate another law of course!). Conversely, employees are generally free to quit at any time without recourse.
So, most companies in South Carolina use the initial offer letter to convey the terms and conditions of an employee’s employment. The offer letter typically contains items such as job duties, hours, pay rate, and general benefits information. However, what is legally required to be provided? What are some optional items that should be considered?
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Legal Measures for Protecting Employees from Workplace Violence
Workplace violence is high on every HR professional’s list of worst nightmares regardless of the source – an employee, former employee, angry customer, or random third party. Of course, there are a host of security measures employers can undertake in an effort to prevent or mitigate violent incidents on their premises. While there is no substitute for good security measures, we are occasionally asked about what legal steps an employer can take where it is concerned that a particular person may engage in violence or inappropriate behavior on the premises – for example, a disgruntled former employee, a customer who is obsessed with an employee, or an angry ex-spouse of an employee. Unlike some jurisdictions, South Carolina does not have workplace violence restraining orders that allow an employer to obtain a restraining order on behalf of an employee that needs protection. However, depending on the circumstances, there are some legal options an employer can take to help protect its employees.
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Join us for our upcoming Employment Law Seminars
Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd’s Employment Group is pleased to announce the schedule for our upcoming Employment Law Seminars.
HR professionals are invited to join us for a program that will cover current issues in Employment law in a fast-paced, plain-English way. These complimentary seminars qualify for 3.0 hours of continuing education credit with CLE, SHRM and HRCI credits available.