Blogs

Employment Law

The DOGE Workforce Optimization Initiative: What Employers Need to Know

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Workforce Optimization Initiative (Initiative) is a federal initiative with a stated aim of improving government operations by implementing strategic workforce planning, integrating technology, and streamlining staffing structures. In today’s evolving workplace landscape, businesses must stay informed about workforce efficiency trends and government initiatives that may influence employment policies, recruitment,…

February 24, 2025

Business and Financial Services

CTA Update (2/19/25) – CTA Reporting Requirements are Back On Again!

They’re back! FinCEN Beneficial Ownership Information reporting (BOIR) requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) are once again back in effect. The catalyst in this very long-running back-and-forth was the February 18, 2025, decision of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District Court of Texas, in Smith, et al. v. U.S. Department of the…

February 19, 2025

Employment Law

Cybersecurity and Remote Work: Protecting Employee and Company Data

Remote work has become a fixture in the modern workplace, offering employees flexibility while allowing companies to attract top talent regardless of location. However, this shift can come with heightened cybersecurity risks, exposing both employers and employees to potential data breaches, cyberattacks, and legal liabilities. Employers must balance cybersecurity measures with employee privacy rights while…

February 18, 2025

Employment Law

The Four-Day Workweek: Legal Considerations Every Employer Must Know

The four-day workweek is gaining traction as companies seek more ways to enhance business productivity, improve employee satisfaction, and attract top talent. Across various industries, companies are exploring the feasibility of condensing work hours, without reducing employee pay. However, before implementing a four-day workweek, employers should carefully consider the legal implications to ensure continued compliance…

February 12, 2025

Employment Law

What Employers Should Know – and Do – If Immigration Enforcement Agents Pay a Visit to Your Workplace

A day after being sworn into office as president, Donald Trump began to issue executive orders aimed at implementing his campaign promise to take decisive actions on immigration enforcement. One major change is the administration’s rescission of a longstanding policy that limited federal immigration enforcement activities in particularly sensitive locations, such as churches, schools, and…

February 4, 2025

Business and Financial Services

CTA Update – The Supreme Court Lifted the CTA Injunction, but for Now CTA Reporting is Still Not Required

In the longest running game of legal pong in years in the United States, the Supreme Court entered the fray in the battle over enforceability of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) requirements on disclosure of ownership with FinCEN. On January 23, 2025, the Supreme Court issued a stay of the trial court’s nationwide preliminary injunction…

January 30, 2025

Employment Law

Trump Signs Executive Order to Create Schedule F; NTEU Sues to Block It

Among the campaign promises made by Donald Trump in the run up to the 2024 presidential election was to radically restructure the federal workforce, in part, by taking away civil service protections from thousands of workers. It did not take Trump long to make good on that promise. On January 20, 2025, shortly after being…

January 24, 2025

Employment Law

What Employers Need to Know about the Virginia Minimum Wage Increase in 2025

Effective January 1, 2025, the Virginia state minimum wage increased by 3.4%, rising from $12.00 to $12.41 per hour. While this adjustment may seem modest, it represents a significant bump for employers navigating labor costs in a state where minimum wage changes are tied to the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The 2025 increase keeps Virginia…

January 23, 2025

Employment Law

Kentucky Federal Court Vacates Biden Administration’s Title IX Final Rule

The Biden administration spent nearly two years crafting new regulations that attempted to make clear Title IX’s ban against discrimination “on the basis of sex” also included discrimination-based sex stereotypes, pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity. Notwithstanding the U.S. Supreme Court’s conclusion in the Bostock case that the term “sex” included these other matters in…

January 15, 2025

Business and Financial Services

UPDATE – 12/31/24 Wait…Forget “Never Mind”…The Fifth Circuit Vacates its Stay of its CTA Preliminary Injunction, Puts CTA Reporting Requirements on Hold

On December 26, 2024, the on-again, off-again saga of the reporting requirements for most small business owners under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) took another twist when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit decided to completely reverse direction. The Fifth Circuit vacated its December 23, 2024, Order that blocked the trial court’s…

December 31, 2024