The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) formally rescinded the federal guidance employers have relied on for nearly 50 years when designing voluntary affirmative action plans under Title VII. In a June 29 vote, the EEOC voted to rescind the two documents that provide a long-standing roadmap for employers. This move follows the EEOC’s recent National Enforcement Plan (NEP), which signaled that the agency would treat race- and sex-conscious workplace programs as intentional discrimination. Although U.S. Supreme Court caselaw remains unchanged, the rescission narrows federal enforcement posture. As a result, employers with voluntary affirmative action plans, diversity initiatives, or other programs…
Continue Reading EEOC Rescinds Affirmative Action Guidance: What Employers Need to Know
About Title VII, DEI Programs, and Compliance Risks

Hiring your first out-of-state employee can introduce a complex web of local and state employment laws that may differ dramatically from those you already follow. From paid leave requirements and pay transparency laws to non-compete restrictions and city-specific ordinances, multi-state employment compliance can quickly become a challenge for unprepared employers.
Continue Reading Hiring Your First Out-Of-State Employee? Watch for These Compliance Risks

Employers with operations in Chicago and Cook County should prepare for local minimum wage increases effective July 1, 2026, along with related notice, posting, and compliance obligations. While the Illinois statewide minimum wage remains unchanged, Chicago and Cook County will implement higher local rates that apply based on employer size and location.
Continue Reading Chicago and Cook County Minimum Wage Increases Take Effect July 1: Employer
Compliance Updates

A new legal opinion from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is reshaping how employment discrimination claims based on unequal outcomes may be handled. On June 9, 2026, the U.S. DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel issued a formal legal opinion concluding that the EEOC’s approach to disparate-impact liability is unconstitutional. While this theory of discrimination still exists, the opinion narrows it and raises the bar for employees who bring these claims. As a result, employers may have increased flexibility in using common hiring tools such as criminal background checks and aptitude tests without fear that they could face discrimination claims—but…
Continue Reading New DOJ Opinion Changes Hiring Discrimination Rules for U.S. Employers

Significant changes to federal contracting rules are reshaping how businesses interact with the U.S. government, particularly when it comes to compliance, workforce policies, and pricing strategies. These changes stem largely from Executive Order 14173 (EO 14173), signed in January 2025, which revokes long‑standing affirmative action requirements and introduces new certification obligations for contractors.
For companies that rely on federal funding or work on federally supported projects, understanding the new expectations is critical to staying compliant and minimizing risk.
Continue Reading New Rules for Government Contractors: Compliance Changes for the
Construction Industry

Employers operating in Columbus, Ohio, have approximately six months left to prepare for a significant change in hiring practices. Effective January 1, 2027, the City of Columbus will begin enforcing its pay transparency requirements under Ordinance 2898-2025, which will require covered employers to include a “reasonable salary range or scale” in employment postings.
While some employers may view this as a simple change to job advertisements, the reality is that pay transparency laws often expose broader compensation, equity, and compliance issues that organizations should address before salary ranges become public.
Continue Reading The Countdown to Columbus Pay Transparency: What Employers Should Be Doing
Now

Employers that rely on transportation workers, delivery drivers, and gig drivers may face significantly increased litigation risk following a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision. In Flowers Foods v. Brock, the Court ruled that “last mile” local delivery drivers qualify for the Federal Arbitration Act’s exemption for “transportation workers engaged in interstate commerce,” even if the drivers do not cross state lines. As a result, some transportation workers and gig drivers now have the green light to pursue their disputes in a court of law, even if they signed a private arbitration agreement with their employer/company.
Continue Reading “Last Mile” Drivers are NOT Covered by Mandatory Arbitration Agreements

Although they may not realize it, even non-union employers face risk under the National Labor Relations Act. Everyday workplace decisions can trigger scrutiny and while the enforcement climate is shifting, the underlying risk remains. For employers, this is no longer a niche legal issue. It’s a legitimate business risk.
For a growing number of employers, the concerns keeping them awake include whether their employee handbook violates federal labor law, whether a supervisor’s offhand comment during a tense performance review could trigger an unfair labor practice charge, or whether an employee group text complaining about the schedule somehow became protected concerted…
Continue Reading Inside the NLRB: What Non-Union Employers Need to Know About NLRA Risk in
2026

Many employers underestimate that liability under the FMLA extends well beyond denying leave for an unlawful reason. It can arise from everyday decisions about communication, workload, and expectations during that leave. Over the past few months, courts have weighed in on where that line can be drawn, and as this area of law continues to evolve, employers should become intimately familiar with this ever-changing legal landscape.
Continue Reading OOTO But Not Out of the Woods: Legal Risks for Employers During and After
FMLA Leave