4 key trends shaping HR law last year... ... and 3 trends to watch in 2019.

PositionIn The News...
  1. Everybody on the arbitration train. The U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the Epic Systems case upheld the legality of employers putting class-action waivers into their mandatory arbitration agreements. That has encouraged more employers to require workers to sign arbitration pacts as a condition of employment. This was the "most important SCOTUS decision for employers in nearly two decades," said Seyfarth Shaw partner Gerald Maatman.

  2. #MeToo hit the courtroom. After eight years of declines, the number of sexual harassment complaints filed by employees with the EEOC rose more than 12% last year, compared with 2017. These numbers, the EEOC says, "reflect a greater willingness (for employees) to report and speak up about it." And in 2018, gender pay equity issues also rallied under the #MeToo flag.

  3. The haze of new marijuana laws. The majority of Americans now live in states where marijuana is legally available in some form, but federal law still makes it unlawful. The result has sown confusion for employers on issues from testing to terminations.

  4. More enforcement litigation, but smaller settlements. The EEOC filed 199 lawsuits last year, up from 184 in 2017. However, the value of resulting settlements cratered, dropping from $485 million to $126.7 million in 2018.

  5. New rules (again) for overtime eligibility. The Obama proposal died in court in 2016. Now Trump's DOL is expected to soon propose an updated salary level for white-collar exemptions...

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