Federal Agencies Announce Inter-Agency Commitment to Protect Employees & Consumers from AI Discrimination

Federal Agencies Announce Inter-Agency Commitment to Protect Employees & Consumers from AI Discrimination

A group of federal agencies recently announced a joint inter-agency commitment to enforcing civil rights and consumer protections as they apply to the quickly emerging AI technologies in the workplace.  On April 25, 2023, The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) held a joint press conference to recognize the growing use of AI in employment decision-making and

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Virginia Governor Signs Two New Employee Protection Bills into Law

Virginia Governor Signs Two New Employee Protection Bills into Law

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has signed two new bills into law that provide greater privacy protections for employees, while ending the use of nondisclosure, confidentiality and non-disparagement agreements for employees who have experienced sexual harassment. The governor signed Senate Bill 1040, which prohibits employers from using an employee’s social security number (SSN), or any derivative of it, as a means of identification. Employers are also prohibited from including an employee’s SSN on any identification card

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NYC Announces New Enforcement Date for AI in Hiring Tools Regulation

NYC Announces New Enforcement Date for AI in Hiring Tools Regulation

New York City will begin enforcing its new law that regulates the use of AI in hiring tools, on July 5, 2023.   The city has delayed enforcement of the new law, called Local Law 144, since January, due to confusion over the implementation of bias audits in AI systems that employers use for screening job candidates.  The law mandates that employers must inform job candidates beforehand if they use automated hiring systems and conduct a

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New NLRB Guidance for Severance Agreement Non-Disparagement Provisions

New NLRB Guidance for Severance Agreement Non-Disparagement Provisions

New guidance from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is helping employees to understand the limits of non-disparagement clauses in severance agreements. According to a memo to NLRB field offices, lawful severance agreements are still permitted, as long as they do not contain overly broad provisions that affect employee rights to engage with one another to improve their working conditions.  As noted in the recent McLaren Macomb decision, the Board reaffirmed longstanding precedent that employers violate the

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Human Rights in D.C. Now Includes Reproductive Health Decisions

Human Rights in D.C. Now Includes Reproductive Health Decisions

The District of Columbia recently updated it human rights laws to include a revised definition of sex discrimination in employment.  The updated law defines sex as “the state of being biologically male, female, or intersex, including associated medical conditions and reproductive health decisions.” The revision expands the prohibition on sex-based discrimination to include adverse actions based on reproductive health decisions. The revised law prohibits employers from engaging in retaliatory, coercive, or interfering behavior due to

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NLRB Rules Non-Disparagement Terms of Severance Agreement Unenforceable

NLRB Rules Non-Disparagement Terms of Severance Agreement Unenforceable

The National Labor Relations Board has ruled that severance agreements cannot prevent terminated employees from making disparaging statements about their former employer or disclosing the agreement’s terms.  In its ruling, the board overturned two decisions made during the Trump administration. The NLRB found that the previous decisions had departed from precedent and violated workers’ rights of the National Labor Relations Act’s Section 7, which allows workers to communicate when self-organizing.  The board stated that offering

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Noncompete Ban Closer with New Senate Bill

Noncompete Ban Closer with New Senate Bill

A new bill introduced in the U.S. Senate aims to prohibit enforcement of most noncompete agreements in employment. In February, Senators Chris Murphy and Todd Young introduced the Workforce Mobility Act of 2023.  The bill is similar to previous versions introduced in 2019 and 2021 and has also been sponsored by Representatives Scott Peters, Mike Gallagher, and Anna G. Eshoo, as well as Senators Tim Kaine and Kevin Cramer. If passed, the bill would generally ban

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D.C. Reintroduces Bill to Prohibit AI Discrimination in Employment Decisions

D.C. Reintroduces Bill to Prohibit AI Discrimination in Employment Decisions

The District of Columbia has reintroduced legislation to prevent discrimination by algorithms in employment decisions. The Stop Discrimination by Algorithms Act of 2023 would prohibit algorithmic discrimination by employers and require service providers to ensure that their AI tools are compliant with the law. The bill includes regulations for employers and prohibits algorithmic discrimination in other areas, such as consumer credit decisions, education and housing. The new bill would force employers to contractually require that their AI

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EEOC Examines Potential Risks of AI in Employment Decisions

EEOC Examines Potential Risks of AI in Employment Decisions

At a recent hearing, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) examined the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) and automated systems on employment decisions. The goal of the hearing was to identify potential concerns of employer use of artificial intelligence in all areas of employment decision making. The EEOC is concerned about the use of AI in employment decisions, as many companies use AI technologies for hiring, promotion, and other similar processes. Such tools include

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New Guidance for Hearing Disabilities in the Workplace & The ADA

If you are an employee with a hearing condition covered under the ADA, such as deafness or difficulty of hearing, your employer or potential employer may have specific obligations to you. These protections have changed and expanded over time, and they may affect your rights both in your current workplace and during your next job interview.  New EEOC Guidance Recently, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency tasked with enforcing the Americans with

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