On August 20, 2024, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas set aside and deemed unlawful and unenforceable the Non-Compete Rule (“Rule”) promulgated by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”).  In Ryan LLC v. Federal Trade Commission (“Ryan”), 2024 WL 3879954 (N.D. Texas August 20, 2024), the Court determined that the Rule was violative of the FTC Act, the Administrative Procedure Act, and the Declaratory Judgment Act.  The Court ruled that the FTC “exceeded its statutory authority in implementing the Rule” and further declared the Rule to be “arbitrary and capricious” for being unreasonably overbroad and not reflective of reasonable alternatives.  The Court held that the Rule “shall not be enforced or otherwise take effect on September 4, 2024, or thereafter.”

Effective Date:  Enacted on November 22, 2023 and initially scheduled to become effective on May 20, 2024, New York State’s Freelance Isn’t Free Act (“FIFA”) now has an effective date of August 28, 2024.  All FIFA requirements will be effective as of that date and not retroactively.  

FIFA greatly mirrors and does not preempt the requirements of the New York City FIFA which took effect on May 15, 2017.

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (“PWFA”) went into effect on June 27, 2023 and applies to employers with at least 15 employees.  The PWFA was intended to fill gaps in the federal and state legal landscape regarding protections for employees affected by pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions.  In many respects, the PWFA expands employers’ obligations to accommodate pregnancy-related conditions beyond the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”).   
 
On April 15, 2024, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued its final regulations (the “Final Regs.”) which interpret the PWFA and provide insight into how the EEOC will enforce the law.  The Final Regs. will take effect on June 18, 2024.  Below are the key takeaways from the Final Regs. and implications for employers’ compliance with the law.

On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC”) approved its final rule banning non-compete agreements, with some exceptions.  The FTC ruled that the use of non-compete agreements is an “unfair method of competition” in violation of Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (“FTC Act”).  The FTC initially proposed a rule banning the use of non-compete agreements in January 2023, receiving numerous public comments regarding the proposed rule.  The final rule, which becomes effective 120 days after the date of publication in the Federal Register, effectively bans all existing and future non-compete agreements for all types of workers, with exceptions described below. 
Phillips Nizer will provide further updates as developments occur. 

The United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a final rule on April 23, 2024,  “Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales, and Computer Employees,” revising certain salary thresholds under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).  The final rule has an effective date of July 1, 2024, with further delineated changes on January 1, 2025.

For background, the FLSA provides categories of employees that are “exempt” from overtime payments; relevant to the instant rule are the salary requirements for exemptions for executive, administrative, professional, as well as the highly compensated employees.

Effective Wednesday, November 22, 2023, the New York City Human Rights Law (“NYCHRL”) has been amended to prohibit discrimination based on height or weight in employment, housing, and public accommodations.  New York City now joins the following seven jurisdictions that include height and weight as classifications protected from unlawful discrimination and harassment:
 
(1) Binghamton, New York; (2) San Francisco, California; (3) Santa Cruz, California; (4) Washington, D.C.; (5) Urbana, Illinois; (6) Madison, Wisconsin; and (7) the State of Michigan.  Similar legislation presently is pending in New York State, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Vermont.

As we get closer to 2024, employers should consider a review of employment practices and rules for the new year.  This is especially so given the National Labor Relations Board’s (“NLRB”) decision this year in Stericycle, Inc., 372 NLRB 113 (2023).  In Stericycle, the NLRB laid out a new legal standard for the evaluation of work rules, adopting a case-by-case review.  Stericycle overrules the categorical approach contained in The Boeing Co., 365 NLRB 154 (2017) and revises the standard in Lutheran Heritage Village-Livonia, 343 NLRB 646 (2004), presenting a change to a more employee-friendly approach to the evaluation of work rules.

Effective September 17, 2023, New York employers with four or more employees must comply with certain statutory disclosure requirements when advertising for positions physically within and some outside the workplace or office.  The law applies to advertising for available jobs, promotions, and transfer opportunities.  “Covered employers” also includes employment agents, agencies, and recruiters regardless of size, excepting temporary help firms. “Advertise” is defined as “to make available to a pool of potential applicants for internal or public viewing, including electronically, a written description of an employment opportunity.” 

New York, NY (August 22, 2023) – Phillips Nizer is pleased to announce that employment and labor attorney, David B. Feldman, has joined the firm as a partner in their New York office.  David represents clients in all areas of Employment and Labor Law, including wage and hour, fair employment practices, and executive compensation and agreements.