Source: EHS Today Date: Thursday, January 28, 2021 Time: 12:00 PM ET Duration: 1 Hour Sponsored by: BSI Register HERE As the Biden-Harris Administration transitions into the White House, business leaders should be preparing for the anticipated impacts of policy changes, investments, and enforcement priorities related to Environmental, Health, Safety, Sustainability, Security and Supply Chain […]
Category Archives: Legislative News
Source: EHS Today As a reminder, OSHA’s civil penalty amounts for workplace safety and health violations will increase slightly effective tomorrow in accordance with cost-of-living adjustments for 2021. These penalty levels apply to any violations assessed after Jan. 15. OSHA’s maximum penalty for willful or repeated violations will increase from $134,937 to $136,532 per violation. […]
Source: Safety Law Matters By Brittany Falkowski, Jenna Brofsky, Timothy A. Hilton & Avi Meyerstein on December 18, 2020 Posted in Compliance tips, MSHA, OSHA As vaccines roll out, employers have been asking how to prepare and whether they can mandate vaccination for their employees. This week the EEOC released fresh guidance, confirming that mandates […]
Source: EHS Today In some cases, employers can require workers be vaccinated David Sparkman Nov 25, 2020 The recent news about the imminent release of a safe and effective vaccine for COVID-19 is like catching a glimpse of blue sky between distant clouds in the midst of a driving thunderstorm. Inevitably, however, practical questions arise, […]
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has announced a proposed rule incorporating national and international voluntary consensus standards related to electric motor-driven mine equipment and accessories. Under the proposed rule, during a one-year transition period, mine operators could use equipment and accessories that meet either 14 voluntary […]
In the latest setback in the administration of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced this evening, via Revenue Ruling 2020-27 that expenses funded through a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan are not deductible for this tax year if “the taxpayer reasonably expects to receive forgiveness of the covered loan on the basis […]
Source: Safety Law Matters By Avi Meyerstein on November 16, 2020 Posted in Compliance tips, OSHA OSHA announced last week that it has issued 204 citations so far relating to COVID-19 with total penalties of $2,856,533. As these penalties continue to climb, OSHA also issued new guidance to help employers understand which standards it most […]
by Travis Vance / Fisher Phillips The COVID-19 pandemic has brought more workplace law challenges over the past six months or so than many employers will see in a lifetime. From changing directives on wearing masks, determining what to do when an employee is ill with COVID-19, and tracking the hours of employees working at home, employers have […]
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor recently announced a proposed rule clarifying the definition of employee under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) as it relates to independent contractors. “The Department’s proposal aims to bring clarity and consistency to the determination of who’s an independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act,” said […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— The Trump administration’s recent modernization of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a “long overdue remedy” bringing “much-needed clarity after decades of conflict and confusion” that have needlessly delayed essential transportation projects, the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) told a federal court September 2. The ARTBA filing at the U.S. […]
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) recently launched Equipped to Vote, a national get-out-the-vote campaign to urge the 2.8 million men and women of the industry to register to vote and support pro-manufacturing candidates during the 2020 election. The goal of the campaign is to engage, educate and mobilize manufacturing voters […]
On the front lines with Fisher Phillips by Kristin White The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released a Guidance on Returning to Work document that describes strategies and recommends steps employers should take during all phases of reopening. Most of OSHA’s recommendations involve steps employers have been implementing based on state and local reopening […]
On the front lines with Fisher Phillips Fisher Phillips Authors: Todd Logsdon and Paul Goatley The Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently announced that OSHA area offices will begin to increase in-person inspections in some parts of the country as the agency released a revised response plan on how it will handle COVID-19-related complaints, referrals […]
States begin to enact their own temporary measures to protect workers from exposure to the novel coronavirus Source: EHS Today Courtney Malveaux Jul 16, 2020 Employers wondering whether Virginia is the new California just got their answer: California has some catching up to do. In a split vote, the Virginia Safety and Health Codes Board […]
Employee Retention Credit (ERC) overview The Employee Retention Credit is a CARES Act relief measure for businesses. It is a fully refundable tax credit that eligible employers who are able to keep employees on payroll can claim. An Eligible Employer may not receive the Employee Retention Credit if the Eligible Employer receives a PPP loan […]
On the front lines with Fisher Phillips Fisher Phillips Authors: Todd Logsdon and Paul Goatley The Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently announced that OSHA area offices will begin to increase in-person inspections in some parts of the country as the agency released a revised response plan on how it will handle COVID-19-related complaints, referrals […]
MOLINE, IL — Deere & Company (DE) today announced a new vision and operating model in order to accelerate its success in the integration of smart technology innovation with Deere’s legacy of manufacturing excellence. The Deere Smart Industrial strategy is designed to unlock new value for customers and to help them become more profitable and […]
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently issued a compliance directive designed to ensure uniformity in inspection and enforcement procedures when addressing respirable crystalline silica exposures in general industry, maritime, and construction. The new directive provides OSHA compliance safety and health officers with guidance on how to […]
Drawing from more than 30 years of equipment autonomy experience, Caterpillar announces the expansion of Cat® Command to a broader range of construction machines. Cat Command is now launching a line of remote control and semi-autonomous technologies, ranging from operator-assisted compaction to remote control loading, dozing and excavating operations. Scalable technologies built to flexibly meet […]
Many Americans affected by the coronavirus outbreak will benefit from new workplace protections and relief offered by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. If you work for a private employer with fewer than 500 employees and are in one of the situations described below, you may be eligible for paid sick leave and/or paid family […]
The Small Business Administration (SBA) and Department of Treasury issued updated guidance on how the SBA will review borrowers’ required good-faith certification concerning the necessity of their loan request. Read FAQ 46 here. You can also read the full PPP FAQ here. Question: “How will SBA review borrowers’ required good-faith certification concerning the necessity of their […]
With the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives actively discussing a massive “Phase 4“ federal stimulus bill, now is the time to send an e-letter to Senators Schumer and Gillibrand, and your Congress member in support of the AGC NYS seven point plan to keep the construction industry working in New York. Click this link to […]
COVID-19 UPDATE To the Members of the Syracuse Builders Exchange Earl R. Hall, Executive Director May 12, 2020 As reported by various media outlets and press conferences by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and various County Executives throughout the 16-county central New York region, construction will most likely begin to reopen on or about May […]
The new Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule, issued by the U.S. EPA and Army Corps of Engineers in January as a replacement for the 2015 rule, was published in the Federal Register April 21st which makes it effective on June 22nd. The 2015 rule was strongly opposed by the IAAP and other industry groups […]
On April 23, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and Department of the Treasury issued new guidance (see question #31) that puts Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) borrowers and potential borrowers on notice that they should be able to prove in “good faith” that “[c]urrent economic uncertainty makes this loan request necessary to support [their] ongoing operations” to […]