Articles by Girish Anand

March 14, 2018

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NLRB Extends Commentary Time on Election Rule Reconsideration

To aid in the consideration of the issues involving the 2014 Election Rule, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is further extending the time for filing responses to the Request for Information Regarding Representation Election Regulations published in the Federal Register. The submission window is currently open and interested parties may file responses on or before Wednesday, April 1...

Another Appeals Court Says Civil Rights Act Protects LGBT Rights

March 13, 2018

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In two weeks' time, two U.S. circuit courts of appeal -- the 2nd and the 6th -- have ruled that the Civil Rights Act of 1964's provision against discrimination based on sex includes protection for gender identity. The 6th ruled March 7 in favor of a male funeral director who was fired when he told his employer that he was going to begin presenting himself as a female. The employer argued tha...

CMS Blocks Idaho's Attempt to Circumvent Obamacare

March 9, 2018

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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) yesterday stepped in to void Idaho's attempt to sell health insurance policies that do not meet the standards of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). CMS Administrator Seema Verma sent a letter to Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter, a Republican, and Idaho Department of Insurance Director Dean Cameron saying that the ACA remains the law and that her agency ha...

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DOL Launches Voluntary FLSA Resolution System

March 7, 2018

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The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the Department of Labor (DOL) has announced a new nationwide pilot program, the Payroll Audit Independent Determination (PAID) program, which facilitates resolution of potential overtime and minimum wage violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The program's primary objectives are to resolve such claims expeditiously and without litigation, t...

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Trump Administration Argues for States' Rights -- in Collecting Online Taxes

March 6, 2018

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The Supreme Court is reviewing a case stemming from South Dakota in which that state is demanding that web merchants pay sales tax for any transaction with its residents. A 1992 ruling imposed a "physical presence" limitation that let web retailers evade state taxes unless they physically operated in the taxing state. And surprise, surprise (or not) -- the Trump administration, which just lo...

March 6, 2018

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OSHA Delays Enforcement of New Beryllium Standard

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is delaying from March 12 to May 11 implementation of the new beryllium exposure standard, which was released in the final days of the Obama administration. Beryllium is used in the aerospace, electronics, energy, telecommunication, medical and defense industries. Beryllium dust, a byproduct of the processing of the substance, is highl...

DOJ Launches Initiative on Sexual Harassment in the Public Sector

March 6, 2018

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The Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced a second initiative to combat sexual harassment — the Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Initiative (SHWI) focuses on workplace sexual harassment in the public sector. The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division enforces Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 against state and local government em...

March 6, 2018

39 view(s)

HIPAA Violations Don't End with the Closing of a Business, OCR Says

A receiver appointed to liquidate the assets of Filefax, Inc. has agreed to pay $100,000 out of the receivership estate to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in order to settle potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule. Filefax, located in Northbrook, Ill., advertised that it provided for ...

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Joint Employer Standard Raises Ethics Concerns

March 2, 2018

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The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), Republican-controlled, faces a quandary now that its inspector general has ruled that member William Emanuel should not have voted in a decision that reversed the Obama-era "indirect control" joint employer standard. As a result, that standard remains standing much to the chagrin of the GOP members. The "indirect control" standard -- meaning corpora...

Notice of Small HIPAA Breaches from 2017 Due Today

March 1, 2018

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Official notifications of HIPAA breaches affecting fewer than 500 individuals are due today at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Notices should be posted using the HHS website reporting tool. The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) within HHS handles breach oversight. A HIPAA breach is defined as "impermissible use or disclosure under the Privacy Rule that compromises the security...

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Girish Anand

Recent Articles

Practical articles on HR, Safety, compliance, and people operations—written for real businesses, not legal textbooks.

U.S. Department of Labor Officially Restores Prior Overtime Exemption Rules

On May 14th, 2026, the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced it has officially rescinded the 2024 overtime exemption rules. Specifically, the WHD published a technical amendment to restore previous 2019 regulations that dictated overtime exemptions for...

NLRB General Counsel Takes Action to Tackle Current Case Backlog

On May 6th, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and NLRB General Counsel Crystal Stowe Carey announced the bulk transfer of thousands of labor practice cases. Specifically, this action fulfills an initiative signed by the NLRB General Counsel earlier this year. Overall, the initiative...

Privacy Agency Invites Comments from Businesses on the CCPA’s Usage of Personal Data

Recently, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) issued a call for comments on the current state of personal data collection under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). Specifically, the invitation to deliver remarks was issued on April 20th, 2026. The information provided by the...

DOL Proposes New Joint Employer Rule To Unify Standards Under Federal Labor Laws

In April 2026, the U.S. Department of Labor issued a proposed rule to establish a single, clear standard for determining when joint-employer status applies under three major federal laws: the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and the Migrant and Seasonal...

DOL Updates Enforcement Approach for Employee Benefit Plans: What Employers Should Know

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced a significant change in its enforcement of employee benefit plan rules. The DOL will now focus more closely on serious violations that harm workers and retirees, meaning compliant employers may face less scrutiny under the updated approach.

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Articles by Girish Anand