“For too long, workers have been getting stiffed. But not anymore. We’re beginning to restore the dignity of work.” With these words, spoken by President Biden midway through his State of the Union address Tuesday night, workplace law was placed at center stage in the national conversation. The President, in fact, touched on at least five labor and employment topics during his 72-minute speech. But given the fractured nature of Congress and the ambitious scope of his agenda, how realistic are his proposals and what are the chances of them ever getting off the ground? This Insight will review the five main talking points that employers should be paying attention to, along with our predictions for what will become of them.
Ban on Non-Compete Agreements
First up for Biden was the pending proposal by the FTC to ban non-compete agreements. “30 million workers had to sign non-compete agreements when they took a job. So a cashier at a burger place can’t cross the street to take the same job at another burger place to make a couple bucks more,” he said. “Not anymore. We’re banning those agreements so companies have to compete for workers and pay them what they’re worth.”
Prediction: Not so fast. The President spoke as if it were a foregone conclusion that the rule will take effect as written. While we expect the rule to pass in some form or another, we think it possible that the FTC will scale back the overly broad nature of the proposal before it is finalized. And after it is...
By RealWV Staff, WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, WV – In a revised court filing yesterday, as first reported by Brad McElhinny with WV MetroNews, The Greenbrier Hotel’s ownership leveled charges that Omni...