Changes to Oregon employment laws taking effect next year will be keeping human resources professionals very busy this holiday season and into the new year in the Pacific Northwest.
On December 21, 2021, Oregon Governor Kate Brown issued Executive Order No. 21-36 extending Oregon’s state of public health emergency until June 30, 2022. With school returning in the new year, the potential exists for school closures and/or student quarantining due to exposures to COVID-19 and the Omicron variant in particular. Employers may want to familiarize themselves with leave entitlements that may be available to Oregonians under the Oregon Sick Leave (OSL) law and/or the Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA) in the event that the children of employees are subject to quarantine orders or required closures of their schools or places of care.
Starting January 1, 2022, Oregon will join several other states in implementing a law explicitly prohibiting employers from discriminating against individuals based on physical characteristics historically associated with race, including hair texture and protective hairstyles. Known as the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act (CROWN Act), the law will also prohibit employer dress code policies that “have a disproportionate adverse impact on members of a protected class to a greater extent than the policy impacts persons generally.” Employers may want...
The prosecution has requested a bench warrant for YouTuber Jeon Han-gil (real name Jeon Yu-gwan), who is accused of spreading fake news related to President Lee Jae Myung and Reform Party leader Le...