Tag: EEOC

EEOC Updates COVID-19 Technical Assistance to Cover Retaliation

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated its COVID-19 technical assistance on Wednesday, November 17, to include more information about employer retaliation in pandemic-related employment situations.

The updates explain and clarify the rights of employees and job applicants who believe they suffered retaliation for protected activities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, or other employment discrimination laws. The technical assistance explains how these rights are balanced against employers’ needs to enforce COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

“Retaliation is the most frequently alleged form of discrimination in the EEOC’s charges overall and has been at the top for too many years,” said EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows. “The COVID-19 pandemic has created new situations and additional challenges, but it is no excuse to retaliate against people for opposing employment discrimination. This updated technical assistance provides additional clarity on how our laws balance workers’ rights to speak up without fear of retaliation against employers’ responsibilities to create a healthy and safe work environment.”

Key updates include:

  • Job applicants and current and former employees are protected from retaliation by employers for asserting their rights under any of the EEOC-enforced anti-discrimination laws.
  • Protected activity can take many forms, including filing a charge of discrimination; complaining to a supervisor about coworker harassment; or requesting accommodation of a disability or a religious belief, practice, or observance, regardless of whether the request is granted or denied.
  • Additionally, the ADA prohibits not only retaliation for protected EEO activity, but also “interference” with an individual’s exercise of ADA rights.

This updated technical assistance also supports the EEOC’s participation in an interagency initiative, which will be launched today, to end retaliation against workers who exercise their protected labor and employment law rights. The other participants in the initiative are the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The initiative will include collaboration among these civil law enforcement agencies to protect workers on issues of unlawful retaliatory conduct, educate the public and engage with employers, business organizations, labor organizations and civil rights groups in the coming year.

The EEOC has updated its technical assistance on employment and COVID-19 approximately 20 times throughout the pandemic.

EEOC Updates COVID-19 Technical Assistance to Cover Retaliation

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated its COVID-19 technical assistance on Wednesday, November 17, to include more information about employer retaliation in pandemic-related employment situations.

The updates explain and clarify the rights of employees and job applicants who believe they suffered retaliation for protected activities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, or other employment discrimination laws. The technical assistance explains how these rights are balanced against employers’ needs to enforce COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

“Retaliation is the most frequently alleged form of discrimination in the EEOC’s charges overall and has been at the top for too many years,” said EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows. “The COVID-19 pandemic has created new situations and additional challenges, but it is no excuse to retaliate against people for opposing employment discrimination. This updated technical assistance provides additional clarity on how our laws balance workers’ rights to speak up without fear of retaliation against employers’ responsibilities to create a healthy and safe work environment.”

Key updates include:

  • Job applicants and current and former employees are protected from retaliation by employers for asserting their rights under any of the EEOC-enforced anti-discrimination laws.
  • Protected activity can take many forms, including filing a charge of discrimination; complaining to a supervisor about coworker harassment; or requesting accommodation of a disability or a religious belief, practice, or observance, regardless of whether the request is granted or denied.
  • Additionally, the ADA prohibits not only retaliation for protected EEO activity, but also “interference” with an individual’s exercise of ADA rights.

This updated technical assistance also supports the EEOC’s participation in an interagency initiative, which will be launched today, to end retaliation against workers who exercise their protected labor and employment law rights. The other participants in the initiative are the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The initiative will include collaboration among these civil law enforcement agencies to protect workers on issues of unlawful retaliatory conduct, educate the public and engage with employers, business organizations, labor organizations and civil rights groups in the coming year.

The EEOC has updated its technical assistance on employment and COVID-19 approximately 20 times throughout the pandemic.

EEOC Updates COVID-19 Technical Assistance to Cover Retaliation

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated its COVID-19 technical assistance on Wednesday, November 17, to include more information about employer retaliation in pandemic-related employment situations. The updates explain and clarify the rights of employees and job applicants who believe they suffered retaliation for protected activities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Title VII…

EEOC Issues Updated COVID-19 Technical Assistance

  • Provides Additional Information on Equal Employment Opportunity Laws and Religious Objections to Workplace Vaccine Requirements

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) posted updated and expanded technical assistance related to the COVID-19 pandemic, addressing questions about religious objections to employer COVID-19 vaccine requirements and how they interact with federal equal employment opportunity (EEO) laws.

The expanded technical assistance provides new information about how Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 applies when an applicant or employee requests an exception from an employer’s COVID-19 vaccination requirement that conflicts with their sincerely held religious beliefs, practices, or observances. Title VII prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin.

“This update provides employers, employees, and applicants with important assistance when navigating vaccine-related religious accommodation requests,” said EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows. “Title VII requires employers to accommodate employees’ sincerely held religious beliefs, practices, and observances absent undue hardship. This update will help safeguard that fundamental right as employers seek to protect workers and the public from the unique threat of COVID-19.”

The key updates to the technical assistance are summarized below:

  • Employees and applicants must inform their employers if they seek an exception to an employer’s COVID-19 vaccine requirement due to a sincerely held religious belief, practice, or observance.
  • Title VII requires employers to consider requests for religious accommodations but does not protect social, political, or economic views, or personal preferences of employees who seek exceptions to a COVID-19 vaccination requirement.
  • Employers that demonstrate “undue hardship” are not required to accommodate an employee’s request for a religious accommodation.

The EEOC is providing this information to the public as many employers are requiring employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of their employment.

This technical assistance answers COVID-19 questions only from the perspective of the EEO laws. Other federal, state, and local laws come into play regarding the COVID-19 pandemic for employers, employees, and applicants. As new developments occur, the EEOC will consider any impact they may have on EEOC’s COVID-19 technical assistance and will provide additional updates and assistance to the public as needed.

More information about the civil rights implications of the COVID-19 pandemic is available in the record of the EEOC’s April 28, 2021 hearing on that topic.

EEOC Issues Updated COVID-19 Technical Assistance

Provides Additional Information on Equal Employment Opportunity Laws and Religious Objections to Workplace Vaccine Requirements The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) posted updated and expanded technical assistance related to the COVID-19 pandemic, addressing questions about religious objections to employer COVID-19 vaccine requirements and how they interact with federal equal employment opportunity (EEO) laws. The…

EEOC Approves Some COVID Vaccine Requirements, Incentives

New federal guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued on May 28 permits policies requiring employees who enter a workplace to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, provided those policies comply with the reasonable accommodation provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as well as Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and any other relevant statutes.

Under the new guidance, employers are permitted to offer incentives to employees to confirm they have received a COVID-19 vaccine, as long as the incentives are not so substantial as to be coercive. Employers may also offer incentives to employees to get their family members vaccinated.

However, because vaccinations require employees to answer screening questions about disabilities, incentives substantial enough to pressure employees into disclosing protected medical information are likely to be considered coercive and, therefore, prohibited.

Since vaccination records are considered medical information, employers must keep those records confidential and maintain them as medical records.

As the new guidance notes, employers should remember that some employees or demographic groups could face more substantial barriers to receiving a vaccination than others and, thus, would be more likely to be negatively impacted by a vaccination requirement.

Reasonable accommodations should be made for employees who are not vaccinated due to pregnancy or due to an ADA-approved disability or a sincerely held religious belief. Defining a “reasonable accommodation” is case-specific and considers the employee’s job duties, as well as whether the accommodation is sought under the ADA or a sincerely held religious belief.

The EEOC will very likely continue to update its COVID-19 mandatory vaccine requirement guidance, so look for updates on this issue from Private Duty Source. Meanwhile, NAHC urges you to read the guidance itself.

EEOC Approves Some COVID Vaccine Requirements, Incentives

New federal guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued on May 28 permits policies requiring employees who enter a workplace to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, provided those policies comply with the reasonable accommodation provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as well as Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and any…

Home Care Industry Legal Update: Vaccines, Live-in Caregivers & More

Wondering about the latest on the COVID-19 vaccines and how the home care industry is responding, how the new administration may impact the industry, and what you can do to take advantage of the Opinion Letter the U.S. Department of Labor recently issued on live-in caregivers? You’re in luck! A new webinar by Littler Mendelson, Private Duty Home Care at NAHC and HCAOA will provide you with the insight and answers you need.

We are hosting an industry webinar covering all of these topics Friday, January 22, 2021 from 12:00 to 2:00 p.m. EST. We hope you can make it.

During the webinar, we will discuss:

  • The currently authorized vaccines
  • Home care’s place in line in the states
  • The EEOC’s views on the vaccines
  • How home care agencies are responding to the new vaccines
  • Whether a home care agency could and/or should make vaccination mandatory for employees
  • Issues with monetary incentives for employees to get vaccinated
  • Messaging to employees about the vaccine
  • Responding to questions about the vaccination status of employees from clients/patients
  • Vaccine access issues
  • What to expect from the DOL under the Biden administration
  • How you can use the new Opinion Letter to address compensation issues with your live-in and extended shift caregivers

These webinars are intended to provide regular legal updates to assist home health and home care providers trying to navigate through the complex and seemingly ever-changing legal landscape brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

REGISTER!

EEOC Issues Important Guidance on COVID-19 and Key Employment Laws

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has provided guidance to employers on their rights and obligations and how they might have changed during the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency. The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) believes this information will be extremely useful for home care and hospice organizations and we urge you to…