• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Employment Law

Senate confirms EEOC commissioner; quorum restored

10/14/2025
On Oct. 7, the U.S. Senate confirmed over 100 Trump administration nominees, including Brittany Panuccio as a EEOC commissioner. Her appointment restores a quorum to the commission, creating a Republican majority and allowing it to again fully function.

How not to handle a religious accommodation request

10/14/2025
Yes, you can ask for basic information about a request. That includes having the employee explain what particular religious belief the request is based on. But no, you can’t inquisition the employee on that belief beyond a few basic questions.

Supreme Court starts new term—key employment law cases on the docket

10/14/2025
The Supreme Court has started the 2025–2026 term, and it looks to be an interesting one for employers. Here’s a breakdown of pending cases and issues.

DOL opinion letter clarifies intermittent leave usage

10/14/2025
Two Department of Labor opinion letters—one from 2023 and one issued in October 2025—clarify how to calculate how many hours of FMLA leave an employee is eligible for.

35 years of the ADA: How managers can support disabled employees

10/06/2025
October is Disability Awareness Month, and 2025 marks the 35th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. What better time to remind managers that the ADA has opened the workplace to disabled individuals by requiring employers to make reasonable accommodations for otherwise qualified applicants and employees?

DOJ says religious accommodations include remote work: 3 steps to take

10/06/2025
According to the Department of Justice, employers must allow remote work as a religious accommodation even if they have switched back to a full in-office schedule or never allowed remote work at all. That’s the gist of the DOJ’s Sept. 18 internal guidance for federal agencies that are supposed to be bringing all federal workers back to the office.

Proposed law seeks to protect older workers

10/06/2025
There’s a bipartisan effort in Congress to protect older applicants from age discrimination. The Protect Older Job Applicants Act is aimed at providing older applicants with stronger protections in hiring than currently exist under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.

EEOC stops handling disparate-impact cases

10/06/2025
Effective Sept. 30, the EEOC has closed its processing of cases where the basis for the complaint is an allegation that an employer’s practices or policies have a disparate impact on members of a protected class.

Are you liable for third-party harassment? Maybe, maybe not

10/06/2025
For decades, the EEOC has taken the position that employers can be liable for sexual harassment by third parties like customers and clients if they knew or should have known that the harassment was taking place but didn’t take steps to stop it. Now, a recent federal appeals court has ruled that the EEOC’s position isn’t valid.

$43 million pay-equity settlement against Disney shows need to audit

09/29/2025
A judge has approved a settlement in a long-running case against the Disney Corporation. The case shows how crucial it is to fix pay-equity problems before unequal pay spurs a class-action lawsuit.