Social Media And Departing Employees

New York employers face significant new compliance obligations as two recently signed bills create expansive personnel record access rights and construction industry pay requirements. With several additional employment law bills awaiting the governor's signature—many taking effect immediately upon enactment—organizations must prepare for sweeping changes to workplace documentation, severance practices, and AI impact reporting.

Pennsylvania's Department of Labor & Industry has launched a proactive enforcement initiative targeting home care agencies for wage and hour violations. With approximately 40% of state wage complaints coming from home care workers, agencies face increased scrutiny over unpaid overtime, travel time compensation, and recordkeeping practices that may not capture all compensable work activities.

Last week, the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued Opinion Letter FLSA2026-11, addressing a question many employers with large or sprawling worksites have faced: does mandatory walk time to a designated break area turn an unpaid meal period into compensable work time? The short answer is no — so long as the remaining break time is still long enough for employees to eat a regular meal.

New Jersey Department of Labor regulations clarifying the ABC test for independent contractor classification take effect October 1, fundamentally shifting the burden of proof to employers. With the NJDOL expected to aggressively audit compliance and impose substantial penalties for misclassification, employers have just two weeks to assess their workforce relationships and develop strategies to meet the stricter standards.

The parties had spent plenty of time talking about the law, the facts, and the value of the claims. In the end, what mattered most to the employee was hearing someone acknowledge that the situation had been handled poorly.

New York State has enacted sweeping changes to employee personnel record requirements, mandating that employers provide free access to personnel files, notify employees of negative information within 10 days, and retain records for three years post-employment. These new obligations fundamentally reshape how New York employers must manage and maintain employee documentation.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division issued an opinion letter addressing whether meal periods remain noncompensable under the Fair Labor Standards Act when employees must spend part of that time walking to designated break areas. The opinion examines a detention facility's policy requiring 3-7 minutes of travel each way during 60-minute meal periods, and whether this travel time converts the entire break into compensable work time.

On September 9, 2026, Governor Kathy Hochul signed Senate Bill S3460 (A.2107), creating for the first time a statewide right for New York employees and former employees to access...

Directs the Department of War and Department of Veterans Affairs to establish continuous sharing of military personnel and medical records, deploy AI-enabled tools to streamline veterans...

On August 26, 2026, NLRB General Counsel Crystal S. Carey issued Memorandum GC 26-04, “Further Guidance Regarding General Counsel Priorities.” The memo is her second in as many months and reads like a punch list for reversing the Board’s Biden-era precedent. For employers, the headline is simple: nothing has changed yet, but a lot may be about to.

The SEC has proposed rescinding Rule 206(4)-5 under the Investment Advisers Act, which currently prohibits certain political contributions and restricts the use of placement agents for soliciting government investors. The proposal addresses concerns about the rule's strict-liability standard, overbroad definitions, and disproportionate penalties for inadvertent violations, while raising questions about whether existing safeguards and state laws provide sufficient protection against pay-to-play practices.

The Supreme Court's decision in National Republican Senatorial Committee v. FEC has fundamentally altered the landscape of political party spending by eliminating federal limits on coordinated expenditures between parties and candidates. This ruling preserves existing campaign finance guardrails while potentially reshaping the power dynamics of party committees, joint fundraising operations, and various political action committees.

Skadden attorneys examine the unique legal considerations in insurance brokerage M&A transactions, exploring how deal structures must be carefully crafted to protect value in a people-driven business where client relationships and key personnel are paramount. The discussion covers earn-outs, reinvestment mechanics, restrictive covenants, and bespoke warranty packages tailored to the distinctive nature of brokerage deals.

The UK Supreme Court's decision in the Emotional Perception AI case marks a significant shift in how artificial neural networks and AI-driven innovations are assessed for patent eligibility.

In September, Georgetown University Law Center hosted its 13th Annual Global Antitrust Enforcement Symposium and Fordham University School of Law

Shareholder activism remains pervasive in the corporate landscape, as many companies continue to face new, and sometimes more sophisticated, activist situations.

After letting the option go unused for more than 20 years, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice recently announced it would use arbitration to settle its challenge of the proposed....

Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS), an influential proxy advisory firm, recently proposed changes to its benchmark voting policies...

One of the foremost threats companies face today is that posed by cybercriminals, and the unique vulnerabilities of companies in the oil and gas...

On September 26, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted new Rule 163B and related amendments under the Securities Act to expand the permitted use of "testingthe-waters"