There’s a version of the Serenity Prayer that most HR professionals understand — not because they’ve memorized it, but because they live it, and even if they can’t articulate it, they whisper a version of it as they fire up their computers each morning: Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,...
With a Texas federal judge’s permanent injunction against the Federal Trade Commission’s proposed ban on non-competes, employers around the country are breathing a collective sigh of relief—at least for now. But for Georgia-based employers, it’s important not to get lulled into a sense of false security. For anyone using employment agreements containing restrictive covenants, such...
Employer Notice Requirement Suspended for Now As Courts Poised for Circuit Split As you may know, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted in April to finalize a rule that aimed to ban non-compete agreements between nearly all employers and all workers prospectively and retroactively. The rule was set to go into effect as of September...
Are you a company navigating the complexities of employee contracts and safeguarding your intellectual property? There have been a variety of changes implemented regarding the validity and enforceability of Employee Restrictive Covenants within the last few years. For businesses that practice across multiple states, there may be different standards to consider as the country is...
Significant changes to financial regulations in the United States aim to combat financial crimes.
As of July 31, 2023, there are new inspection guidelines pertaining to Form I-9 employees, specifically regarding remote inspections.
As employers consider returning to traditional, in-person office culture, pushback from employees may be a much bigger issue to navigate than originally expected.
Stress and anxiety can have lasting effects on the overall employment relationship. Discover a few key takeaways and best practices for dealing with stress and anxiety so your employment relationship can thrive.
This is the third article of the three-part series outlining the basic considerations for both business acquirers and sellers when conducting a small business transaction. This article focuses on considerations of a transaction and how to mitigate risk. If you or your business is looking to engage in a business deal, Stanton Law offers its...
Stanton Law LLC is proud to announce that Paul Knowlton is joining the firm as Counsel. Paul, who holds a Master in Divinity in addition to his law degree, brings years of experience as a patent and intellectual property attorney as well as a focus in family and estate planning, business law and consulting, and...
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many aspects of our lives, requiring us to adjust our work habits, be more involved with our children’s education, reduce traveling, learn to cope with uncertainty, and more. Many Americans were hit hard with layoffs, fear of exposure to the virus, and insecurity about the future. Since March 2020, businesses...
Offices are opening but employees might be tentative about returning to the workplace without a coronavirus cure or vaccine. How do employers handle this potential conflict? Remain reasonable, assess the rationale behind the employee’s hesitancy, and find creative solutions, wrote Todd Stanton and Amanda Farahany of Barrett & Farahany in a June 22 Fulton County Daily Report...
There’s no playbook for reopening during a pandemic, noted Todd Stanton and Amanda Farahany of Barrett & Farahany in a May 12 Fulton County Daily Report article they co-authored. Employers should focus on open communications and keeping employees healthy in order to avoid legal issues, wrote the attorneys. Which Employees Should Come Back? When reopening,...
Check out our recent articles in the Daily Report. Don’t have a subscription? You can get a free one and view 3 articles per month. Employment Lawyers From Both Sides Highlight Keys to the Paycheck Protection Program Todd Stanton and Amanda Farahany highlight the keys to the Paycheck Protection Program and how to recognize the...
Every year, the University of Georgia Alumni Association’s annual Bulldog 100 list celebrates the fastest-growing businesses owned by UGA grads. Spanning industries from retail to real estate, the list spotlights successful entrepreneurs across the country, fostering the Georgia alumni network and helping to inspire other graduates looking to lead the way in business. But with...
by Todd Stanton. Like just about everyone I know, I tend to over commit. I seem to find myself at the end of every day and end of every week wishing I had a few more uninterrupted hours to cross just a couple more things off my list so I could really relax and focus...
by Manori de Silva. ‘Tis the season of holiday parties. Employers want to show thanks to their employees, and the team wants to let their hair down. But in the era of the #MeToo movement and social media, employers should plan their office parties carefully to avoid their celebration turning into a lawsuit. Here are...
by Mat Toomey. Since the data breaches in 2017, security and protection have received more attention from a nervous public. With more than 140 million Americans’ information potentially exposed, Congress reacted by passing the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act in May 2018. The new law requires nationwide consumer reporting agencies to provide a...
by Jessica Winans. During its presentation last summer at the giant video game conference E3 Expo, Ubisoft announced a collaboration with Joseph Gordon Levitt’s company, hitRECord, for Ubisoft’s upcoming video game, Beyond Good and Evil 2. This collaboration, Ubisoft and Levitt announced, would allow fans to submit graphics, music, and other content that might make...
What does the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) actually do? Essentially, it’s meant to protect residents from potential data breaches by putting their data in their own hands.
Managers with these 7 habits have much happier relationships with their employees and are less likely to find themselves in employment law trouble.
Employers shouldn’t simply close their personnel files when they receive signed copies from their employees. Instead, they need to check then and there that they’ve also co-signed before everyone forgets.
by Jessica Winans. What is the GDPR? GDPR stands for the General Data Protection Regulation. It is the new data privacy regulation for the European Union (EU). It took effect on May 25, 2018. One of its primary goals is to give EU citizens more control over their personal data, including what’s collected, how long...
What are you doing to protect your Company’s intellectual property? Hopefully more than Domino’s… In late 2017, YouTuber Samcrac purchased a Domino’s DXP delivery car at a salvage auction. These cars were the result of an extensive, crowd-sourced campaign to design the car’s features, which included a flashy Domino’s-colored paint job, customized Domino’s logo car...
In March 2017, bills were introduced to the House and Senate that would include the death of a child as a qualifying event under the Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”). Parents who are eligible employees who work for qualified employers could take up to twelve (12) weeks of unpaid leave to mourn the loss of...
Employers were required to begin using the revised Form I-9 (now dated 11/14/2016) on January 22, 2017. With a new administration in the White House promising to crack down on illegal immigration controls and focus on employer accountability, as well as the increase in potential penalties for hiring people not authorized to work in the...
In case you hadn’t heard, on November 22, 2016, a federal judge prohibited the U.S. Department of Labor’s new regulation from taking effect on December 1, 2016. The regulations would have, but for the Court’s injunction, increased the salary threshold for exempt employees from $455 per week to $913 per week. The injunction applies in...
Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Labor published a new rule that will increase the salary requirements for “exempt” employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The time for complying with the new rule is just around the corner – the regulation goes into effect on December 1, 2016 regardless of the pending new...
For employers who are required to file an annual EEO-1 report, beginning in March 2018, the EEOC will also require those employers to report various types of pay data on their employees. The new rule changes the scope of the data that must be reported, the timing of the data collection, and the reporting deadline....
Mercifully, the elections are just around the corner. Your employees may request time off to vote. How do you balance the need to have your business staffed and operating smoothly against your employees’ right to vote? Do you have to allow employees to take time to vote during the work day? If you do, how...
The Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”) of 2016 that became effective May 11, 2016 creates a federal private cause of action for trade secret misappropriation and provides remedies including injunction, damages, exemplary damages up to two times the amount of damages for willful and malicious appropriation, and reasonable attorney’s fees for the prevailing party under...
If you are an American seeking to do business in Europe, or vice versa, it is useful to have an overview of the cultural and legal differences between the two continents to understand how these impact the respective work cultures. As each state in the U.S. and each country in Europe has its own quirks,...
In 2010, the EEOC received a complaint that Crothall Services Group was using criminal background checks and criminal history to make hiring decisions that had a “disparate impact” on African-Americans, Hispanics, and male applicants – that is, even though the criteria was facially non-discriminatory, the criteria disproportionally affected certain protected groups. Before reaching whether Crothall’s...
Manori de Silva is taking on the International Sector at Stanton Law. Qualified as an attorney in England (solicitor) and the United States, she uses her understanding of cultural differences to help European companies to do business in the United States. She also helps American companies navigate the complex web of worker protections in Europe. Click here to check out...
On Wednesday, May 18, 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor published a new rule that will increase the salary requirements for “exempt” employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The regulation will go into effect on December 1, 2016, giving employers fewer than 200 days to prepare. What does this mean for you as an...
What do you see as you look around a typical office? Once you get past the coffee cups, computer monitors, and creatively designed (or not so creatively designed) desks, it’s about the people. Diversity in the workplace has increased substantially within the last 10-15 years. There is a wealth of information out there about diversity...
Georgia General Assembly Bills 826 and 60 were signed by Governor Nathan Deal April 22 and 23, respectively, and represent the latest wave of legislation addressed to gun ownership and possession in Georgia. HB 60, or the “Safe Carry Protection Act” has been referred to by critics as the “Guns Everywhere” Law, notably expanding the...
We’ve received several contacts from clients and other lawyers concerning employment issues that have come up as a result of the inclement weather. Here’s a few quick answers to common questions (under Georgia and federal law), but please let me know if you have others or need a more thorough explanation about anything covered here:...
Over the past few years, employees across the country have been raising questions about health care reform and how it will impact them. The following communication has been created to help inform and educate employees about the possible changes that may affect them in the future. What is Health Care Reform? The Affordable Care Act...
In this article: What is a Bring Your Own Device Policy (BYOD), and should your company have one? What are the security implications of BYOD, and how can you address them? What privacy issues does BYOD raise, and how can you manage them? If your employee handbook still contemplates pager use as an HR concern,...
This article was originally published in the June 29-July 5, 2012 edition of the Atlanta Business Chronicle. It is republished with the permission of the author. Like most adages or clichés, “lonely at the top” rings true most of the time. Whether you own your business, are a CEO, or the head of your department,...
Millenium Benefits Consulting offers a different perspective on what is normally one of the biggest headaches in an employer’s year. Take a quick look to see if it helps… Yikes – Open Enrollment is just around the corner! Yep, it’s true – for plans renewing on January 1, 2013 – open enrollment is right around...
Whether by design or necessity, you’ll eventually have to leave your business behind. As the short presentation below details, a little forethought and preparation will go a long way towards maximizing the results when that day comes. This presentation by Gareth Young of Abraxas offers an overview of this complex and very important topic for...