Labor & Employment Developments Blog

On October 6, 2026, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) submitted a draft proposal to rescind its 2012 Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions Under Title VII (“Guidance”). The proposed rescission is part of a broader federal shift from disparate impact theories that began in 2025 and comes on the heels of the EEOC’s June 2026 vote to rescind its affirmative action guidelines. While the change would signal new enforcement priorities for the agency, employers would still need to comply with federal, state, and local laws.

On July 4, 2025, President Donald Trump signed the “One Big Beautiful Bill” into law. Among its sweeping provisions are two significant changes for wage and hour compliance that employers should be aware of: the creation of federal income tax deductions for employee tips and certain overtime compensation. Both changes are poised to impact businesses and workers beginning in the 2025 tax year and lasting until 2028

Understanding the scope and requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has been an ongoing challenge for employers. A recent court decision has added to this complexity by clarifying the interpretation of what it means to be a “qualified individual” under the ADA. In Tudor v. Whitehall Central School District, the Second Circuit noted that the ADA was intended to offer broad protections to individuals with disabilities, and thus, should be interpreted accordingly. The Court held that an employee may still be considered a “qualified individual” entitled to reasonable accommodation under the ADA even if she can perform the essential functions of her job without reasonable accommodation. Thus, an employer is expected to provide reasonable accommodations to enhance an employee’s job performance in general. Providing reasonable accommodations are not tied to a person’s otherwise inability to perform the essential job functions.