Alex Downie
Alex Downie is a law clerk in the Labor & Employment Law Department and a member of the Employment Litigation & Arbitration Group. He previously worked as a summer associate at Proskauer and as an intern at the Department of Justice.
Alex earned his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he served as the executive editor of the Virginia Law & Business Review. He also volunteered for the school’s employment law clinic, where he assisted with a variety of employment-related matters ranging from employment discrimination to wage and hour disputes.
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The federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”), which requires that employers with fewer than 500 employees provide sick and family leave benefits for certain COVID-19 related reasons, is due to sunset on December 31, 2020. Many believed that the FFCRA’s sick and family leave provisions would be extended into 2021 as part of the … Continue Reading
On December 16, the EEOC issued updated guidance for employers in light of the Food and Drug Administration’s (“FDA”) recent authorization of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use. Widespread vaccinations are largely perceived as critical in returning all employees to the workplace safely and resuming normal business operations. As such, many employers have been grappling … Continue Reading
On October 28, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy issued an Executive Order addressing health and safety requirements for New Jersey employers that require or permit their workers to be physically present in the office. The Order supplements other guidance that was previously issued for certain industries – including retail, gyms and fitness centers, and child … Continue Reading
With Election Day just around the corner, we are highlighting some of the issues facing employers in a series of posts on election-related issues. In our first installment, we looked at employee protections around political speech and activity both in and outside the workplace. In this second installment, we’ll examine employees’ rights to take time … Continue Reading
With Election Day just around the corner, we’ll be highlighting some of the issues facing employers in a two-part series on elections and the workplace. In this first installment, we’ll look at employee protections around political speech and activity both in and outside the workplace. In Part 2, we’ll address statutory leave entitlements for employees … Continue Reading
On September 11, 2020 the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued revised Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”) regulations in response to a federal court decision striking down certain portions of its previous regulations. The FFCRA is a federal law that requires certain employers to provide: (1) two weeks of paid sick leave to employees … Continue Reading
On September 8, 2020, the EEOC released an updated technical assistance document addressing COVID-19 and the federal anti-discrimination laws enforced by the agency, including the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). Our previous posts about the EEOC’s prior COVID-19 guidance are available here and here. The updated guidance includes 18 new questions and answers, most of … Continue Reading
On August 21, 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) updated its guidance on Travel during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Previously, the guidance recommended that travelers self-quarantine for 14 days after: (1) all international travel, and (2) domestic travel to areas with a high concentration of COVID-19 cases. The guidance now recommends that travelers … Continue Reading
In a 6-3 decision authored by Justice Gorsuch on June 15, 2020, the United States Supreme Court held that Title VII’s prohibition on discrimination “because of…sex” includes discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Bostock v. Clayton County, No. 17-1618 (590 U.S. ___ (2020). In doing so, the Court made clear that … Continue Reading
Amid growing criticism of the agency’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, OSHA’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Loren E. Sweatt (“Sweatt”), testified before the House Education and Labor Committee’s Workforce Protections Subcommittee last Wednesday during which she defended the agency’s actions to protect worker safety during the pandemic. Below, we discuss the top three takeaways from … Continue Reading
*** Last Updated: July 17, 2020 *** New York State has issued detailed guidance on Governor Cuomo’s “New York Forward” Plan, under which the State will re-open in four phases on a regional basis. The guidance includes additional information regarding: (1) when regions will be permitted to begin re-opening; (2) which businesses are included in … Continue Reading
The New York City Department of Health has issued a standing Order that creates a process for those who live or work in the City to receive the documentation needed to claim leave in certain circumstances under the New York State COVID-19 Emergency Sick Leave Law. The State Emergency Sick Leave Law requires New York … Continue Reading
***Updated May 5, 2020 to account for new information released by the Governor’s Office.*** In his daily press conference on April 26, 2020, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a plan to re-open the state in phases on a regional basis. Under the plan, businesses will re-open on a business-by-business level within each region, with … Continue Reading
***Last Updated: May 18, 2020*** On April 9, 2020, Empire State Development (“ESD”) released guidance for determining whether a business or service is “essential” under a series of executive orders issued by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. These orders, which we addressed in a previous post, require that only businesses and not-for-profit entities deemed essential … Continue Reading
On March 27, 2020, the EEOC posted a pre-recorded webinar in which the agency answered questions related to the impact of COVID-19 on the laws that the agency enforces. At the outset, the EEOC issued a disclaimer that guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (“CDC”) and state or local public health authorities should not … Continue Reading
*** IMPORTANT NOTE: On April 9, 2020, the State of New York released updated guidance that modifies some of the content discussed below. Read more on our updated blog post here. *** Beginning Sunday, March 22, 2020, in accordance with Executive Order 202.8 issued by Governor Andrew Cuomo, only essential businesses and not-for-profit entities in … Continue Reading
The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (the “Department”) has issued its final regulations regarding the state’s Paid Sick Leave Act (the “Act”), which took effect on October 29, 2018. The Department also published its responses to over one hundred comments submitted by members of the public regarding the proposed regulations. As we … Continue Reading
*** Last Updated: March 13, 2020 *** News that cases of the newly-identified 2019 Novel Coronavirus (also referred to as COVID-19, 2019-nCoV, or SARS-CoV-2, but more commonly known simply as the “Coronavirus”) continue to spread has prompted employers to think about employee safety and ways to address prevention in the workplace, as well as planning … Continue Reading
The New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) has published guidance on the state’s salary history inquiry law, which went into effect on January 6, 2020. As we previously reported, the law prohibits employers from: Relying on the wage or salary history of an applicant in determining whether to offer employment to such individual or … Continue Reading
Congress Extends FFCRA Tax Credit into 2021, Declines to Extend FFCRA Leave
By Evandro Gigante, Harris Mufson, Alex Downie and Abigail Rosenblum on Posted in Coronavirus, Leaves of Absences
EEOC Issues Guidance on COVID-19 Vaccines
New Jersey Governor Issues Executive Order Addressing COVID-19 Health and Safety Requirements for Employers
By Evandro Gigante and Alex Downie on Posted in Coronavirus
Election Season and the Workplace, Part 2: Political Leave Laws
By Allan Bloom, Laura Fant and Alex Downie on Posted in Leaves of Absences, Workplace Policies and Procedures
Election Season and the Workplace, Part 1: Employee “Free Speech” and Political Activities
By Allan Bloom, Laura Fant and Alex Downie on Posted in Workplace Policies and Procedures
DOL Updates FFCRA Regulations in Light of Recent SDNY Decision
By Evandro Gigante, Laura Fant and Alex Downie on Posted in Coronavirus, Leaves of Absences
EEOC Updates Its COVID-19 Guidance (Again)
By Evandro Gigante, Guy Brenner, Harris Mufson, Laura Fant and Alex Downie on Posted in Coronavirus, Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation
CDC Updates Guidance on Travel During the COVID-19 Pandemic
By Evandro Gigante, Laura Fant and Alex Downie on Posted in Coronavirus
U.S. Supreme Court Holds That Title VII Prohibits Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
By Steven Hurd, Arielle E. Kobetz and Alex Downie on Posted in Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation
Top Three Takeaways from OSHA Chief’s Testimony Regarding OSHA Enforcement During the COVID-19 Pandemic
By Harris Mufson, Alex Downie and Lexie Reynolds on Posted in Coronavirus, Workplace Safety
New York State Issues Guidance for Re-Opening of Businesses
By Evandro Gigante, Harris Mufson, Arielle E. Kobetz and Alex Downie on Posted in Coronavirus
New York City Department of Health Issues Standing Isolation Order for Purposes of New York State Emergency Sick Leave Law
By Harris Mufson, Evandro Gigante, Laura Fant, Arielle E. Kobetz and Alex Downie on Posted in Coronavirus, Leaves of Absences
New York’s Governor Outlines Plan to Re-Open Businesses
By Harris Mufson, Evandro Gigante, Arielle E. Kobetz and Alex Downie on Posted in Coronavirus
New York State Issues Updated Guidance on Essential (And Non-Essential) Businesses
By Allan Bloom, Arielle E. Kobetz and Alex Downie on Posted in Coronavirus
EEOC Answers Employers’ COVID-19-Related Questions
By Harris Mufson, Caroline Guensberg and Alex Downie on Posted in Coronavirus
New York State Mandates That Non-Essential Workers Must Stay Home
Final Regulations Issued for New Jersey Paid Sick Leave Act
By Harris Mufson, Arielle E. Kobetz and Alex Downie on Posted in Leaves of Absences, Workplace Policies and Procedures
Coronavirus and the Workplace: What Employers Need To Know
New York State Department of Labor Publishes Guidance on Salary History Inquiry Law
By Evandro Gigante, Arielle E. Kobetz and Alex Downie on Posted in Hiring/Background Checks
