By Stanley Jutkowitz and Susan Ryan  Seyfarth Synopsis: Cannabis would move to Schedule III from Schedule I under this reclassification. In a move long awaited by the cannabis industry, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has decided to re-schedule cannabis. Currently classified under Schedule I, along with heroin, cannabis would now move to Schedule III, along with ketamine and anabolic steroids. This would not legalize cannabis for adult-use; rules and regulations would still apply, and there would be criminal prosecution of those who deal in cannabis without a lice ..read more

Apr. 17, 2024  – As most California employers are now aware, a new workplace violence law (SB 553) requires essentially all CA employers to develop and implement written Workplace Violence Prevention Plans and training by July 1, 2024. The new requirements will be enforced by Cal/OSHA. Cost  –  There is no cost to attend, but registration is required. REGISTER HERE Join us for a two-part webinar series as attorneys from our Workplace Safety team guide you through what is new and how to prepare. Webinar 10:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Pacific 11:30 a.m. to 12 ..read more

By Ilana Morady, Patrick Joyce, and Adam Young Seyfarth Synopsis: The Cal/OSHA Standards Board was ready to vote on Cal/OSHA’s indoor heat rule at the March 21, 2024 Standards Board meeting, but at the 11th hour, the Board was ordered to cancel its scheduled vote. Quick Summary In a surprising development, the Cal/OSHA indoor heat rule, which was expected to be approved at the Standards Board’s March 21, 2024 meeting, has been delayed yet again. The delay was due to the state Department of Finance rejecting part of the Standardized Regulatory Impact Assessment (SRIA) the evenin ..read more

By Adam R. Young and Aaron M. Gillett 1. A Nightmare Acquisition Your Company has recently acquired a small logistics company with a strong business reputation.  Eighteen days after the acquisition was finalized, you receive a call that there has been a tragic forklift accident in a warehouse operated by a subsidiary of the newly acquired target company.  An employee of a staffing agency was struck by a forklift and is in intensive care.  Federal OSHA has cited the subsidiary four years ago for forklift violations in another state, and is onsite conside ..read more

By Brent I. Clark, James L. Curtis, Patrick D. Joyce, A. Scott Hecker,  Daniel R. Birnbaum, Melissa A. Ortega and Taylor Iaculla Seyfarth Synopsis: This week we are attending the ABA Occupational Safety and Health Law Meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The meeting includes representatives from the U.S. Department of Labor, OSHA Review Commission, the MSHA Review Commission, OSHA and MSHA Judges, and the Solicitor’s Office, as well as management, labor, and safety professionals. The final day of the ABA Workplace and Occupational Safety and Health Law Committee Midwinte ..read more

By Ilana Morady, Brian Gillis, Clara Rademacher, Patrick D. Joyce, Bradley Doucette, and Adam R. Young Seyfarth Synopsis: Senate Bill 553, signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom, requires nearly all employers in the State of California to prepare a Workplace Violence Prevention Plan, train employees on how to identify and avoid workplace violence, and maintain a violent incident log by July 1, 2024. On March 7, 2024, Cal/OSHA published the long-awaited model Workplace Violence Prevention Plan Governor Newsom has signed SB 553, a first of its ..read more

By Brent I. Clark, James L. Curtis, Patrick D. Joyce, A. Scott Hecker, Daniel R. Birnbaum, Melissa A. Ortega and Taylor Iaculla Seyfarth Synopsis: This week we are attending the ABA Occupational Safety and Health Law Meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The meeting includes representatives from the U.S. Department of Labor, OSHA Review Commission, the MSHA Review Commission, OSHA and MSHA Judges, and the Solicitor’s Office, as well as management, labor, and safety professionals. Day 2 started with a panel discussion on recent case law with significant impa ..read more

By Brent I. Clark, James L. Curtis, Patrick D. Joyce, A. Scott Hecker, Daniel R. Birnbaum, Melissa A. Ortega and Taylor Iaculla Seyfarth Synopsis: This week we are attending the ABA Occupational Safety and Health Law Meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The meeting includes representatives from the U.S. Department of Labor, OSHA Review Commission, the MSHA Review Commission, OSHA and MSHA Judges, and the Solicitor’s Office, as well as management, labor, and safety professionals. Tuesday, March 5 We are attending the ABA Occupational Safety and Health Law Meetin ..read more

By Adam R. Young, A. Scott Hecker, Patrick D. Joyce, and Craig B. Simonsen Seyfarth Synopsis: The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is shifting its COVID-19 isolation guidance, advising that COVID-positive individuals no longer need to isolate once they have been fever-free for 24 hours and their symptoms are mild or improving. After weeks of rumors, the CDC revised its COVID-19 guidance to eliminate its five-day isolation recommendation and to suggest only enhanced situational precautions after an individual is fever-free for 24 hours: When people ..read more

By Rachel Bernasconi, Paul Cutrone, Marissa Dreher, Ben Dudley, Chris Gardner, Erin Hawthorne, Justine Giuliani, Sarah Goodhew, Philippa Noakes, Darren Perry, Penny Stevens, Henry Skene and Michael Tamvakologos Seyfarth just celebrated ten years of service to leading employers in Australia. To mark the occasion, we invited some of our partners to share insights on the evolution of employment, industrial relations and workplace safety in Australia over the past ten years. What have been the biggest changes in employment law, indu ..read more