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Quick Hits HB 26-1054 was drafted to address workplace safety standards in a time of declining federal enforcement and would grant the Colorado attorney general and private citizens the ability to file civil lawsuits to ensure the law is followed. The bill would increase the state’s role in workplace safety by allowing state lawmakers to create new workplace safety rules when existing federal regulations are repealed. Opponents of the legislation…

Quick Hits The new Form I-129 edition dated February 27, 2026, replaces the January 20, 2025, edition, which USCIS will not accept for petitions postmarked on or after April 1, 2026. The updated form requires detailed position requirements. FY 2027 H-1B Cap Season The H-1B registration period for FY 2027 opened at noon eastern time on March 4, 2026, and closes at noon eastern time on March 19, 2026. A…

Quick Hits Digitalization in business processes in Germany has led to challenges such as the online acquisition and submission of sick leave certificates without physician contact. The Higher Labor Court of Hamm ruled that a sick leave certificate obtained without a personal medical examination is insufficient and can justify an employee’s immediate. Businesses may want to educate supervisors and HR departments on the varying evidentiary value of sick leave certificates,…

Quick Hits A federal district court recently concluded that IT recruiters for a staffing firm qualified for overtime pay because they did not fall within the FLSA’s administrative exemption. The court relied on the administrative/production dichotomy, which distinguishes nonexempt workers who produce and sell a company’s goods and services from exempt workers who administer the business. The court also concluded that the job duties of the recruiters did not rise…

Aviation disruption across the region has been significant. Industry estimates suggest that more than 100,000 travelers may currently be stranded across Middle Eastern aviation hubs, with tens of thousands of flights cancelled or diverted since the escalation of hostilities in late February. Major transit hubs, including Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Muscat, and Manama, have experienced widespread disruption, leaving employees and business travelers unable to return home or resume normal travel…

Quick Hits New York enacted amendments to the Trapped at Work Act that delay its effective date to December 19, 2026. The law’s central prohibition is unchanged in purpose but sharpened in phrasing; Employers may not require, as a condition of employment, that an employee or applicant execute an employment promissory note. The statute defines such a note as any instrument, agreement, or contract provision that requires an employee to…

Quick Hits The Fifth Senate of Germany’s Federal Labor Court clarified that remuneration in the event of default of acceptance (Section 615 sentence 1 BGB) cannot be contractually excluded in advance in the event of an invalid termination by the employer or a termination that only takes effect later. Although the provision can, in principle, be contractually amended, this does not apply to the protection of livelihood. Remuneration is a…

Quick Hits The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026 (CAA 2026) represents the most sweeping federal effort to date to regulate pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). Most of the changes will not take effect until 2029 (for calendar year plans). At the center of the CAA 2026: full pass-through of rebates and required compensation disclosure by PBMs. The CAA 2026 represents the most sweeping federal legislative effort to regulate the pharmacy benefit…

Quick Hits An Ontario labour arbitrator accepted eyewitness evidence of an employee’s cannabis use based on the distinct smell of marijuana, finding this constituted “clear and cogent evidence” even without formal drug recognition training. The employee’s dismissal was reduced to a three-month suspension because the employer did not prove observable impairment—only that cannabis was consumed during working hours. The employer’s delayed response—waiting until the next day to escalate the concern—eliminated…

Quick Hits The State Department updated the Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) to broaden B-1 visa eligibility for foreign nationals involved in installing, servicing, and training related to commercial or industrial equipment purchased from foreign companies. A new “Specialized Trainers” category has been added to the FAM, allowing foreign nationals to enter the United States on a B-1 visa to train U.S. workers on specialized or proprietary techniques, skills, or know-how…

Quick Hits Trucking employers must pay Washington-based drivers 1.5 times the regular rate for hours worked over forty per week, or the “reasonable equivalent” of overtime. In Bostain v. Food Express, Inc., Washington’s Supreme Court held that the MWA applies to interstate drivers regardless of where the drivers are performing the work. Noncompliance can be very costly, and violations can result in double damages under Washington law. Employers with Washington…

Quick Hits Multinational employers planning workforce reductions must complete required consultations before making any global announcements or cutting system access. Many countries require mandatory government notifications even for single terminations, not just mass layoffs. A global reduction in force is not a single event—it is a coordinated series of local processes, each with its own rules, timelines, and execution formalities. This U.S.-centric approach, when implemented outside the United States, routinely…