Lindsay Buchanan Burke

April 22, 2020, Covington Alert

Whether a company is an essential business or is expecting to reopen in the coming weeks, a number of challenges must be addressed in order to provide a safe environment in which employees can work, while at the same time mitigating risk and restoring operations. Generally speaking, employees can be required to come to the workplace, but this general rule must ...

April 21, 2020, Covington Alert

Whether a company is an essential business or is expecting to reopen its doors in the coming weeks, a number of challenges must be addressed in order to provide a safe environment in which employees can work, while at the same time mitigating risk and restoring operations. Generally speaking, employees can be required to come to work, but this general rule must ...

April 17, 2020, Covington Alert

Whether a company is an essential business or is expecting to reopen its doors in the coming weeks, a number of challenges must be addressed in order to provide a safe environment in which employees can work, while at the same time mitigating risk and restoring operations. Generally speaking, employees can be required to come to work, but this general rule must ...

April 16, 2020, Covington Alert

Whether a company is an essential business or is expecting to reopen in the coming weeks, a number of challenges must be addressed in order to provide a safe environment in which employees can work, while at the same time mitigating risk and restoring operations. Generally speaking, employees can be required to come to work, but this general rule must be ...

April 8, 2020, Covington Alert

Employers are facing new challenges in responding to COVID-19 and its implications for their workplaces in the United States. The checklist below will assist in thinking through the issues most likely to need attention in the immediate future. Information, agency guidance, and potential responses to COVID-19 are changing rapidly. This checklist was last updated ...

June 23, 2020, Covington Alert

On June 22, 2020, President Trump issued a proclamation titled “Proclamation Suspending Entry of Aliens Who Present a Risk to the U.S. Labor Market Following the Coronavirus Outbreak” (“June 22 Proclamation”). The June 22 Proclamation blocks the entry of foreign workers entering the United States on certain nonimmigrant visa categories, including H-1B, H-2B, ...

May 21, 2020, Covington Alert

On May 19, OSHA issued updated guidance reinstating employers’ obligations to record work-related COVID-19 cases. The guidance takes effect May 26. OSHA had previously suspended this obligation for most employers in an April 10 enforcement discretion document, but advocates for both employers and employees have recently pressed for more robust guidance from OSHA ...

May 11, 2020, The Wall Street Journal

Lindsay Burke is quoted in The Wall Street Journal regarding the actions employers can take when asking employees to return to work during the COVID-19 pandemic. When addressing the concerns of an employee who is nervous to commute to work, Ms. Burke says, “If you are able to work from home, ask to do so. If you are considered a vulnerable individual or have an ...

May 6, 2020

As businesses across multiple industries and geographies prepare for reopening following COVID-19 closures, Covington is providing practical resources and guidance on the broad array of issues companies face as employees return to the workplace. Learn more in our multi-part series: Part One: Navigating the Legal Risk of Return Part Two: Potential ...

May 5, 2020, Agence France-Presse

Lindsay Burke spoke with Agence France-Presse about the lawsuits U.S. businesses may face from employees who contract COVID-19 while at work. Ms. Burke says companies should follow government guidelines to protect themselves legally as they bring employees back into the workplace. “We are generally advising employers to resume on-site operations in a voluntary ...

April 27, 2020, The Wall Street Journal

Lindsay Burke spoke with The Wall Street Journal about the incentives companies can offer to employees returning to work. Ms. Burke says, “Extremely large companies might offer to subsidize people's purchases of private vehicles or subsidize rental cars.”

April 27, 2020, Covington Alert

Whether a company is an essential business or is expecting to reopen in the coming weeks, a number of challenges must be addressed in order to provide a safe environment in which employees can work, while at the same time mitigating risk and restoring operations. Generally speaking, employees can be required to come to the workplace, but this general rule must ...

April 23, 2020, Financial Times

Lindsay Burke and Carolyn Rashby spoke with the Financial Times about the request from U.S. businesses that seek a shield from litigation if they expose employees to COVID-19 after calling them back to work. Both Ms. Rashby and Ms. Burke note that the firm’s employment practice has been flooded with questions about how employers could minimize their legal risks ...

April 22, 2020, Law360

Lindsay Burke and Carolyn Rashby are quoted in Law360 regarding legal dangers and logistical challenges associated with reopening businesses in the U.S. Ms. Burke says, “We're in a lot of new territory here. I don't think any employers in modern history have had to return to operations in the middle of a global health crisis. And so we're really trying to ...

April 21, 2020, Bloomberg Law

Lindsay Burke and Carolyn Rashby spoke with Bloomberg Law about the uphill battle employees who contract COVID-19 on the job may face if they choose to sue their employer. Ms. Burke says, “We’re in territory we haven’t seen before. We are looking at a whole lot of different legal risks and issues. It’s not clear how they will play out. Traditionally an illness ...

March 25, 2020, Covington Alert

In light of the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act ("FFCRA") and New York State’s sick leave law, both of which were signed on March 18, 2020, many New York employers will need to be prepared to comply with their new federal and state sick leave obligations to employees impacted by COVID-19. As discussed in a prior client alert, the FFCRA requires ...

March 24, 2020, Inside Compensation

As the COVID-19 public health crisis continues, businesses are dealing with unprecedented disruptions to operations and workforce stability. Most employers undoubtedly want to assist their employees during this uncertain time, but they are struggling to balance the cost of maintaining their workforce with shrinking profits. The frequent result of such a ...

March 24, 2020, Covington Alert

As the COVID-19 public health crisis continues, U.S. businesses are dealing with unprecedented disruptions to operations and workforce stability. Most employers undoubtedly want to assist their employees during this uncertain time, but they are struggling to balance the cost of maintaining their workforce with shrinking profits. The frequent result of such a ...

March 19, 2020, Covington Alert

On March 18, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, H.R. 6201 (the “Act”) in response to the pressing economic concerns arising from the spread of COVID-19. The Senate passed the House bill, as modified by the House on March 16, without change. For private-sector employers with fewer than 500 employees and certain ...

March 18, 2020 (Updated March 24, 2020), Covington Alert

In developing plans to cope with the coronavirus (COVID-19), employers must strike the right balance between Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) requirements and restrictions on employees’ privacy and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Several key requirements are particularly relevant, and agency guidance on these topics is rapidly ...

July 2020

As the legal, regulatory, and commercial implications of coronavirus COVID-19 continue to evolve, our lawyers and advisors are helping clients navigate the complex considerations that companies around the world are facing and develop plans and strategies in response. Reach out to our COVID-19 task force at COVID19@cov.com. Below is a compendium of resources ...

February 10, 2020, Inside Compensation

The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) has published a final rule, which takes effect on March 16, 2020, outlining the new four-factor approach DOL will use to determine whether, under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), a business is a “joint employer” of another company’s employees and thus jointly and severally liable for wage and...… Continue Reading

October 4, 2019, Inside Compensation

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has announced a final rule that will increase access to overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) for approximately 1.3 million workers.  The final rule, which comes six months after DOL published a proposed rule in March, is the latest development in a years-long process by DOL,...… Continue Reading

August 2019, Covington Alert

The ECJ ruled on 14 May 2019 (C-55/18) that Member States must take measures to ensure that employers comply with the minimum rest periods and prevent workers from working in excess of the weekly maximum working hours, including introducing an "objective, reliable and accessible system" to measure daily working time.

June 6, 2019

This webinar discussed the importance of workplace culture and best practices to reduce the risk of a toxic work environment. Topics included the current landscape employers are facing, why culture in the workplace matters, warning signs of an unhealthy workplace culture, and the legislative response to the #MeToo movement.

April 3, 2019, Covington Alert

In February 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced a settlement with Honda Aircraft Company LLC regarding claims that Honda Aircraft violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”) by discriminating against non-U.S. citizens in an attempt to comply with requirements of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (“ITAR”) and the Export ...

March 14, 2019, Inside Compensation

Following two years of anticipation, after a similar but more aggressive rule was proposed by President Obama’s administration and then squashed by federal courts in Texas, the Department of Labor (DOL) has issued the long-awaited Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that, if enacted, would expand access to overtime pay for certain employees under the Fair Labor...… ...

February 2019, Covington Alert

This International Employment Update summarises recent international employment law developments in China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

October 24, 2018, Covington Alert

California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed into law a number of landmark bills aimed at strengthening sexual harassment protections in the workplace and boosting gender equality in the boardroom. Here is an overview of the new statutes; unless otherwise specified, they take effect on January 1, 2019.

July 17, 2018, Bank Director

June 9, 2018, Variety

Lindsay Burke is quoted in a Variety article regarding the importance of cultural risk assessments in the workplace. “If you’re going to get into brand crisis level allegations, you need more resources,” Burke says. “You need resources to review a larger set of documents. You need corporate governance expertise.”

May 23, 2018, Inside Compensation

The Supreme Court put to rest years of uncertainty regarding the enforceability of class action waivers for employees when it decided Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, 582 U.S. ___ (2018) on May 21.  In a 5-4 decision, the majority held that employers do not violate the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) or the Federal Arbitration...… Continue Reading

April 20, 2018, Covington Alert

On March 27 2018, the UK Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) published a report, Turning the tables: ending sexual harassment at work, in which it makes a number of recommendations for legal changes to better protect the victims of sexual harassment at work.

March 16, 2018, Inside Compensation

Part of Our Series on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 The Tax Cuts & Jobs Act of 2017 adds a new provision to the Code, section 162(q), that eliminates deductions for settlement payments related to sexual harassment or sexual abuse “if such settlement or payment is subject to a nondisclosure requirement.” The...… Continue Reading

February 14, 2018, Covington Alert

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the “Act”) became Pub. Law 115-97 on December 22, 2017. Many of its more startling provisions have become well known since then. Of less dramatic impact are several provisions affecting qualified employer plans, fringe benefits, and certain kinds of compensation. These provisions are described in this client alert. This client ...

February 1, 2018, Covington Alert

This International Employment Update summarises recent international employment law developments in China, India, Italy, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

January 30, 2018, Law360

Law360 highlights the promotion of Covington's newest partners, including John Balzano, Lindsay Burke, Bradley Chernin, Christopher DeCresce, Guy Dingley, Matthew Dunn, Laura Flahive Wu, Pamela Forrest, Alexa Hansen, Megan Keane, Sam Pyun, Kyle Rabe, Ansgar Simon, Andrew Soukup, Emily Ullman, and Mark Young.

January 12, 2018, Covington Alert

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced that it will apply a new, more flexible test for determining whether interns working for “for-profit” companies are entitled to minimum wage and overtime protection under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The new test is set forth in DOL Fact Sheet #71 (updated January 2018).

January 11, 2018, Covington Alert

The U.S. Department of Labor recently announced that it will apply a new, more flexible test for determining whether interns working for “for-profit” companies are entitled to minimum wage and overtime protection under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. In this client alert, we discuss the new test and identify some important points for employers to consider ...

January 2018, Pratt's Privacy & Cybersecurity Law Report

October 13, 2017, Covington Alert

Beginning October 31, 2017, New York City employers will no longer be permitted to ask job applicants about their salary history or rely on a job applicant’s salary history in determining the potential salary or benefits for that applicant. The new legislation, which applies to all employees working in New York City and was signed by Mayor Bill de Blasio in May, ...

October 10, 2017, Inside Privacy

Today, one of the most critical risks a company can face is the cyber risks associated with its own employees or contractors.  Companies are confronting an increasingly complex series of cybersecurity challenges with employees in the workplace, including employees failing to comply with established cybersecurity policies, accidentally downloading an attachment ...

October 2, 2017

WASHINGTON—Covington has promoted 16 lawyers to its partnership. “It’s a great tribute to the firm’s vibrancy that we’re continuing to build an exceptional pipeline of new partners from within our ranks,” said Timothy Hester, Covington’s chair. “We’re confident that all 16 will add importantly to the firm’s strengths and will drive further expansion of core ...

September 27, 2017, Employment Webinar Series

September 7, 2017, Covington Alert

On Tuesday, the Trump Administration announced plans to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (“DACA”) program, which allows qualifying, vetted undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children to remain in the country and obtain temporary work authorization. While some components of the DACA termination will begin to take effect ...

September 2017, Covington Alert

On March 5, 2017, the Belgian parliament enacted the Flexible and Workable Work Law, which seeks to increase flexibility for both employers and employees.

June 30, 2017, Covington Alert

Earlier this week, the Supreme Court issued a ruling staying certain parts of the injunctions entered by the Fourth and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeal against Executive Order No. 13780, the so-called "travel ban" Executive Order (the “Order”), and the State Department issued clarifying guidance on June 28. The effect of the Supreme Court ruling is to allow ...

June 7, 2017, Covington Alert

Pursuant to the State Council’s directive to build harmonious labor relationships and to strengthen the system for resolving labor disputes, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) recently revised two sets of arbitration rules. The revisions address new issues and provide clarification of existing regulations. The key objectives are to ...

May 31, 2017, The Washington Post

Lindsay Burke is quoted by The Washington Post in an article regarding employee rights when it comes to off-duty political activity. Commenting on whether freedom of speech protections offer job protections for nongovernment workers, Burke says, "[I]f it's a private employer, there's no particular freedom of speech." She adds, "There are no particular First ...

April 28, 2017, Inside Government Contracts

Alex Acosta was confirmed by the Senate to be the next Secretary of Labor.  He now takes responsibility for several high-profile issues with critical implications for government contractors. As we have previously written, the Labor Department was an exceptionally active regulator from 2013 through the end of the Obama Administration.  Although few of us ...

March 7, 2017, Covington Alert

Yesterday, President Trump issued a new Executive Order (the “Order”) titled “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States.” This new Order replaces the so-called “travel ban” Executive Order issued January 27 (the “Prior Order”) which was subject to a nationwide temporary restraining order issued by the U.S. District Court for the ...

March 6, 2017, Business Insurance

Lindsay Burke is quoted in a Business Insurance article regarding the risks associated with internal office chat applications. “People think of it as a casual form of communication,” Burke says, “and they forget that it’s business and usually the company is keeping a record of the communication. And if the company finds itself in litigation, then the discovery ...

February 10, 2017, Covington Alert

Following last week’s advisory concerning President Trump’s Executive Order “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States (the “Order”), numerous lawsuits were filed challenging the Order. One such challenge, filed by the State of Washington and the State of Minnesota, culminated in yesterday’s unanimous decision by the United States ...

February 7, 2017, Covington Alert

This International Employment Update summarises recent international employment law developments in Austria, China, France, Italy, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

January 30, 2017, Covington Alert

As has been widely reported, President Trump issued an Executive Order (“the Order”) on Friday, January 27, 2017, entitled “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States,” which, among other directives, bans individuals from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Yemen, and Somalia (the “Covered Countries”) from entering the United States ...

December 19, 2016, Westlaw Journal Government Contract

November 21, 2016, Inside Government Contracts

Federal contractors who require employees to sign confidentiality agreements—including those selling only commercial products or in small quantities—need to examine their agreements closely. For the last two years, the government has sought to prohibit confidentiality agreements that restrict employees’ ability to report fraud, waste, or abuse to “designated ...

November 7, 2016, Agenda

Barbara Hoffman and Lindsay Burke are quoted in an Agenda article regarding the SEC’s continued interest in restrictive confidentiality agreements that could deter employees from reporting company violations to authorities.  According to Hoffman, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration administers a number of whistle-blowing programs for federal ...

October 21, 2016, The Washington Post

Lindsay Burke and Robert Lenhard are quoted in a Washington Post article regarding laws governing political communications in the workplace. According to Burke employees of private companies are often surprised they don’t have the First Amendment rights they do outside the workplace. She adds that although companies can’t prohibit workers from talking about ...

October 5, 2016, Inside Government Contracts

The Labor Department’s Wage & Hour Division (“WHD”) released final regulations implementing mandatory paid sick leave for employees working on federal service, construction, and concessions contracts.  The Labor Department incorporated some changes to the proposed regulations, which we previewed earlier this year, but the final rule still imposes significant ...

October 5, 2016, Covington Alert

The International Employment Update summarises recent international employment law developments in the United Kingdom, France, Poland, China and the United States of America.

September 30, 2016, Covington Alert

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) continues to aggressively pursue companies using severance and other employment agreements that could be perceived to discourage employees from reporting possible securities law violations. Three enforcement actions this past summer demonstrate the need for companies to proactively review and give consideration ...

August 29, 2016, Inside Government Contracts

Just in time for Labor Day, the Labor Department and FAR Council issued a final rule and accompanying “Guidance” to implement the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order.  The new regulations will take effect on October 25, 2016.  The regulations—which run to nearly 900 pages—contain a number of changes from the proposed regulations to...… Continue ...

June 21, 2016, Webinar

June 14, 2016, Covington Alert

Not content with California’s state law requiring employers to provide certain employees with paid sick leave, Los Angeles’s Mayor recently signed into law a new ordinance that would provide eligible employees working in the City of Los Angeles with more generous paid sick leave benefits. Meanwhile, voters in San Diego also recently approved a local sick leave ...

June 7, 2016, Covington Alert

On May 18, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) finalized its much-anticipated update to the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) so-called white collar overtime exemption rule. Effective December 1, 2016, an employee must earn at least $913 per week—the equivalent of $47,476 per year, more than double the current rate—in order to qualify as exempt from overtime ...

June 1, 2016, Covington Alert

April 8, 2016, Inside Government Contracts

Some Washingtonians stroll through CityCenterDC on shopping sprees at “upscale retail stores such as Hermès, Boss, and Louis Vuitton,” or meet for lunch at “high-end restaurants such as DBGB and Centrolina.”  Covington lawyers watch these scenes from our offices in the northwest corner of CityCenterDC, where we recently analyzed the D.C. Circuit’s opinion ...

April 2016, Covington Alert

Europe  Right to Private Life v. Right to Monitor On January 12, 2016, the European Court of Human Rights published its judgment in another case concerning an employee’s use of company information systems, once again highlighting the challenge of balancing an employee’s right to a private life against the right of an employer to monitor employees at work. In ...

March 18, 2016, Corporate Counsel

March 17, 2016, Law360

February 8, 2016, Inside Compensation

On January 20, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued new guidance on joint employment under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).  The guidance marks the third time in recent years that WHD has stressed the broad definition of “employment” under the FLSA, following June 2014 guidance on joint employment in the...… Continue Reading

July 23, 2015, Covington Alert

July 17, 2015, Webinar

July 13, 2015, Covington Alert

July 8, 2015, Inside Compensation

The Department of Labor has proposed a rule (available here) that would significantly increase the minimum salary threshold required to qualify for the FLSA’s so-called “white collar” exemptions for executive, administrative, and professional employees. The finalized rule is expected to take effect in 2016. The current salary threshold, set in 2004, is $455 per ...

July 8, 2015, Covington Alert

May 12, 2015, Covington E-Alert

April 20, 2015, Inside Compensation

On March 26, 2015—just one day before the Final Rule for the Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) was to take effect—a federal court in Texas blocked the Final Rule’s application to the states of Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Nebraska, pending a full determination of the issue on the merits in Texas v. United States. The...… Continue Reading

April 17, 2015, Inside Compensation

The Supreme Court held on March 25, 2015 in Young v. UPS that a plaintiff alleging pregnancy discrimination based upon the denial of an accommodation may proceed under the familiar McDonnell Douglas framework generally applied to Title VII discrimination claims. The Court’s decision, which resulted in a remand to the Fourth Circuit, surprised many observers...… ...

4/16/2015, Covington E-Alert

April 1, 2015, Covington E-Alert

March 20, 2015

March 12, 2015, Inside Counsel

Richard Shea, Lindsay Burke and Ashden Fein have authored this article on cybersecurity threats: "Cybersecurity threats can emanate not just from outside sources but from company insiders as well — including employees, executives, directors and contractors. According to NetDiligence’s 2014 Cyber Insurance Claims Study, roughly one-third of the reported events ...

March 12, 2015, InsideCounsel

February 10, 2015, Covington E-Alert

December 8, 2014, Covington E-Alert

November 10, 2014, Covington E-Alert

October 20, 2014, Covington E-Alert

May 21, 2014, Covington E-Alert

April 22, 2014, Covington E-Alert

April 8, 2014, Covington E-Alert

March 25, 2014, Covington E-Alert

March 13, 2014, Inside Privacy

By Lindsay Burke and Brian Fitzpatrick On March 10, 2014, the EEOC and the FTC issued joint guidance on how the anti-discrimination laws and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) apply to background checks performed by employers for employment application purposes. This guidance is published in two documents, one directed at employers and the other...… Continue ...

September 10, 2013, Law360

September 4, 2013, Inside Privacy

A New Jersey federal court recently held that an employee’s Facebook wall posts were protected by the Stored Communications Act (“SCA”), 18 U.S.C. § 2701 et seq., in one of the first cases to analyze the SCA’s application to the Facebook wall.  Ehling v. Monmouth-Ocean Hospital Service Corp.., No. 2:11-cv-3305 (WMJ) (D.N.J. Aug. 20, 2013).  An...… Continue ...

September 4, 2013, InsidePrivacy Blog

August 15, 2013, Covington Advisory

August 13, 2013, Inside Privacy

Many employers have been surprised by recent rulings that two common employment policies run afoul of the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) even if their employees are not union members.  Based on a legitimate interest in preserving confidentiality and privacy, many employers have adopted social media policies limiting what employees may post on Facebook ...

August 8, 2013, Covington Advisory

March 14, 2013, InsidePrivacy Blog

June 22, 2012, Covington E-Alert

May 24, 2010

WASHINGTON, DC, May 24, 2010 — Covington & Burling LLP obtained summary judgment on all claims asserted by law professor Kyndra Rotunda against George Mason University. Ms. Rotunda had sued the University for sexual harassment, retaliation, pay discrimination, and constructive discharge in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. After ...