Scopelitis, Garvin, Light, Hanson & Feary, P.C.

On April 28, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that California Trucking Association (CTA) was unlikely to succeed on the merits with respect to its claim that AB-5, the California legislature’s imposition of a restrictive ABC test, is preempted by the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (F4A). What is the future of AB-5 and how will it affect the transportation industry?

The DOL’s Model Notices of the type required under the ARPA’s new COBRA Premium Subsidy Program have now been issued. Read more about the program and where to find the Model Notices.

Since the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) was enacted on March 11, 2021, there has been much discussion about various provisions of the sweeping Act, focusing primarily on a new round of stimulus checks, expansion of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan program and extension of the Employee Retention Credit (ERC), among others. One provision that has not received as much attention is the ARPA COBRA Premium Subsidy Program, and employers that sponsor group health plans subject to COBRA are reminded that this program takes effect April 1, 2021.

Last week, The American College of Trial Lawyers (ACTL) inducted Scopelitis Partner Michael B. Langford as a Fellow before an audience of 670 members during its recent 2021 Annual Meeting and 70th Anniversary Celebration.

Scopelitis President & Managing Partner Greg Feary in FreightWaves on what to expect in 2021 regarding the ABC Test.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) withdrew an Opinion Letter issued in 2019 deeming gig economy workers engaging through a virtual marketplace platform to be independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act’s economic realities test (FLSA-2019-6).

In this issue:
 • Regulatory Outlook for the New Administration 
 • May My Company Require COVID-19 Vaccinations? 

 • A Bumpy Road for Arbitration Under the Biden Administration?
 • Coronavirus Paid Leave Expires (Mostly)

 • Spotlight on Expansion of Scopelitis’ Milwaukee Office
 • Dispatches: Transportation Industry News & Trends from Scopelitis

Off and Running on His First 100 Days, President Biden Addresses A Number of Labor and Employment Issues

The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit delivered good news for the trucking industry today, upholding the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s determination that California’s meal and rest break rules are preempted under 49 U.S.C. § 31141.

The Department of Labor published the text of its final rule establishing the test for independent contractor status under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The text remained largely unchanged from the initial language released in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking published last September. The final rule is an economic realities test with a two-tier analysis.

 

Both the House and the Senate approved a massive legislative package comprised of a $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill, annual government funding for the remainder of the fiscal year, and a host of miscellaneous provisions.

Scopelitis Partner Jack Finklea on what FreightWaves says are now believed to be more than 1,200 lawsuits filed by workers against their employers over a COVID-related dispute or claim.

Scopelitis President and Managing Partner Greg Feary on potential regulations that could most impact the transportation industry in the coming years.

The California Court of Appeal reversed the trial court decision in People v. Cal Cartage Transportation Express, LLC, holding that the ABC test first expressed in Dynamex and later codified in AB5 is not preempted by federal law.

Scopelitis President and Managing Partner Greg Feary in FleetOwner on significant changes the Biden administration has advertised that would impact trucking.

Scopelitis President & Managing Partner Greg Feary on Proposition 22 and the transportation industry and how the dependent Scopelitis contractor model may be an alternative to the binary classification system of an employee or independent contractor.

Prop 22 put the issue of the independent contractor status of gig economy drivers before California voters – these voters overwhelmingly voted yes to Proposition 22 on election day according to Associated Press reports. Scopelitis on how this translates to the transportation industry. 

In this issue:
 • Prop 22’s Impact on the Transportation Industry
 • DOL Publishes IC Rule
 • Ongoing Developments with the FLSA Joint Employer Rule
 • No Circuit Split (Yet) on the FAA “Transportation Worker” Exemption
 • Spotlight on Mergers & Acquisitions
 • Dispatches: Transportation Industry News & Trends from Scopelitis

The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), passed in the early days of the pandemic, required employers to provide paid sick leave for, among other reasons, employees who needed to stay home to care for a child whose school or place of care closed due to COVID-19. With school closings on the rise again and positive tests causing portions of classes to stay home to quarantine, employers need to prepare for a second wave of leave requests – which may come from employees who have already exhausted their paid leave rights under FFCRA.

Scopelitis Partner Michael Langford on DRI member on a unanimous victory for the defendants from the Indiana Supreme Court in the case of Humphrey v. Tuck and U.S. Xpress, Inc.