In the landmark case Quiñones v. Asociación, 161 D.P.R. 668 (2004), the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico had the opportunity to assess the scope of an arbitration clause included in a collective bargaining agreement in the context of a discrimination claim filed in court under PR Act No. 100-1959. In that occasion, the Supreme Court … Continued
On June 12 th, 2024, the Minimum Wage Evaluation Commission of the Department of Labor and Human Resources (“DLHR”) (hereinafter, “the Commission”) announced that, effective July 1st , 2024, the minimum wage will increase to $10.50 per hour, as previously established by the “Puerto Rico Minimum Wage Act” (hereinafter, “Act No. 47”). The Commission’s determination … Continued
As you may recall from our previous Newsletter, on September 21, 2021, the Governor of Puerto Rico, Pedro Pierluisi, signed into law House Bill 338 which establishes the “Puerto Rico Minimum Wage Act” (hereinafter, “Act No. 47”). Essentially, its purpose is to adapt the minimum wage to the cost of living of Puerto Rican workers, … Continued
On April 23rd, 2024, the U.S Department of Labor (“DOL”) and the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced issuance of Final Rules that impact the employment landscape. DOL’s Final Rule The DOL’s Final Rule, Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales, and Computer Employees, revises and updates the regulations issued under Section … Continued
The Corporate Transparency Act was enacted in 2021 to require that every corporation or limited liability company under the laws of a State or Indian Tribe (not defined as an “exempt entity”) annually file a report with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) containing a list of the beneficial owners of the corporation or limited … Continued
On January 9, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) Wage and Hour Division announced issuance of a new final rule titled “Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act” to help employers and workers have a better understanding of when a worker qualifies as an employee and when they may be … Continued
On August 30, 2023, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced issuance of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) to update and revise the regulation issued under section 13(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) implementing the exemption for minimum wage and overtime pay requirements for executive, administrative, professional, outside sales, and computer employees. … Continued
The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (“PWFA”), signed into law by President Joe Biden on December 27th, 2022, became effective this past July 27th. The PWFA expands and builds upon the existing protections against pregnancy discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (“Title VII”) and the reasonable accommodation requirements under the Americans with Disabilities … Continued
A. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) proposes rule to ban non-compete covenants and/or agreements Earlier this month the FTC published for public opinion a new proposed rule to ban employers from requiring non-compete clauses from their workers. The proposed rule is based on findings that a non-compete clause constitutes an unfair method of competition and … Continued
On June 20, 2022, Governor Pedro Pierluisi signed into law Act No. 41-2022 (hereinafter, Act No. 41) which amended various employment statutes including the Puerto Rico Christmas Bonus for Private Workers and Employees Act, Act No. 148 of June 30, 1969, as amended (hereinafter, Act. No. 148).[1] Succinctly, Act No. 148 requires private employers to … Continued
