Rojgar Job News

If you ever read the state labor laws (wait, you haven’t?), you sometimes come across provisions that seem like they were written for another generation. And indeed, they were. Take, for example, Conn. Gen. Stat. 31-23.  It prohibits children under the age of 16 from working in the “manufacturing, mechanical, mercantile or theatrical industry”. That seems to make some sense as far as child labor laws are written. Then it goes on. It also prohibits working in a “restaurant or public dining room.” Public Dining Rooms? I was about to write this off entirely as just outdated but there is at least one reference I’ve found in Connecticut to a “public dining room”.  Grasso Tech’s culinary arts program advertises a “public dining room” on Facebook, so perhaps we can give them a break. And then the statute singles out three other businesses to add to the prohibition: any bowling alley, shoe-shining establishmen...

Updated 10:15a, May 9, 2020 Late Friday afternoon, Governor Lamont announced that Phase I reopenings will occur as soon as May 20, 2020.  These will include “non-essential” offices that had been closed, restaurants, retail stores and hair salons.  Early on Saturday, we also got all the detailed rules that will need to be met to reopen; we’ll have a full update on my firm’s website after a full review . You can download the rules for offices here. The basic outline for the reopening rules are set forth is fairly consistent with the “Safe Workplace” rules for essential workplaces and also my posts on the subject as well. Here’s what you can look for, according to the early details released in the press conference: Offices should be limited to 50 percent capacity Employees should still work from home where possible Meetings are subject to a five person limit Employees should be seated at least six feet apart and employers should leave des...

Memorial Day Weekend, in addition to a time of reflection and observance, is also a time when many of us look at our summer plans and figure out the next three months. But like many of you, our summer plans have been cancelled. Kids aren’t going to camp. We’re not going on a trip. Even my annual ABA meeting — which I’ve done for over 15 years — has moved virtual. On the flip side, I do see a lot more grilling in my future. For employers, it’s a similarly challenging and strange time. In talking with people over the last week or so, I’m struck by how many people are not going back to the office anytime soon. Some have said maybe Labor Day.  One person told me it’ll be 2021 before he goes back; his office has realized how effective remote working can actually be. The truth is there’s no playbook for what happens next.  Clearly, restaurant and retail have been eager to reopen — and understandably so. But offices? Less s...