Articles Discussing General Topics In Oregon Labor & Employment Law.

With summer arriving and temperatures starting to rise, Oregon employers should familiarize themselves with the new Oregon OSHA Heat Illness Prevention standard (OAR 437-002-0156) that comes into effect on June 15, 2022.

Covered Employers

The new standard applies to workplaces when an employee is performing work activities in any environment

On May 9 and 10, 2022, the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Oregon OSHA) adopted final rules on heat illness and wildfire smoke.

After becoming the first state to ban real estate “love letters,” Oregon’s novel law has been found to violate the First Amendment and enjoined from enforcement by a federal Court in Oregon. 

On March 21, 2022, the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) adopted a permanent rule, effective April 1, 2022, that expands the reasons employees can use leave under Oregon’s paid sick and safe leave law during a public health emergency.

Recently the Oregon legislature passed, and Governor Kate Brown signed, Senate Bill (SB) 1513, revising the Beaver State’s overtime rules for bakers. In addition, the legislature passed House Bill (HB) 4002, revamping the overtime entitlements for farmworkers. That bill is before Governor Brown, who is expected to sign it. As

The Oregon legislature has passed amendments to the Workplace Fairness Act clarifying that workplace agreements with a release of claims cannot include confidentiality or nondisparagement provisions, among other clarifications and changes.

Last year, the Oregon legislature temporarily amended Oregon’s Equal Pay Act to exempt vaccine incentives and hiring and retention bonuses from pay equity considerations, as reported here.  The temporary amendments were scheduled to expire March 1, 2022.  More recently, the legislature extended the expiration date for the amendments.  SB 1514

Oregon employers may want to be aware that on March 7, 2022, Governor Kate Brown signed into law amendments to the state’s Equal Pay Act detailed in Senate Bill (SB) 1514. As a result, Oregon employers may offer vaccine incentives, hiring bonuses, and retention bonuses until 180 days after the

The primary employment-related bills passed in Oregon’s 2022 legislative session relate to pay equity and the Workplace Fairness Act. Oregon employers in particular sectors may also want to be aware of recently passed and pending legislation that addresses overtime eligibility for agricultural workers, notice of mandatory overtime shifts for manufacturing

In 2019, Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed the Workplace Fairness Act (OWFA), which took full effect as of October 1, 2020. Among other things, the law prohibits employers from requiring employees to enter into agreements that would prevent them from disclosing conduct constituting discrimination and harassment (including sexual assault) prohibited

The Oregon Legislative Assembly recently passed Senate Bill (SB) 1514, extending the expiration date of temporary amendments to Oregon’s Equal Pay Act. The act prohibits employers from “discriminat[ing] between employees on the basis of a protected class in the payment of wages or other compensation for work of a comparable

On January 31, 2022, the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) published permanent rules relating to COVID-19 vaccination and masking requirements in healthcare settings, just a few days after issuing similar rules for K-12 schools. The permanent rules replaced temporary rules that expire after 180 days.

On January 13, 2022, the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division (Oregon OSHA) announced that because the Supreme Court of the United States has stayed the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), it “will not move forward with adopting the same

Oregon operates a state plan that the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has approved that applies to both public and private employers. Accordingly, Oregon employers are subject to the state OSHA’s standards rather than the federal OSHA standards. Oregon OSHA may adopt an emergency temporary standard (ETS) related

Changes to Oregon employment laws taking effect next year will be keeping human resources professionals very busy this holiday season and into the new year in the Pacific Northwest.