On November 22, 2024, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) updated the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) Entity List to add 29 companies based out of the Peoples Republic of China bringing the total number of listed companies to 107. As we previously posted here and here, companies included on the UFLPA Entity
Labor & Employment
Alabama Supreme Court Overturns Directed Verdict in Workplace Injury Lawsuit
On November 8, 2024, in Marina v. Bama Reinforcing, LLC, the Alabama Supreme Court addressed a trial court’s directed verdict on an injured construction worker’s negligence action. The worker was employed as a concrete finisher by the contractor on the new FBI building being constructed at Redstone Arsenal outside of Huntsville, Alabama. While working…
Inflation Reduction Act Prevailing Wage and Apprenticeship Compliance: Treasury and IRS Issue Final Rule
On June 18, 2024, Treasury and the IRS released the final rule for compliance with the prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements (PWA requirements) pursuant to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA). This final rule is scheduled to be formally published on June 25, 2024.
The final rule includes important affirmations and clarifications of the…
Déjà Vu for Federal Contractors with Salary History Ban?
On January 30, 2024, the Biden administration proposed a rule (the Salary Rule) that would amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to “prohibit contractors and subcontractors from seeking and considering information about a job applicant’s compensation history when making employment decisions for certain positions.” The new rule would also require contractors and subcontractors to disclose…
Employee Stock Ownership Plans for Construction Companies: Part 3
Following up on our prior blog posts (here and here) regarding employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) generally for constructions companies, as well specific issues for consideration, this blog post evaluates the pros and cons of ESOPs overall.
Pros
ESOPs provide a tax-advantaged path for an exit strategy, and they can provide liquidity for…
Employee Stock Ownership Plans for Construction Companies: Part 2
Following up on our first blog post about employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) for construction companies, this post addresses surety bond requirements as well as the way in which ESOPs can incentivize employees and increase cash flow.
Satisfying Surety Bond Requirements
Construction companies are typically required to obtain surety bonds to guarantee a project owner…
Employee Stock Ownership Plans for Construction Companies
In recent years, a growing number of construction companies have established employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs). The interest in an ESOP is often generated by the need for an exit strategy for one or more of the owners of a closely held business, a common scenario in the construction industry. In fact, the construction industry…
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA): A Year into Enforcement, What Has the Solar Industry Learned?
In December 2021, President Biden signed the UFLPA into law to restrict the import of goods mined, produced, or manufactured, in whole or in part, using forced labor from the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), which we discussed here. A key feature of the law was its focus on polysilicon imports as a high-priority…
New Mothers “Making it Happen”: New Federal Laws Support Expectant and Nursing Mothers in the Workplace
Balancing work and motherhood raises age-old questions for women in virtually every industry. Amongst these are how to navigate work during both pregnancy and the transition back to work after the baby is born, which present specific challenges ranging from physical/medical constraints to privacy and logistical concerns. Those challenges may be amplified for expectant and…
Are You Protecting Your Construction Firm’s Trade Secrets?
The construction industry is full of valuable business information including customer lists, pricing information, project budgets, and more. The value of such information may be lost if it becomes known to a competitor or the public at large. That is why it is important to take steps to protect confidential information from disclosure. Such steps…