Employment Blog: Porter Hedges - Law Firm, Attorneys

Dealing with Social Media & Public Comment: Legal Ethics Lessons for Corporate Counsel

Victor ("Vic") F. Albert — Thu, 02 Oct 2025 09:00:01 -0500

Social media can turn small moments into corporate crises overnight. For in-house counsel, the ethical challenges are particularly complex: protecting confidential information, addressing employee conduct, and managing public backlash when private behavior goes viral.

Recent headlines highlight the ...

UPDATE: State of Texas and Business Groups Succeed in Vacating DOL’s Final Rule Increasing Compensation Thresholds for Exempt Employees

Kelly R. Ferrell, Emil M. Sadykhov — Tue, 19 Nov 2024 09:00:02 -0600

As we reported earlier this year, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a final rule on April 23, 2024 (the “Final Rule”), raising the salary threshold for the so-called “White-Collar” Exemptions and the Highly Compensated Employee (“HCE”) Exemption to the Fair Labor Standards Act’s ...

UPDATE: FTC Non-Compete Ban Blocked by Federal Judge in Texas

Emil M. Sadykhov, Kelly R. Ferrell — Fri, 23 Aug 2024 09:00:03 -0500

As we predicted back in our May post, the sky is not falling in the world of non-compete agreements. After the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued its controversial final rule on April 23, 2024, which voided existing non-competes and prohibited employers from entering into new ones (the “Final Rule” ...

EEOC’s Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace Creates Need for Employers to Update Antiharassment Policies and Investigation Procedures

Victor ("Vic") F. Albert — Wed, 15 May 2024 09:00:04 -0500

On April 29, 2024, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) released long-awaited Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace, No. 915.064 (the “Guidance"). This update is the first of its kind in 30 years and substantially mirrors the proposed guidance that the EEOC issued in ...

DOL Issues Final Rule that Increases Compensation Threshold for Exempt Employees

Emil M. Sadykhov, Kelly R. Ferrell — Mon, 06 May 2024 09:00:05 -0500

The Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a final rule on April 23, 2024,* raising the salary threshold for the so-called “White-Collar” and “HCE” Exemptions to the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (“FLSA”) overtime pay requirement (the “Final Rule”). According to the DOL, the intent is to account ...

FTC’s Final Rule Banning Non-Competes: Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Panic…Yet

Emil M. Sadykhov, Kelly R. Ferrell — Fri, 03 May 2024 09:00:06 -0500

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) made waves on April 23, 2024, when it issued a final rule that (1) voids existing non-compete agreements, with two exceptions; and (2) prohibits employers from entering into new non-compete agreements, with one exception (the “Final Rule”). With regard to existing ...

Human Resources Compliance Audits (Part 2)

Kelly R. Ferrell — Tue, 23 Apr 2024 09:00:07 -0500

Human Resources Compliance Audits (Part 2)

This post is the second installment discussing best practices for conducting a Human Resources compliance audit. The first installment of the series provided an overview of the compliance audit process and practical advice at each step when conducting the audit. This ...

EEOC Clarifies Employer Responsibilities for Pregnant Workers

Victor ("Vic") F. Albert — Tue, 16 Apr 2024 09:00:08 -0500

On April 15, 2024, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released the final rule to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), setting out key clarifying information that will provide the ability for employers to understand their duties under the law which is aimed at enabling pregnant ...

Human Resources Compliance Audits (Part 1)

Kelly R. Ferrell — Tue, 02 Apr 2024 09:00:09 -0500

This post is the first of two installments discussing best practices for conducting a Human Resources compliance audit. This first installment provides an overview of the compliance audit process and practical advice at each step when conducting the audit. In part two, we will discuss detailed areas of inquiry ...