Royal

Professional Offices Are Changing into Something More Comfortable

Dec 16, 2022

Dressing Down

Attorney Tanzania Cannon-Eckerle was interviewed by BusinessWest for an article published in their most recent edition. 


“In the courtroom, the attire has not changed since we stopped wearing the wigs,” she said, adding that law schools across the country instill in students the importance of formal attire. “Courtroom decorum won’t change, nor, in my opinion, should it change.”


In the office, however, she has seen some movement toward more casual dress. “But what might be considered lax for one person might be different for someone else. When meeting clients, you’re still wearing blazer and slacks or a cardigan and slacks. Or you have on a suit. In that setting, I believe you’re supposed to dress toward a more professional level.”


Before returning to Royal, Cannon-Eckerle worked as director of Human Resources for Auxiliary Enterprises at UMass Amherst, a tenure that spanned much of the pandemic.


“They decided to bridge the gap between frontline workers and C-suite folks and make business casual mandatory,” she recalled. “I was still wearing suits every day; they actually pulled me aside and said, ‘you need to relax a little bit and try for a more approachable persona in the workplace.’”


She recognizes that a college campus during a pandemic is a different situation than a law firm, but stressed that all professional settings should strive for certain minimum standards.


“At the end of the day, there’s a baseline: you’ve got to be clean, your clothes can’t be wrinkled, and it has to make sense for the room,” she told BusinessWest. “I love to dress up; if I could, I’d wear a wedding dress once a week. But I’m pretty sure I’d be reprimanded by the judge. So, you don’t dress to stand out, but to fit in and make people at ease with you. You don’t want people looking at your clothes instead of you, ogling what you’re wearing and not listening to what you’re saying.”


Click here to read the full article!

Non-Compete Agreements Are in Jeopardy

26 Apr, 2024
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued a final rule banning non-competition agreements for all employees except for very narrow exceptions. The FTC’s Final Rule banning all non-competition agreements is effective 120 days after its publication in the Federal Register, which is expected in the next few days.  As of the effective date, all non-competition agreements are banned, except for franchisor/franchisee relationships and for sales of a business between buyer and seller. The FTC’s Rule is retroactive, prohibiting certain non-competition agreements before the effective date of the Rule as well. Existing non-competition agreements can remain in effect as to senior executives, which are defined in the Rule as employees in “policy-making positions” making at least $151,164 annually. The FTC’s Final Rule is already being challenged through the court system and a challenge from the Chamber of Commerce will most likely follow suit. Therefore, if an employer has existing non-competition agreements, the employer may not need to rescind them just yet. Stay tuned for updates as these challenges take their due course.

ALERT: US Department of Labor Increases Salary Threshold for White Collar Overtime and Minimum Wage Exemptions

26 Apr, 2024
By: Trevor Brice, Esq. On April 23, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced a Final Rule updating regulations governing Executive, Administrative and Professional exemptions (“EAP exemptions”) from the minimum wage and overtime rules. This Final Rule significantly increases the salary threshold for workers to qualify for EAP exemptions. In general, to qualify for EAP exemptions, an employee must 1) be paid on a salary basis, 2) at a threshold level, and 3) primarily perform EAP duties as defined by the DOL. The Final Rule does not impose any changes on the salary basis or job duties relevant in determining EAP exemptions. After issuance of a proposed rule that received approximately 33,000 comments, the DOL in the Final Rule is increasing the salary thresholds in waves. As of July 1, 2024, the salary threshold for EAP exemptions applies to employees making $844 per week ($43,888 annually) on a salary basis. As of January 1, 2025, the threshold increases to $1,128 per week ($58,656 annually). This means that employees making under these amounts on a salary basis as of these dates are no longer exempt from overtime, as long as the other criteria for determining EAP exemptions by the DOL are met. Additionally, the rule increases the salary threshold for the “highly compensated” employee exemption. This exemption applies when an employee meets the greater salary threshold, their primary duty includes performing office or non-manual work and the employee customarily and regularly performs at least one of the duties or responsibilities defined in the EAP exemptions. The DOL also issued the increased salary threshold for the highly compensated exemption in waves. As of July 1, 2024, the salary threshold for the highly compensated employee exemption applies to employees making $132,964 annually, including at least $844 per week paid on a salary or fee basis. As of January 1, 2025, the salary threshold for the highly compensated employee exemption raises to $151, 164 annually, including at least $1,128 per week on a salary or fee basis. The DOL estimates that under the Final Rule, there will be four million workers newly entitled to overtime protection as of 2025. As with the FTC’s Final Rule passed on the same day, the DOL’s Final Rule will most likely be subject to challenge through the court system. However, for employers concerned with this new rule, it would be prudent to identify those positions below or close to the new salary thresholds, consider whether to change salaries given the new thresholds and conduct training as to who will now be exempt under the DOL’s final rule. If there is any gray area as to the DOL’s final rule, reach out to the local employment and labor counsel to determine if there is potential liability. Trevor Brice is an attorney who specializes in labor and employment-law matters at the Royal Law Firm LLP, a woman-owned, women-managed corporate law firm that is certified as a women’s business enterprise with the Massachusetts Supplier Diversity Office, the National Assoc. of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms, and the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council.
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