Legal Focus

Initiatives decided on November 3, 2020 by Arizona, New Jersey, Montana, South Dakota and Mississippi broadened state marijuana laws. There are now has 36 states and 4 territories with state laws permitting the medicinal and/or recreational use of marijuana. While federal law still prohibits marijuana and would normally control employment actions arising from marijuana, some recent federal courts have allowed state employment discrimination cases arising from drug test related employment termina...

Many schools continue to resist payments to school bus contractors, with some schools ignoring invoices, rejecting invoices, or paying unilaterally reduced amounts. As the 2020-2021 school year is underway, non-payment issues continue, leaving many school bus contractors wondering what to do. Fortunately, many states have Prompt Payment Laws that make public entities liable for interest and attorney’s fees if the public entity does not promptly pay invoices from contractors. These laws vary fro...

It’s always a good time to think about succession planning and long term goals. Now, with the uncertainty that 2020 has brought, it’s as good a time as any to make a plan for your business for the future. In making a plan for your future it is common to for business owners to 1) pass their business on to a reliable family member or 2) sell the business to a key employee or other individual within the organization or 3) sell to a thirdparty. Below, this article will discuss each of these optio...

Amidst the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic many schools are considering reopening and school bus contractors are now starting the process of calling employees back to work and taking precautions for students who will soon be boarding buses. However, one concern of many contractors is the risk of liability claim exposure related to COVID-19 from people riding on their vehicles or in their premises. This article will discuss 1) the scope of the risk of liability to your company from COVID-19 exposure, 2...

Now that the Payroll Protection Plan loans have started funding – the questions re: how to qualify for forgiveness and how to coordinate these funds with other benefits are on everyone’s mind. School bus contractors have their own unique difficulties in this area, especially in coordination with their contracts and the school year calendar. Just like the application process, the tax issues are as clear as mud in many regards. Some questions can be answered, but some just cannot, so far. So, Ri...

While many Contractors understand the importance of safety in their operations, few may actually be maximizing the benefits of company safety policies and procedures. Did you know that an employer with a Certified Workplace Safety Committee is eligible to receive a five percent (5%) discount on their Workers' Compensation Insurance premium annually? Soliciting the assistance of your staff and developing a Certified Safety Committee will help you identify and correct additional risks you may ...

Employers are often unsure how to proceed when they receive a complaint of alleged misconduct in the workplace. Sometimes the complaints or allegations are clear and detailed. But, other times employees might not be forth coming with details for a number of reasons. Knowing how to identify and respond to reported or potential improper workplace conduct is important for all employers. Investigating reported or possible incidents of improper conduct in the workplace can be done through a workplace...