MINNESOTA

EMPLOYMENT LAW

REPORT

The Minnesota Employment Law Report is our award – winning blog offering expert insight to the business community concerning employee relations, labor law, employee benefits, employment litigation and much more.

ICE Narrows I-9 “Cure Period” and Expands Substantive Violations, Increasing Employer Penalty Exposure

Kevin Heinz, Brian Benkstein

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) has issued updated guidance on Form I-9 inspections that significantly alters how employers should assess compliance risk. While the governing statute and regulations remain…

2026 Minnesota Legislative Session Wrap-Up: What Employers Need to Know

Brian Benkstein

The 2026 Minnesota legislative session adjourned on May 18, 2026. Although last year’s session delivered a wave of changes to meal and rest breaks, earned sick and safe time, and…

When Coaching Becomes Discipline: A New Reality for Minnesota Public Employers

Alec R. Rolain

On May 18, 2026, the Minnesota Court of Appeals issued a significant decision in Minnesota Coalition on Government Information v. City of Minneapolis, et al., reversing the district court’s grant…

DOL Proposes New Joint Employer Rule: What Employers Need to Know

Marina L. Cruz

On April 23, 2026, the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division published a proposed rule to establish a standard for determining joint employer status under the Fair Labor…

The Looming Legislative And Labor Push Against Artificial Intelligence

Paul J. Zech

In the 2025 book “If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies,” the authors confidently predict how superhuman AI would lead to the annihilation of humanity. The book is not fiction. Existential…

U.S. Court of Appeals Decision Puts NLRB Elections Case on Life Support.

Paul J. Zech

In the iconic 1999 film “The Sixth Sense,” a 9-year-old routinely sees dead people. In the Sixth Circuit, we might now be seeing a dead Cemex decision, the one in…

Are We There Yet? A Review of Impasse

Alec R. Rolain

Declaring impasse during collective bargaining can be an important, consequential decision for an employer. A valid impasse generally allows an employer to implement its last, best and final offer unilaterally,…

U.S. DOL Proposes New Rule on Independent Contractor Status

Brian Benkstein

On Friday, February 27, 2026, the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor published a proposed rule addressing the issue of employer versus independent contractor status under…

Yet Another Reason Never to Agree to Staffing Minimums

Paul J. Zech

The United States Court of Appeals in New York recently heard oral arguments on a case where a hospital was seeking to vacate an arbitrator’s award relating to minimum nurse…