Compliance Stuff

By Aimee B. Parsons , James M. Paul , and Carolyn A. Russell 00:00 22:12 In this installment of our Workplace Strategies Watercooler 2026 podcast series, shareholders Jim Paul (St. Louis/Tampa), Aimee Parsons (Portland (ME)), and Carolyn Russell (Houston) break down the EEOC’s shifting enforcement priorities under Chair Andrea Lucas, including the rescission of the 2024 harassment guidance and the agency’s stance on unlawful DEI. The speakers also examine the Supreme Court’s 2025 Ames decision, eliminating the heightened evidentiary standard for majority-group discrimination claims, and offer practical guidance for employers navigating a rapidly changing compliance landscape across multiple jurisdictions. Transcript Announcer: Welcome to the Ogletree Deakins podcast, where we provide listeners with brief discussions about important workplace legal issues. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. You can subscribe through your favor...

On May 25, 2026, Pope Leo XIV released his first encyclical, “ Magnifica humanitas: On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence .” For employers, this type of high-profile religious guidance related to AI is likely to shape how some employees understand the moral permissibility of using AI tools at work, and may contribute to requests for accommodations from those who object to using AI on religious grounds . This is not legal theory. It is already happening. See Sarah E. Needleman, She won a religious exemption from using AI at work. The Pope’s remarks could fuel similar appeals , Business Insider (June 5, 2026). As a result, employers find themselves at the crossroads between (relatively) new legal precedent and new technology. What Changed After Groff ? For years, many courts treated undue hardship in the context of religious accommodations as anything more than a minimal cost or burden. However, in Groff v. DeJoy , 600 U.S. 447 (2023), the U.S. Supreme C...

WASHINGTON – Over the past 15 months of the second Trump Administration, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) under the leadership of Chair Andrea Lucas has undertaken exhaustive efforts to restore evenhanded enforcement of employment civil rights laws on behalf of all Americans, including by delivering on Administration civil rights enforcement priorities and implementing key deliverables entrusted to the EEOC in 11 different Executive Orders. [i] The majority of the EEOC’s law enforcement work is confidential and remains so prior to a public settlement or filing of a legal action. While confidentiality requirements limit our ability to share the full scope of our activities, the agency is working tirelessly to ensure equal opportunity for American workers. To date, the EEOC has taken the following public actions: EEOC Protects Religious Freedom Since January 2025, the EEOC has filed 16 religious discrimination lawsuits and recovered over $63 million on behalf of re...