In episode 132, Coffey talks with Patrick Richter about HR news from January, including the Department of Labor’s new contractor rule and discrimination settlements. They discuss the Department of Labor’s final regulation concerning classification of independent contractors, which takes effect on March 11th and whether it will really impact employers; Perdue Foods’ settlement of a lawsuit regarding accommodations under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and Americans with Disabilities Act; Walmart's settlement for denying a promotion to a mother; whether and when employers can consider someone's parental status; and how companies can avoid the costly consequences of non-compliance. Links to stuff they talked about are on our website at https://goodmorninghr.com/EP132 and include the following topics: - New independent contractor rule signals a busy year for compliance - Final Rule: Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act - How Brokers Can Preserve Independent Contractor Status - Freelancers Challenge New Independent Contractor Rule in Court - Perdue settles claim HR department put pregnant employee on involuntary leave - Complaint here - Walmart settles sex discrimination lawsuit, agrees to $60,000 payout and policy changes - Walmart to pay $60K over claim it did not promote woman with young children - Noncompliant workers are a $1.6M liability, study shows Good Morning, HR is brought to you by Imperative—premium background checks with fast and friendly service. For more information about our commitment to quality and excellent customer service, visit us at https://imperativeinfo.com. If you are an HRCI or SHRM-certified professional, this episode of Good Morning, HR has been pre-approved for half a recertification credit. To obtain the recertification information for this episode, visit https://goodmorninghr.com. About our Guest: Patrick is an experienced mediator, litigator, and employment attorney with expertise ranging from first chair trial lawyer to advisor on mergers and acquisitions to counselor on the full spectrum of day-to-day HR issues.  As an employment lawyer, he has significant experience representing employers and employees with wage & hour issues, class and collective actions, and intellectual property and trade secret issues, including non-disclosure agreements and covenants not to compete—both in the drafting and preparation of the underlying agreements as well as litigation and appeals. HE also has considerable experience with matters before the National Labor Relations Board and in assisting employers with union avoidance. Apart from employment-related matters, He is a certified mediator, and has significant experience with non-patent intellectual property litigation, commercial litigation, and corporate transactions -including mergers and acquisitions and venture capital investments. No matter the issue -- from sensitive employee termination issues, to high-level harassment investigations, to protection of trade secrets -- he partners with his clients to help them achieve their business objectives while minimizing legal risks and obstacles. Patrick Richter can be reached at:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/pat-richter-986b19/ About Mike Coffey: Mike Coffey is an entrepreneur, human resources professional, licensed private investigator, and HR consultant. In 1999, he founded Imperative, a background investigations firm helping risk-averse companies make well-informed decisions about the people they involve in their business. Today, Imperative serves hundreds of businesses across the US and, through its PFC Caregiver & Household Screening brand, many more private estates, family offices, and personal service agencies. Mike has been recognized as an Entrepreneur of Excellence and has twice been named HR Professional of the Year. Additionally, Imperative has been named the Texas Association of Business’ small business of the year and is accredited b