Gary McLaughlin Quoted in L.A. Business Journal on Advising Businesses on Post-Pandemic Office Returns

Akin Gump labor and employment partner Gary McLaughlin has been quoted in the Los Angeles Business Journal article “Law Firms Help Businesses Navigate Return to Office.”

According to the article, shifting guidance from the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health as well as conflicting municipal policies and evolving questions about mask mandates and vaccination privacy have all led to a surge in client demand. Despite a lifting of statewide capacity and distancing regulations for most businesses and activities, the article says many local restrictions remain in place, so attorneys are warning clients to proceed with caution.

“It’s just this layer upon layer of rules and requirements that vary,” said McLaughlin. “Trying to kind of make sense of all of it and make it work under all of those rules is challenging.”

McLaughlin observed that he’s seen “ebbs and flows” throughout the pandemic in terms of questions from clients.

“It’s really been just this constant change in landscape over the months,” he said, with more employers recently seeking advice on long-term work-from-home policies as they try to manage returning to the office while maintaining at least some of the remote capabilities the pandemic spurred.

“There’s that recognition now that this has been a fundamental shift,” McLaughlin added.