The Supreme Court has barred a retired firefighter from continuing a lawsuit against her former employer under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In a June 20 ruling, the justices held 8-1 that the retiree, Karyn Stanley, lacked standing to sue over the employer’s decision to discontinue a post-employment healthcare benefits program.

Why the plaintiff sued over retiree benefits. Stanley started working as a firefighter for the city of Sanford, Florida in 1999. By the time she retired in 2018 at age 47 due to complications from Parkinson’s disease, a program that would’ve covered most of her health insurance premiums until she was 65 years old had been cut back by the city.

The post-employment benefit in question previously extended to workers who spent 25 years with the department, as well as employees like Stanley, who had to retire early due to a disability. In 2003 the city narrowed the policy to only cover workers with 25 years of service. That left early retirees like Stanley limited to receive the benefit for two years, or until they become eligible for Medicare.

For more on the Supreme Court’s ruling and what it means for employers, keep reading here.—CV

By the time we’re halfway through 2025, several paid leave laws will have taken effect in US states.

While federal law doesn’t require employers to grant employees paid leave to deal with illnesses or family matters—such as bonding with a new baby—multiple states have passed their own laws to this effect in recent years.

Alaska, Michigan, and Maine are among the latest states with paid sick or family leave laws on the books.

Starting July 1, Alaska employers with 15 or more employees must allow workers to accrue and use at least 56 hours of sick leave each year, thanks to a ballot measure passed by voters in 2024. Also under the measure, smaller employers must permit their workers to accrue and use at least 40 hours annually.

For more on the growing number of state paid leave laws and their various requirements, keep reading here.—CV

HR needs some fusion—and, unfortunately, we’re not talking about trying a new fusion restaurant and indulging in a mix of new cuisines.

The people profession needs a shake up in how organizations manage people in tandem with managing technology, according to Kent McMillan, managing director of organization strategy at consulting firm Accenture in the UK and co-author of Rethinking Operating Models: Designing People and Technology Powered Organizations.

McMillan spoke with HR Brew about how organizations can adapt in the people-and-machine world.

For more of McMillan’s insights and what HR pros can learn from them, keep reading here.—MC