When new hires are offered equity in a startup company, it’s sometimes compared to a lottery ticket.

Should the company go public, the employee has a chance to get rich off the shares they were offered when they joined—especially if they got in early. Workers at companies like Meta and Airbnb, for instance, have seen their wealth skyrocket following initial public offerings (IPOs) thanks to equity.

These days, the chance of winning the equity lottery looks much slimmer, though, as companies are taking longer to reach the IPO stage. While analysts expected to see the IPO market pick up this year, the Trump administration’s tariff policies have dashed those hopes. Companies that expected to go public in 2025, such as Klarna and StubHub, recently paused those plans.

Delayed IPO timelines raise questions for employees who receive equity as part of their compensation, and hope to one day realize the value of those shares. To retain these workers, HR teams should prioritize transparency, and consider letting employees sell their shares to investors outside the company, experts told HR Brew.

For more on the idea behind offering employees equity in this day and age, keep reading here.—CV

A federal judge in Louisiana has struck down a provision of a rule for implementing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) that required employers to consider workplace accommodation requests related to abortion.

Judge David C. Joseph, a Trump appointee, found on May 21 that an EEOC rule treating abortion as a “related medical condition” under the PWFA is unconstitutional as it goes further than the original legislation. Joseph said the EEOC must revise the rule, which was finalized in April 2024, to comply with the court’s order.

Although employers will no longer have to consider accommodations for elective abortions as a result of this ruling, the judge clarified that the order doesn’t apply to abortions tied to treatment for a pregnancy-related medical condition.

For more on this Pregnant Workers Fairness Act ruling and what it means for employers, keep reading here.—CV

Is everyone motivated by the same needs?

In the 1940s, psychologist Abraham Maslow theorized human behavior was rooted in a hierarchy of needs, starting with self-actualization (personal growth and fulfillment), then self-esteem (achievement and respect from others), next social needs (family, love, and belonging), safety (job security and healthcare), and, lastly, physical needs (food, water, and shelter).

But fast-forwarding to today, HR pros shouldn’t expect every employee to prioritize the same order of needs, said Kelly Mackin, co-founder and CEO of the workplace well-being assessment platform Motives Met and author of Work Life Well-Lived: The Motives Met Pathway to No-B.S. Well-Being at Work. In her book, Mackin highlights the research behind motivation and what drives employees.

For more on creating a culture that motivates your team and other takeaways, keep reading here.—MC