Kurt J. Erickson, Kerry L. Middleton, Alice D. Kirkland, Ben Sandahl, Jeremy Sosna and Susan K. Fitzke discuss important changes in Minnesota’s employment laws at the end of the recent legislative session.

SHRM

View (Subscription required)

Kelly Cardin examines NYC's proposed pay transparency legislation and what employers can do to navigate applicants' and employees' shifting expectations that have arisen as a result of salary disclosure laws and their requirements.

Law360

View (Subscription required)

During a presentation at the 2017 SHRM Employment Law and Legislative Conference, Marko Mrkonich, Zev Eigen and Corinn Jackson discussed the risks employers face when using data analytics.

HR Daily Advisor

View Article

UPDATE: This article was updated on August 15, 2018.

In April 2018, New York State and New York City each adopted expansive legislation directed at educating employees about workplace sexual harassment and reducing the incidence of harassment claims, as we reported in our prior article. 

New Poster for NYC Employers:

Bradford Kelley comments on a case that he says shows several ways in which USERRA is more far-reaching than other employment anti-discrimination laws even though it gets less attention.

SHRM Online

View (Subscription required.) 

Libby Henninger discusses the DOL’s proposal to expand overtime pay protections to more workers and why it may result in a legal battle.

Bloomberg Law

View (Subscription required.)

In a favorable ruling for employers defending against wage statement compliance claims, the California Supreme Court in Naranjo v. Spectrum Services Inc. (Naranjo) settled an age-old dispute by determining that an employer that reasonably and in good faith believed it was providing a complete and accurate wage statement has a viable defense to a claim for penalties under the California wage statement statute.

Background

California is at it again – adopting a host of new labor and employment laws that will further regulate and complicate business operations in the Golden State.  Littler’s Workplace Policy Institute has been tracking these bills as they worked their way through the legislature and been signed into law by Governor Newsom.  The new California laws are summarized briefly below.  Also, please join us at our annual webinar on October 19, 2022, in wh

The First Special Session of the 131^st Maine Legislature included debate about more than 2,000 bills. Many that were adopted will impact employers in the Pine Tree State. Below is a brief summary of important employment law changes enacted this session. 

An Act to Create the Maine Paid Family and Medical Leave Benefits Program

The budget signed by Maine Governor Janet Mills on July 11, 2023, included funding for one of the broadest and most generous paid family and medical leave programs in the country.

Johane Severin says a few of New York’s new employment laws serve to protect the public from losing rights and protecting people who don’t have the same access to resources as others have.

International Employment Lawyer

View (Subscription required.)

UPDATE: On August 21, 2024, the Attorney General and State of Michigan asked the Michigan Supreme Court to clarify – no later than September 15, 2024 – various rulings in its July 31, 2024 decision, e.g.: 1) How the state should calculate CPI adjustments for the preset minimum wage rates in 2025 through 2028; 2) Whether, aside from in 2025, future minimum wage rates will take effect on February 21 or January 1; and 3) Whether the court intended to have the minimum cash wage increase from 80% (2028) to 100% (2029) rather than 80% (2028), 90%

Following Disability Pride Month, we look to the past, present and future to examine how rights for people with disabilities in the workplace have developed in the UK and could develop further, before giving some practical steps for employers.

A brief history of disability laws

Joy Rosenquist talks about some of the 30 new California laws she thinks are particularly significant for employers, including rules addressing pay transparency and off-duty cannabis use.

Law360 Employment Authority

View (Subscription required.) 

Steve Biddle examines the recently expanded Arizona Civil Rights Act (ACRA) as well as new ordinances passed by Arizona cities that expand protected categories and coverage.

SHRM Online

View (Subscription required.)

Stephanie Chavez offers advice to employers who are considering hiring individuals who have a criminal record.

Law360 Employment Authority

View  (Subscription required.)

On October 1, 2024, Maryland’s Pay Stub/Pay Statement and Pay Transparency laws went into effect. The laws were passed during the General Assembly’s 2024 legislative session and amended the state’s Wage Payment and Collection Law and Equal Pay for Equal Work law, respectively.

Pay Stub/Pay Statement Law Requirements

It used to be that employers had the luxury of waiting until January 1 to be vigilant for new employment laws and compliance challenges.  For the past several years, we have reported on employment and labor laws taking effect mid-year.  The trend is increasing, with states and cities passing a multitude of new workplace regulations throughout the calendar year. 

California state and local governmental bodies—our state legislature, and counties and cities—were active again this year in their efforts to regulate the workplace. Littler Workplace Policy Institute has been tracking these bills as they worked their way through the legislature. Some were signed into law by Governor Newsom earlier this year and have already gone into effect.

Two new laws will take effect next year that restrict how employers may respond to worker off-duty cannabis use.  One law will restrict employers’ ability to ask about prior cannabis use in the hiring process, and the other will limit employer actions based on positive marijuana drug tests.

Philip M. Berkowitz talks about background checks and “Ban-the-Box” laws that financial services organizations must comply with when hiring.

Global Banking & Finance Review

View

Illinois state and local legislatures kept busy in 2023 with the enactment of numerous new labor and employment laws, including significant changes to paid and sick leave for employees and new protections for temporary laborers and independent contractors. While some laws took effect during 2023, implementation of others was pushed to 2024. These are some significant employment law changes requiring employer compliance in the new year.

IL Paid Leave for All Workers Act

Mike Paglialonga and Stephen Fuchs talk about the complicated patchwork of “clean slate” laws that multistate employers must consider when hiring.

SHRM Online

View (Subscription required.)

LaToi Mayo, Kellan Coffey and Amanda Combs discuss the new Kentucky laws that focus on measures to attract businesses, increase workforce participation and increase economic growth.

The Lane Report

View

Three new rules will take effect this year that alter the overtime wages subject to Alabama withholding tax and employers’ requirements in reporting those newly exempt wages. On October 31, 2023, the Alabama Department of Revenue’s Income Tax Administration issued three final rules that take effect December 3, 2023, and will cover all tax years beginning after December 31, 2023, and ending prior to June 30, 2025.  Notably, the entirety of overtime wages paid to full-time hourly employees will be excluded from Alabama withholding tax.

Janell Ahnert and Tucker Crain discuss new rules in Alabama that change the overtime pay exemption calculation and impart new reporting requirements on Alabama employers through at least June 30, 2025.

SHRM Online

View (Subscription required.)

Bradford Kelley and Mike Paglialonga explain the basics of wage and hour laws and why it’s critical for business owners to ensure their business complies with federal, state and local laws and regulations.

American Drycleaner

View

Bradford Kelley and Mike Paglialonga explain the basics of wage and hour laws and why it’s critical for business owners to ensure their business complies with federal, state and local laws and regulations.

American Drycleaner

View

Rebecca Goldstein talks about new workplace violence prevention laws in California and New York.

Bloomberg Law

View (Subscription required) 

Bradford Kelley, Sean O’Brien and Alice Wang discuss a new AI framework from the U.S. Department of Labor and what it means for employers. (Subscription required)

Law360

View (Subscription required)

Jim Paretti says several new bipartisan laws focused on issues women experience in the workplace may move employers to work on preventing instances that would violate the new measures.

Bloomberg Law

View (Subscription required.) 

Angel Valverde presents issues for development of international arbitration in the U.S., as there are no visas that specifically allow a foreign national to be employed as an arbitrator, attorney or expert witness in an arbitration proceeding.

International Law Quarterly

View