State Employment Law Articles

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey recently signed into law Senate Bill (SB) 9, which restricts Alabama employers from requiring COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of employment. SB 9 directs Alabama employers to “exempt vaccination as a condition of employment for any employee who has completed and submitt

On Monday, December 6, 2021, New York City announced a first-in-the-nation vaccine mandate for private-sector employers, which must now require vaccinations for all employees who work in person in the city. The new Department of Health mandate, which will take effect on December 27, 2021, will exten

Washington employers should rethink their policies on paying non-exempt employees for travel time based upon a recent appellate court ruling that travel time for out-of-town travel is considered compensable “hours worked” as a matter of Washington law. Port of Tacoma v. Sacks , No. 54498-9-II (Wash.

In a growing trend of increasing workplace protections for independent contractors, the Seattle City Council has passed the “Independent Contractor Protections Ordinance,” aimed at increasing pay transparency for the ever-growing gig workforce. The Ordinance goes into effect September 1, 2022.

In a press conference on December 1, 2021, Governor Ned Lamont, along with Connecticut Paid Leave Authority Chief Executive Officer Andrea Barton Reeves, announced that the Connecticut Paid Leave Authority is now accepting applications for Connecticut residents who want to participate in the state’s

Seeking “compromise” and following in the footsteps of other governors, Kansas Governor Laura Kelly signed House Bill (HB) No. 2001 into law on November 23, 2021, broadening exemptions from employer COVID-19 vaccine mandates, permitting the imposition of civil penalties against noncomplying Kansas e

On November 23, 2021, the New York City Council passed a bill amending its Earned Safe and Sick Time Act requiring all private-sector employers to provide their employees with four hours of paid COVID-19 child vaccination leave for each of their children, per vaccine injection, retroactive to Novemb

Effective August 1, 2021, the Louisiana Employment Discrimination Law was amended to expressly require Louisiana employers with more than 25 employees to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with limitations arising from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, provided that s

Following such states as California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Oregon, Washington’s Governor Jay Inslee has issued Proclamation 21-14.3 to require certain workers be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and provide proof of such vaccination.

The Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave (DFML) has continued to issue guidance and clarifications regarding the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFML) since the law went into effect in January 2021.

On October 28, 2021, Governor Hochul signed legislation which expanded the scope of whistleblower protection under New York Labor Law Section 740. The new amended law expands the scope of individuals protected, the definition of protected activity, and the types of employment related actions which c

WCL 114-a provides the Workers’ Compensation Board with the authority to disqualify a claimant from receiving lost time benefits , “[i]f for the purpose of obtaining compensation pursuant to Section 15 of this chapter, or for the purpose of influencing any determination regarding any such payment, a

On November 16, 2021, Governor Spencer J. Cox signed SB2004 into law, placing limitations and additional obligations on Utah employers that have implemented vaccine or testing requirements on employees. The law was passed in the Utah Legislature’s second special session of 2021. Relief from Employer

In 2018, the California Legislature passed a slew of bills to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace, including Senate Bill No. 1343. This bill expanded employee protections to require employers who employ 5 or more employees, including temporary or seasonal employees, to provide at least 2 hour

Nancy Johnson and Kimberly Doud of Littler’s Orlando office are back to discuss Florida’s new law relating to COVID-19 vaccine mandates and its interplay with the status of federal requirements. Nancy and Kimberly discuss how employers in Florida can understand if they need to comply with the new la

On November 19, 2021, the City of Philadelphia announced all City workers must “complete a full schedule of COVID-19 vaccination(s)” by January 14, 2022, or risk losing their jobs. This mandate comes following the City’s announcements requiring all Philadelphia healthcare workers, college students,

When the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a new emergency temporary standard (ETS) on November 4, 2021, Oregon OSHA had only 30 days to adopt its own standards, until December 4, 2021. However, in light of a federal court order staying the federal ETS, Oregon OSHA rec

Executive Summary: “Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.” This is how many Florida private employers feel right now given the conflicting federal regulations and Florida’s legislation concerning COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

On November 18, 2021, Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law measures that immediately prohibit workplace COVID-19 vaccine mandates for private and public employers and begin the process for Florida establishing a state occupational safety and health plan.

As we relayed in our prior ASAP , Governor DeSantis signed HB-1B into law on November 18, potentially affecting all Florida employers and certainly causing many to reconsider any policies already adopted relating in any way to COVID-19 vaccinations. The Florida Law