State Employment Law Articles

New Hampshire Governor Christopher Sununu has issued Executive Order #40 (Stay at Home 2.0), setting guidelines for reopening a broad range of businesses in the state following the shutdown order in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the nuances of Colorado Governor Jared Polis’s “Safer at Home” Order continue to reveal themselves to Colorado employers resuming operations, one more state agency has weighed in: the Colorado Civil Rights Division (CCRD).

The Suffolk County, New York, Legislature has passed the “Fair Employment Screening Amendment” to the Suffolk County Code, prohibiting the County or any other employer having at least 15 employees from asking job applicants about their prior criminal convictions until after the first interview. The

On May 1, 2020, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced that, effective May 8, 2020, 24 Pennsylvania counties will be moved from the “red” to “yellow” phase under the governor’s Process to Reopen Pennsylvania. The counties are: Bradford, Cameron, Centre, Clarion, Clearfield, Clinton, Crawford, Elk,

On Thursday, April 30, 2020, Ohio’s Director of the Department of Health, Dr. Amy Acton, signed a “Stay Safe” Order, which lifts certain restrictions from Ohio’s prior “Stay-at-Home” Orders. The Order sets out a plan to start reopening the Ohio economy with some limitations and continued restriction

Late on Friday, May 1, 2020, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock announced that the City and County of Denver will join other Colorado municipalities, as well as several private retailers and transportation providers, in requiring residents to wear “face coverings” in a broad array of public settings. The

Amid multiple lawsuits challenging his authority to issue previous stay-at-home orders, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has enacted Executive Orders 2020-32 and 2020-33, which extend Illinois’ stay-at-home mandate, reissue his previous COVID-19 Executive Orders through May 29, 2020, and impose new o

Wrapped up in the New York City Council’s sweeping new legislative package, dubbed the “NYC Essential Workers Bill of Rights,” is Introductory Bill No. 1926 (Int. No. 1926). Int. No. 1926 would expand New York City’s Earned Sick and Safe Time Act (ESSTA) to cover many workers currently classified as

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey has issued Executive Order (EO) 2020-33, extending the state’s Stay Home, Stay Healthy, Stay Connected Order, until May 15, 2020.

Marking a unique variation from Indiana’s body of common law governing the enforceability of restrictive covenants in the state, a new Indiana statute regulating physician non-compete agreements is set to take effect on July 1, 2020. See Pub. L. No. 93-2020 (to be codified in part as Ind. Code § 25-

This week, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear made several important announcements regarding Kentucky’s reopening and return-to-work. These announcements culminated in a three-phase plan for non-healthcare business reopening, a four-phase plan for healthcare reopening, and guidelines titled “Ten Rules f

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine released a new “Stay Safe Ohio” Order that outlines the first phase in the state’s “Responsible Restart Ohio” plan to fully reopen the state.

As Puerto Rico starts to reopen, the government is placing much of the burden to stop the spread of COVID-19 on employers. On May 1, 2020, Puerto Rico Secretary of Labor Hon. Briseida Torres Reyes issued Opinion Letter 2020-03 (OL 2020-03) to implement Executive Order 2020-38 (EO 2020-38), which eas

As the first phase of Puerto Rico’s plan to restart the economy, and following the recommendations of the Medical and Economic Task Forces, Governor of Puerto Rico Hon. Wanda Vázquez-Garced issued Executive Order 2020-038 (“EO-038” or the “Order”) on May 1, 2020.

On May 1, the Governor of Puerto Rico issued Executive Order 2020-038 (the Order) effectively extending the existing lockdown order but expanding the scope of services and businesses exempt from limitations on business operations. The Order, which takes effect on May 4 and expires on May 25, also ob

On April 27, 2020, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued Executive Order GA-18 (Order) regarding the reopening of Texas businesses during the COVID-19 crisis. The Order permits essential services, as defined in the Order, to continue operations, and expands the types of businesses authorized to reopen o

Prior to the passage of SB 548, Virginia was one of 25 states without an active work-sharing program. On April 22, 2020, Governor Ralph Northam enacted a new work-sharing program, which will permit employers to reduce employees’ normal hours of work between 10% and 60% and permit employees to receiv

Executive Summary: On April 29, 2020, the Los Angeles City Council adopted two ordinances governing (1) right of recall and (2) protection of workers in the hospitality, janitorial, and tourism industries within the City of Los Angeles (the “City”). The purposes of these Ordinances are to protect wo

On April 29, 2020, the eve of the natural expiration of his “Safer at Home Order,” Governor Rick DeSantis announced his “Safe. Smart. Step-by-Step.” plan to reopen Florida, which he explained would include three phases in line with the guidelines previously released by the White House. Under the pla

The Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR) has released a model training program meeting the requirements of the Illinois Human Rights Act (IHRA), which mandates Illinois employers to provide annual sexual harassment prevention training to all employees. Under the IHRA, Illinois employers must t