State Employment Law Articles

The Illinois legislature recently amended the state's Wage Payment and Collection Act (IWPCA) to require that employers reimburse employees for all reasonable “necessary expenses” that are “directly related to services performed for [the] employer” and incurred primarily for the benefit of the emplo

The newly-created Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave has stated that it plans to publish draft regulations for the recently enacted Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Law no later than January 23, 2019. In addition, the Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave

The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office recently published guidance regarding how a new tipped-employee law is to be applied. Employers must now compare the tips earned by an employee, plus the service rate, to the full minimum wage at the end of each shift and pay any shortfall to the employee.

On December 17, 2018, the New Jersey Legislature paved the way for a game-changing prerequisite for N.J. public works contractors. The State Assembly and Senate passed Assembly Bill A-3666 and forwarded it to Governor Murphy for his signature. If signed into law as is expected, the bill—which would

A Delaware state court has held that a medical marijuana user may proceed with a lawsuit against his former employer after his employment was terminated due to a positive drug test result for marijuana. Chance v. Kraft Heinz Foods Co., C.A. No. K18C-01-056 NEP (Del. Super. Ct. Dec. 17, 2018).

By Shawn Oller and Chris Suffecool on January 3, 2019 The New Mexico Court of Appeals held in Wolinsky v. New Mexico Corrections Department1 that the state Fair Pay for Women Act’s definition of “employer” extends to the State of New Mexico and its agencies. In doing so, the Court of Appeals rejecte

On December 31, 2018, the Puerto Rico Department of the Treasury (PR Treasury) issued Internal Revenue Informative Bulletin No. 18-24 (IB 18-24) announcing the 2019 applicable limits for Puerto Rico qualified retirement plans. Pursuant to Section 1081.01(h) of the Puerto Rico Internal Revenue Code o

Happy New Year! As we turn the calendar to 2019, employers across the country are taking stock of recently-enacted workplace regulations on a wide variety of topics.1

Executive Summary: As of January 1, 2019, Connecticut employers are prohibited from inquiring about an applicant’s prior salary history. The new law, Public Act No. 18-8, An Act Concerning Pay Equity (the “Act”), is aimed at closing the gender wage gap. Statistics still show that women earn 79 cents

It’s a new year, and California SDI benefits will be increasing. The SDI withholding rate continues to be 1.0% of wages. But, the taxable wage limit will increase from $114,967 to $118,371.

In this podcast, Bruce Sarchet and Corinn Jackson, both with Littler’s Workplace Policy Institute, survey numerous wide-sweeping changes affecting California employers in 2019.

Developing a paid sick and safe time (PSST) policy that complies universally – or at the very least with two laws – has become increasingly challenging. Without fail, and despite some overlap, each new law seems to contain one provision that could interfere with the goal of establishing uniform prac

In August we notified our clients that the New York State Legislature had proposed an amendment to the Workers Compensation Law that would allow employees to take up to 12 weeks of Paid Family Leave for bereavement after the death of a family member (a spouse, domestic partner, child, parent, grandp

The Illinois Health Care Violence Prevention Act mandates hospitals and other healthcare providers to comply with requirements aimed at protecting their workers from violence. Beginning January 1, 2019, healthcare providers in Illinois will need to implement specific violence-prevention policies out

The Louisiana Supreme Court has not addressed whether a claim under the Louisiana Uniform Trade Secrets Act (LUTSA) precludes a claim for conversion of confidential information. But the U.S. Fifth Circuit recently did in Brad Services, LLC v. Irex Corporation, No. 17-30660 (October 17, 2018), findin

On December 14, 2018, Michigan’s employment law landscape dramatically changed—again—when Michigan Governor Rick Snyder (R) signed Senate Bills (SB) 1171 and 1175. These lame duck session bills overhaul the recently revised minimum wage and tip law and newly created paid sick and safe time law, resp

Michigan joined other states with paid sick leave laws on September 5, 2018, enacting the Earned Sick Time Act. Now, amidst political controversy, the Earned Sick Time Act (which never became effective) has been amended and renamed the Michigan Paid Medical Leave Act. The Act requires employers in M

In case you missed it: On December 20, 2018, the New York City (NYC) Council added “sexual and other reproductive health decisions” to the list of protected classes under the NYC Human Rights Law. This measure is awaiting the mayor’s signature, which is expected. If signed, it will go into effect 12

Over the past several years, both New York State and New York City have enacted significant new employment and labor laws.

New York State’s first-ever Comprehensive Lobbying Regulations were approved by the New York State Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) and will take full effect on January 1, 2019. The new regulations incorporate and replace a patchwork of guidance documents, advisory opinions, and interpretat