State Employment Law Articles

Many businesses will temporarily increase staffing levels for the upcoming holiday season, during which an uptick in colds and other illnesses is common. Employers may be concerned that seasonal workers will be absent on multiple occasions during their brief period of employment. Below we briefly hi

On October 10, 2018, California’s Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Occupational Safety and Health (“DOSH”) issued a notice of proposed emergency regulation requiring California employers to begin submitting their 300A Form to the Federal OSHA portal, Injury Tracking Application (“ITA“

The #MeToo movement has sparked new legislation aimed at tackling the problem of sexual harassment, especially in the workplace. California Governor Jerry Brown has signed several of these bills into law, set to take effect on January 1, 2019. Employers should review their policies in preparation fo

Private employers in New York City will have to find space for a “lactation room” under legislation expected to be signed by Mayor Bill de Blasio.

On September 27, 2018, California enacted Senate Bill 970 establishing a minimum threshold for human trafficking awareness training and education in the hospitality industry. Under the law, hotels and motels are required to provide 20 minutes of classroom or other interactive training regarding huma

The State of Connecticut has announced that in January 2019 it will begin requiring private-sector employers without their own workplace-based retirement plans to enroll employees in Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) sponsored by the state. The requirement stems from legislation enacted in 2

Beginning January 7, 2019, Delaware law will require certain businesses doing business in the state to provide at least 60 days’ advance notice of mass layoffs, plant closings, or relocations.

On the last day for Governor Brown to sign or veto bills this legislative session, here is the list of key employment-related bills that have been signed into law, along with a list of bills that were vetoed. All new laws take effect January 1, 2019 unless noted.

In Jones v. Farmers Ins. Exchange (2013) 221 Cal.App.4th 986 (“Jones”), the California Court of Appeal held that “[t]he lack of an adequate class representative … does not justify the denial of the certification motion. Instead, the trial court must allow Plaintiff[[] an opportunity to amend [his] c

Georgia’s Restrictive Covenants Act (the “RCA”) became effective in May 2011, but it took nearly six years before a court published a decision interpreting the statute in the context of a non-competition provision (See our previous legal alert regarding the first published decision). Therefore, comp

An amendment to the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act (IWPCA) imposing an affirmative duty on employers to reimburse employees for certain expenses incurred during their employment will go into effect on January 1, 2019.

A bill to amend New York City law to establish conditions and requirements for commercial lease renewals with the aim of preserving small businesses will have its first hearing in the City Council since 2009 on October 22, 2018.

On September 27, 2018, the Kentucky Supreme Court in Northern Kentucky Area Development District v. Snyder1 held that the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) does not preempt a Kentucky statute, KRS § 336.070(2), barring employers from requiring employees to waive, arbitrate, or diminish statutory rights

A Federal District Court in Connecticut has held an employer liable for discrimination under Connecticut state law for rescinding an offer to an employee who tested positive for use of medical marijuana, even though the employer was a federal contractor applying its zero-tolerance drug-testing polic

Earlier this year, New York State adopted anti-sexual harassment legislation that the Governor described as the "strongest and most comprehensive" in the country, and that is now fully effective. As of October 9, 2018, employers must distribute to all New York-based employees an updated anti-sexual

On September 27, 2018, the Kentucky Supreme Court issued its opinion in Northern Kentucky Area Development District v. Danielle Snyder, No. 2017-SC-000277-DG and held that Kentucky employers may not require employees to sign arbitration agreements as a condition of their employment.

Effective August 21, 2018, Illinois amended its Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Act (820 ILCS 260/10). The prior law, which went into effect in 2001, required employers who have more than five employees to provide unpaid break time to an employee who needed to express breast milk for her nursing in

California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed Senate Bill 826 into law which requires publicly-held corporations with principal executive offices in California to have a certain number of females on their boards of directors.

Executive Summary: On September 30, 2018, California Governor Edmund J. Brown, Jr. signed into law eight new bills involving gender and sexual harassment training and related issues. The Governor also signed into law two bills amending California’s lactation accommodation requirements. These laws we

California requires an employer to provide employees who works more than five hours with a 30-minute uninterrupted, off-duty meal break (and another meal break if they work more than 10 hours). State law also requires an employer to provide employees with a 10-minute uninterrupted, off-duty break ev