State Employment Law Articles

Over the last several years, San Francisco has enacted a number of local ordinances imposing new mandates on employers who have employees working in the City. City lawmakers are at it again, this time concerning the issue of lactation accommodation in the workplace. Even though there are already sta

Executive Summary: Governor Chris Christie signed into law New Jersey Senate Bill S726, expanding the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination to prohibit all forms of discrimination against members of the Armed Forces and veterans. The law was signed on August 7, 2017, and took effect immediately.

A little over two years after Emeryville, California’s Minimum Wage, Paid Sick Leave, and Other Employment Standards Ordinance took effect on July 2, 2015, the City Manager adopted implementing regulations. In many respects, the regulations codify positions the City historically took in its frequent

Employees of long-term care facilities in New Jersey will soon be subject to new requirements when it comes to reporting abuse. A law recently passed by the New Jersey Legislature and signed by Governor Christie on August 7, 2017, requires these employees to contact the local police when they have “

California has a unique law regarding vacation benefits. Unlike the laws of many other states, California law requires an employee to be paid for all earned but unused vacation benefits at the time of termination of employment. California law thus prohibits “use it or lose it” policies and policies

The Minnesota Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion on August 9, 2017 in Friedlander v. Edwards Lifesciences, LLC, finding that the 2013 amendments to the Minnesota Whistleblower Act (“MWA”) abrogated the requirement that a report be made for the purpose of exposing an illegality in order to be p

Most businesses entering into contracts in excess of $500,000 with the state of Minnesota are required to obtain an Equal Pay Certificate from the Minnesota Department of Human Rights (MDHR) as a condition of doing business with the state. The required elements of an application for certification ar

The New York Paid Family Leave Benefits Law (“PFLBL”), passed last year and effective January 1, 2018, will provide eligible employees with a paid, job-protected leave of absence, starting at 8 weeks in 2018 and eventually reaching 12 weeks by 2021. Employees may use paid family leave to bond with a

Oregon has become the first U.S. state to regulate employer scheduling practices in the food service, hospitality, and retail industries. The new law, S.B. 828, will take effect July 1, 2018.

Although New York City’s “ban the box” law, the Fair Chance Act (“FCA”), went into effect close to two years ago, the New York City Commission on Human Rights’ final regulations became effective on August 5, 2017. These regulations expand on the previously issued Enforcement Guidance (New York City

Missouri was set to become a right-to-work state on August 28, 2017. However, unions have continued efforts to prevent the implementation of Senate Bill 19 (“SB 19”), Missouri’s right-to-work bill. Article III, Section 52 of the Missouri Constitution allows the public to petition for a referendum to

Responding to the alarming proliferation of lawsuits in Florida alleging that places of public accommodations create barriers to access to disabled patrons, Florida has adopted what appears to be the first law in the country attempting to provide some defense to beleaguered businesses.

Not to be outdone by the recent attention to biometric information in Illinois, and the Prairie State’s Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA), Washington enacted a biometric data protection statute of its own, HB 1493, which became effective July 23, 2017.

On May 30, 2017, Missouri Governor Eric Greitens signed legislation generally barring public entities from requiring job-specific union contracts called “project labor agreements” on public construction projects.

An amendment to the Massachusetts Fair Employment Practices Act requires employers to accommodate pregnant workers.

An amendment to the Massachusetts Fair Employment Practices Act, G.L. c. 151B, expressly includes pregnancy as a protected characteristic and expands accommodation requirements for pregnant employees. The amended law goes into effect April 1, 2018.

New York City’s Fair Chance Act (FCA), which took effect October 27, 2015, imposes affirmative obligations on covered employers and employment agencies regarding when they may conduct criminal background checks on job applicants, and what process must be followed before making an adverse decision on

All employers in Minneapolis, Minnesota, must pay their employees at least $15.00 an hour by July 1, 2024, under a minimum wage ordinance approved by the Minneapolis City Council on June 30, 2017. The ordinance applies to anyone who works in Minneapolis for any amount of time.

In Spring 2016 we notified you of legislation enacting a 12-week paid family leave policy in New York. The New York Paid Family Leave Act (PFL) is a series of amendments to the state Workers’ Compensation Law set to take effect on January 1, 2018. PFL allows eligible employees to take paid leave tim

On July 27, 2017, Governor Baker signed the Massachusetts Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (the “Act”). Once the Act takes effect on April 1, 2018, most employers with employees in Massachusetts will be required to provide reasonable accommodations to employees for pregnancy and related conditions.