State Employment Law Articles

On February 15, 2017, District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser signed a bill prohibiting, with limited exceptions, employers’ use of or obtaining a job applicant's or employee's credit information for employment purposes. D.C. joins the growing list of jurisdictions that have enacted similar laws: C

The NYSDOL issued final regulations in September 2016, significantly restricting the use of payroll debit cards and imposing disclosure and consent requirements for direct deposit.

On February 16, 2017, the New York State Industrial Board of Appeals (“IBA”) issued an order revoking changes to New York State’s regulation governing employers that pay their employees by direct deposit or debit card. This regulation was scheduled to take effect on March 7, 2017. The IBA is an inde

Florida’s private-sector Whistleblower Act (“FWA”) protects only those employees who can show an actual violation of a law, rule, or regulation, a federal district court has held. Graddy v. Wal-Mart Stores East, LP, No. 5:16-cv-9-Oc-28PRL (M.D. Fla. Feb. 14, 2017).

Executive Summary: New Jersey has taken the first step toward becoming a global center of international arbitration by enacting the International Arbitration, Mediation, and Conciliation Act (the “Act”) on February 6, 2017. The Act provides the framework for making New Jersey an attractive destinati

Employers sometimes worry whether seeking to enforce their non-competes in some circumstances but not others might preclude enforcement altogether in the future. Not so, says one court. Applying Ohio law, the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, in GCA Services v. ParC

Developments at the local and state level have affected what employers must do to comply with the San Francisco Paid Parental Leave Ordinance (“SF PPLO” or the “Ordinance”).1 The SF PPLO took effect on January 1, 2017 (for employers with 50 or more employees), and the San Francisco Office of Labor S

This week, a California Court of Appeal issued its opinion in Vasserman v. Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital, rejecting the hospital’s appeal of a trial court order denying its motion to compel the plaintiff to arbitrate wage and hour claims she brought against the hospital. The court acknowledge

Nearly all private employers in the Carolinas are required to pay quarterly unemployment insurance (“UI”) taxes to the relevant state unemployment agency on behalf of their employees. Like other insurance and tax obligations, UI taxes can have a significant impact on employers’ bottom line, particul

Executive Summary: On January 26, 2017, Puerto Rico’s Governor, Ricardo Roselló, signed into law the Labor Transformation and Flexibility Act (the “Act”). The Act represents the first significant and comprehensive labor law reform to occur in Puerto Rico in decades. Prior to the Act, Puerto Rico’s l

Under California law, employers’ policies may permit rounding of employee timecard entries to the nearest tenth of an hour (six minutes), the Fourth Appellate District of the California Court of Appeal has affirmed. Silva v. See’s Candy Shops, Inc., No. D068136 (Dec. 9, 2016, published Jan. 5, 2017)

Under a constructive discharge theory, an employee’s limitation period to file a discrimination claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission begins upon the constructive discharge, not before, the United States Supreme Court has ruled, giving clarity to timing considerations of constructiv

An appellate court in Kansas ruled that an insufficient urine specimen, without evidence of intent to thwart the drug test, is not a refusal to submit to a test for purposes of the Workers’ Compensation Act. Byers v. Acme Foundry, 2017 Kan. App. LEXIS 12 (KS. Court of Appeals January 27, 2017).

Employers in San José, California, must offer additional work hours to existing qualified part-time employees before hiring new employees beginning March 13, 2017, under the Opportunity to Work Ordinance.

Governor Eric Greitens campaigned on promises to sign “right-to-work” law if given the opportunity and the Missouri House of Representatives gave him that opportunity by passing Senate Bill 19 (SB 19) after hours of floor debates on February 2, 2017. Governor Greitens signed SB 19 on February 6, 201

On February 6, 2017, Missouri became the 28th state to enact a right-to-work law. The bill, passed by the Show Me State’s Republican-controlled state legislature, was signed into law by newly-elected Governor Eric Greitens. A similar measure was vetoed by Democratic Governor Jay Nixon last year.

On January 23, 2017, Philadelphia Mayor Kenney signed the Wage History Ordinance into law, making Philadelphia the first major U.S. city to make it illegal for employers to inquire about a potential employee’s salary history.

It’s time to bring back FordHarrison’s Non-Compete News! And what better way to kick off 2017 than with Lifebrite Labs, LLC v. Cooksey (N.D. Ga. December 2016), Georgia’s first-ever published decision interpreting how a Georgia court may modify a non-compete provision that is overbroad under Georgia

Publicity. Radio, newspaper, and subway ads are driving Medicaid home care clients and home care workers to abandon traditional home care agency programs for the greater flexibility and freedom of choice of New York’s Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (“CDPAP”). Managed care companies ar

In just the last two years, there has been an explosion in the number of claims being brought against California employers under the state’s Private Attorney General Act (PAGA).