As reported in our blog on April 21, 2015, New York City (NYC) introduced a bill that if passed would prohibit an employer from asking job applicants or current employees questions regarding their credit history. On May 6, 2015, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio passed the Stop Credit Discrimination in Employment Act. The law became Read more
The city of Pittsburgh, PA has passed an ordinance requiring employers to provide paid or unpaid sick time to their employees working in the City. The Paid Sick Days Act will become effective January 11, 2016. Like other paid sick leave laws adopted across the nation, this local law was passed to reduce the spread Read more
Earlier this year, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) revised their recordkeeping rules. The changes included reporting all work-related fatalities within eight hours and all work-related inpatient hospitalizations, all amputations, and all losses on an eye within 24 hours starting on January 1, 2015. These federal OSHA changes were adopted by Minnesota OSHA (MNOSHA) Read more
Last month, Alaska became the latest state to sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Department of Labor. Like the other states’ agreements with the U.S. Department of Labor, Alaska’s agreement is an attempt to fight employee misclassification. Alaska’s agencies will work together with the U.S. Department of Labor to prevent and reduce Read more
Starting next year, many employers in the District of Columbia will be required to provide employees with a ride to work. The District’s Sustainable DC Omnibus Amendment Act of 2014 (“Act”)(D.C. Law 20-142), Section 302, requires employers with 20 or more employees to offer one of several transportation fringe benefits to employees beginning January 1, Read more
This summer, Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy signed “An Act Concerning Pay Equity and Fairness” into law to help create an environment where employees can discuss their wages with other individuals without punishment. Under the new law, employers cannot prohibit employees from disclosing or discussing his or her wages or wages of another employee. Employers are Read more
In the last two years, paid sick leave has gained momentum in the state of New Jersey. Nine cities across the state have adopted a paid sick leave ordinance. The ordinances, which are now effective, are very similar in major areas. Under all nine ordinances, qualified employees will accrue a minimum of one hour Read more
Personal social media accounts can be a pitfall for unwary employees and a temptation for overzealous employers. Often employees reveal information in the social media that employers are prohibited from considering when making hiring or employment-related decisions. For example, employees’ social media posts may disclose protected personal characteristics such as age, health or family status. Read more
Maine has become the latest state to enact a bill prohibiting employers from accessing employees’ personal social media accounts. Under the new Act (Bill H 640), employers cannot require or coerce an employee or potential employee to disclose his or her password to any of his or her social media accounts. These accounts may include Read more
With Alaska’s rising diverse population, the Alaska Department of Labor (DOL) and Workforce Development has released labor law information in additional languages. The Wage and Hour Employees’ Frequently Asked Questions pamphlet is now available in four additional languages. In addition to the English, Filipino, and Samoan versions, the pamphlet is now available in Yup’ik, Taglog, Read more
