Several Canadian provinces will increase their minimum wage rates this fall including Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, and Saskatchewan. The minimum wage rate increases are based on annual changes in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The CPI is used as an indicator of the change in the cost of living. The minimum wage rate increases taking Read more
Adjustments to Penalties On August 1, 2016, new penalty amounts for violations of Federal OSHA law took effect. OSHA’s maximum penalties, which were last adjusted in 1990, have been adjusted for inflation. The penalties, which include an initial “catch-up” adjustment, have increased 78%. Going forward, OSHA will continue to adjust its penalties for inflation each Read more
This Election Day (November 8th), South Dakota voters will decide ballot measure to establish a youth minimum wage. If the proposed law gets passed, an employer with employees under 18 years old will be required to pay them at least $7.50 per hour. The youth minimum wage will not be subject to the annual minimum Read more
Although the Illinois state legislature is presently considering a statewide sick leave bill, currently there is no Illinois state law requiring private employers to provide employees sick leave, paid or unpaid. Today, more than 40% of private sector workers in Illinois cannot earn paid sick time. Of those workers who receive paid health care time, Read more
Employers in the state of New Hampshire have new obligations relating to the notification of and payment of wages as well as record-keeping requirements. Under the amended New Hampshire Administrative Rules Chapter Lab 803.01 Payment of Wages, employers must notify employees at the time of hiring and prior to any changes the rate of pay Read more
Turning in employers that violate labor laws just got easier for workers in California. Last week, the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) and the Labor Commissioner’s Office introduced a new online tool, Report a Labor Law Violation, to report the types of employer violations that harm groups of workers and ultimately adversely impact the community. Read more
On August 19, 2016, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo signed three bills that will strengthen protections for employees in the state of New York starting November 1, 2016. The enacted bills make it a Class D felony to assault a utility worker (S.B. 2251), a process server (S.B. 2991), or a station cleaner or terminal cleaner Read more
This year, Colorado enacted the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) and with it expanded its anti-discrimination in employment law to include discrimination based on pregnancy and related medical conditions. State law not only protects pregnant job applicants and employees from discrimination in the terms and conditions of employment, but the PWFA additionally requires employers to Read more
You may have noticed that the current Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, has an expiration date of March 31, 2016, and may be uncertain whether this form is still valid for use. The USCIS informs employers that this version of Form I-9 is current and directs employers to continue using this form while it works Read more
Louisiana hotels have become the most recent focus of the state’s effort to stop human trafficking. A new law that went into effect earlier this month requires all hotels to post a notice in the workplace to provide information to workers regarding the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) hotline. The law defines “hotels” to Read more
