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2023 New State Labor Laws

By November 11, 2022February 21st, 2023No Comments

What are my state’s labor laws?

The chart below summaries several employment-related laws taking effect November 1, 2022. Please note that this chart includes generally applicable laws taking effect in the noted states and some large municipalities. This is not an exhaustive list and may not necessarily include information about laws that apply to particular industries.

Alabama Florida Pennsylvania
Alaska Illinois Rhode Island
Arizona Maine Utah
California New Jersey Virginia
Colorado New York Washington
District of Columbia Oregon

 

Alabama

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Alabama HB 272 Weapons in the workplace Sets forth the conditions under which employees may keep a firearm and ammunition in their personal vehicles in the employer’s parking lot. 01/01/2023

Alaska

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Alaska HB 125 Hiring: Veterans Preference Extends private-sector employer hiring preferences to military spouses and dependent children, including surviving spouses of deceased service members. 11/07/2022

Arizona

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Arizona SB 1294 Background Checks: Criminal Allows a person to file a petition to seal all case records related to a criminal offense if the person was: (a) convicted of a criminal offense and has completed all of the terms and conditions of the sentence that was imposed by the court, including the payment of all monetary obligations and restitution to all victims; (b) charged with a criminal offense and the charge was subsequently dismissed or resulted in a not guilty verdict at a trial; or (c) arrested for a criminal offense and no charges were filed. 12/31/2022

California

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
California AB 1041 Protected Time Off: Scope of Coverage Expands the definition of a “family member” under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) and California’s Healthy Workplaces Healthy Families Act (HWHFA) to include a “designated person.” Employees will be able to identify a designated person for whom they want to use leave when they request unpaid (CFRA) or paid (HWHFA) leave. 01/01/2023
California AB 1601 Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN): Call Center Employees Requires call center employers to provide notice of mass layoff, relocation, or termination. 01/01/2023
California AB 1632 Title III Accommodations Requires businesses open to the public that have restrooms for employees to allow individuals who have Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, or any other similar medical condition, to use the employee restrooms. 01/01/2023
California AB 1720 Background Checks: Home Health Services Removes requirement for specified individuals connected with home healthcare facilities to sign a declaration regarding prior criminal convictions. 01/01/2023
California AB 1751 COVID-19: Workers’ Compensation Extends to January 1, 2024, the current rebuttable presumption that an employee’s illness resulting from COVID-19 was sustained in the course of employment for purposes of workers’ compensation benefits. 01/01/2023
California AB 1949 Protected Time Off: Bereavement Leave Amends the California Family Rights Act to require employers with five or more employees to provide up to five days of unpaid bereavement leave for an employee within three months of the death of a family member. 01/01/2023
California AB 2068 COVID-19: Workplace Posters Requires certain health and safety posters relating to COVID-19 to be posted in additional languages. 01/01/2023
California AB 2134 Benefits: Reproductive Health Applies to religious employers’ healthcare service plans and insurers that do not provide coverage for abortion and contraception. These plans and insurers will be required to provide insured employees with written information about free abortion and contraception benefits or services available through the California Reproductive Health Equity Program. 01/01/2023
California AB 2223 Employer Liability: Reproductive Health Prohibits a person from being subject to civil or criminal liability based on their actions or omissions with respect to their pregnancy or actual, potential, or alleged pregnancy outcome or based on their actions to aid or assist a woman or pregnant person who is exercising their reproductive rights. 01/01/2023
California AB 2282 Discrimination & Harassment: Hate Crimes Expands the definition of hate crimes in places of employment to include display of hate imagery. 01/01/2023
California AB 2693 COVID-19: Exposure Notifications Amends California Labor Code section 6409.6 (Duties of employer when notified of potential exposure to COVID-19) and extends its provisions until January 1, 2024. The main modification will give employers the option to post a notice of potential COVID-19 exposure at the worksite (and on existing employee portals) instead of providing written notice. 01/01/2023
California AB 2960 Civil Procedure Amends the Fair Employment and Housing Act to toll right-to-sue notice deadlines during mandatory or voluntary dispute resolution proceedings. 01/01/2023
California SB 523 Protected Categories: Reproductive Health Amends the Fair Employment and Housing Act to prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of an individual’s reproductive health decision-making; expands required health plan coverage for contraceptives. 01/01/2023
California SB 731 Background Checks: Criminal Amends the state penal code to provide for criminal record relief. Seals records of defendants convicted of most felonies on or after January 1, 2005, if they completed their sentence, probation, supervision, parole and any other terms of their conviction, and are not convicted of a new felony for four years. 01/01/2023
California SB 931 Labor-Management Relations Permits an employee organization to file a claim against an employer before the Public Employee Relations Board (PERB) alleging violations of Government Code section 3550, which prohibits a public employer from deterring or discouraging public employees or applicants from becoming or remaining members of an employee organization. 01/01/2023
California SB 951 Protected Time Off: FMLA Paid Increases the amount of unemployment and wage replacement benefits for low-wage employees under the family temporary disability insurance program, for disabilities or covered incidents occurring on or after January 1, 2025. 01/01/2023
California AB 984 Privacy: Surveillance Disclosure regarding use of GPS tracking location technology in fleet vehicles. Allows an employee to disable off hours. 01/01/2023
California Privacy Rights Act of 2020 Data Privacy Substantially expands the privacy and information security obligations of most employers doing business in California, requiring significant changes to existing policies, procedures, and practices for handling HR Individuals’ personal information. Creates the Privacy Protection Agency to enforce the state consumer data privacy laws. 01/01/2023
California SB 1044 Protected Time Off: Non-Retaliation Prohibits an employer from taking adverse action against an employee for refusing to report to or leaving work during an emergency condition; prohibits an employer from preventing an employee from accessing a mobile device during that time. 01/01/2023
California SB 1093 Home Care Agencies: Background Checks Permits applicants for home healthcare licenses to request transfers of criminal record clearance online; removes requirement to submit government issued identification when requesting transfer. 01/01/2023
California SB 1126 Benefits: 401K / Retirement / Pension Expands the definition of “eligible employer” under the CalSavers program to include those with one or more employees; requires employers with one or more employees that do not offer a retirement savings program to implement a payroll deposit retirement savings arrangement by December 31, 2025. 01/01/2023
California SB 1162 Wage Transparency Requires employers of 100 or more contracted employees to submit separate annual pay data reports regarding the contracted employees; requires employers of 15 or more employees to provide the pay scale for a position in any job posting. 01/01/2023
California SB 1477 Wage & Hour: Garnishments Reduces the maximum amount of wages that may be subject to garnishment. 01/01/2023

Colorado

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Colorado Paid Family and Medical Leave (Proposition 118) Protected Time Off: FMLA Paid Provides for up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave, with an additional 4 weeks for pregnancy or childbirth complications. While employees cannot take FAMLI benefits until 2024, premiums are due under the program. 01/01/2023
Colorado SB 22-161 Wage Theft Amendments to Colorado’s wage theft laws increase penalties for employers that do not timely pay wages, allow employees to demand wages on behalf of a class of similarly situated employees, permit the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment’s Division of Labor Standards and Statistics to investigate such demands on a class-wide basis, and limit employers’ ability to recover attorney’s fees for successfully defending a claim. The amendments also impose additional requirements on employers to be able to deduct from an employee’s final pay for the value of unreturned company equipment. While some provisions took effect August 10, 2022, the most significant changes are effective January 1, 2023. 01/01/2023

District of Columbia

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
District of Columbia B24-0916 Disability Insurance This temporary measure amends the Universal Paid Leave Amendment Act to prohibit insurers from reducing short-term disability benefits based on actual or estimated paid leave benefits. This measure becomes effective following approval by the mayor, a 30-day period of congressional review, and publication in the DC Register
District of Columbia B 109 Drug Testing Prohibits testing for marijuana as a condition of employment except under certain circumstances.
*Please note that this measure will not become operative and enforceable unless and until it is funded through inclusion in an approved budget, which cannot be determined at this time.
This measure is effective following approval by the mayor, a 60-day period of congressional review, and publication in the DC Register. *Projected law date: November 17, 2022

Florida

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Florida: Miami Beach CROWN Act Hairstyle Discrimination Prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of natural or protective hairstyles commonly associated with race and national origin. 11/05/2022

Illinois

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Illinois SB 645 Labor Relations: Minimum Sick Leave Provisions Amends the Employee Sick Leave Act to provide that the rights afforded under the act serve as the minimum standard in a negotiated collective bargaining agreement. 01/01/2023
Illinois SB 1480 and SB 1847 Pay Data Reporting Requires employers that currently file EEO-1 reports to submit similar reports to the state of Illinois, and includes new pay data reporting and certification requirements, among other obligations. *These laws took effect in 2021, but employers will need to be prepared for the EEO-1 reporting obligations in Illinois as of January 1, 2023. 01/01/2023 (operative date for certain requirements)
Illinois SB 3120 Protected Time Off: Other Requires an employer to provide unpaid leave for absences resulting from a pregnancy loss, unsuccessful IVF treatment, a failed adoption or surrogacy, or a diagnosis that impacts pregnancy. 01/01/2023
Illinois SB 3146 Employer Liability: Meal & Rest Periods Provides that any employer that violates any of the provisions of the One Day Rest In Seven Act is guilty of a civil offense and subject to a civil penalty of up to $500 per offense. 01/01/2023
Illinois SB 3616 Hairstyle Discrimination Illinois amended the state Human Rights Act. The Act prohibits employers from engaging in discrimination based on numerous protected characteristics, including race. This amendment expands the definition of “race” to include traits associated with race, including but not limited to hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists. 01/01/2023

Maine

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Maine HP 160-LD 225 Wage & Hour: Vacation Payout Amends the state’s final wages statute to require that “[a]ll unused paid vacation accrued pursuant to the employer’s vacation policy on and after January 1, 2023, must be paid to the employee on cessation of employment.” The amendment provides that private employers with 11 or more employees must pay all unused vacation to a separated employee at the cessation of employment regardless of the employer’s policy; payment must made in full no later than the employee’s next established payday. *The changes took effect on July 19, 2022, but operative date is January 1, 2023. *01/01/2023 (operative date)

New Jersey

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
New Jersey SB 315 (AB 3684) Business Restructuring: Health Care Industry Requires contracts for sale of certain health care entities to preserve employee wages and benefits and to honor collective bargaining agreements. 11/17/2022

New York

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
New York SB 2928 Protected Time Off: Scope of Coverage Adds siblings to the definition of family member for the purposes of paid family leave. 01/01/2023
New York: NYC Int. No. 1894-2020 Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Robotics Requires an employer that uses an automated employment decision tool to screen a candidate for an employment decision to notify each such candidate regarding use of the AI tool. 01/01/2023
New York: NYC Int. No. 0134-2022 Wage Transparency Amends the city wage transparency provisions to clarify the positions for which a pay range must be provided; establishes a private right of action for employees; extends the effective date to November 1, 2022. 11/01/2022
New York: Westchester County Ordinance No. 2022-119 Wage Transparency Makes it an unlawful employment practice for an employer to advertise a job, promotion, or transfer opportunity without stating the minimum and maximum salary for the position in the advertisement. 11/06/2022

Oregon

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Oregon HB 4086 Workers Compensation: Anti-Retaliation Expands scope of retaliation provisions under the workers’ compensation statute; amends definitions of “beneficiary,” “child,” and “dependent.” 01/01/2023
Oregon HB 4138 Notifications: Temporary Disability Benefits Requires employers to provide notice before suspending temporary disability benefits. The written notice must provide the reason the benefits are being ended. 01/01/2023
Oregon SB 588 Labor Relations: Sick Leave Removes provision that exempts certain employees who are covered under collective bargaining agreement from sick leave requirements. 01/01/2023
Oregon SB 1515 Protected Time Off: FMLA Paid Modifies definition of “benefit year” for purposes of paid family and medical leave insurance program. 01/01/2023
Oregon SB 1586 Nondisclosure Agreements Clarifies provisions that prohibit employers from entering into nondisclosure agreements that include, but are not limited to, discrimination, sexual assault, or workplace harassment. 01/01/2023

Pennsylvania

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Pennsylvania: Philadelphia Ordinance No. 220337 Benefits: Transportation Requires an employer of 50 or more employees to provide a mass transit and bicycle commuter benefit program. 12/31/2022

Rhode Island

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Rhode Island HB 5261 / SB 270 Wage Transparency & Salary History Prohibits wage discrimination; prohibits an employer from requesting or relying on an applicant’s wage history; requires an employer to provide a wage range for a job position. 01/01/2023
Rhode Island SB 2548 Benefits: Reproductive Health Establishes a special enrollment provision for pregnant employees to obtain health insurance coverage at any time after the commencement of the pregnancy. 01/01/2023

Utah

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Utah SB 39 Tax Withholding Modifies employer withholding obligations from certain nonresident employees. 01/01/2023

Virginia

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Virginia HB 2307 / SB 1392 Data Security Breach Notification Establishes the Consumer Data Protection Act to provide consumers certain controls over their personal data. The law specifically exempts data that is processed or maintained in the course of an individual applying to, being employed by, or acting as an agent or contractor of a controller, process, or other entity, if the data is used and collected in the context of that role. 01/01/2023

Washington

Law Main Topic Summary Effective Date
Washington SB 5761 Wage Transparency Requires employers to disclose hourly or salary compensation and a general description of benefits in postings for job openings. 01/01/2023
Washington Final Rule re Employer Quarterly Tax Reports Unemployment Requires employers to include the Standard Occupational Classification code or job title of each worker in their quarterly tax reports. 11/17/2022
Washington 2023 Non-Compete Enforceability Thresholds (Annual Announcement) Noncompete Agreement Increases the amount an employee must earn to meet the non-compete enforceability threshold to account for inflation using the consumer price index. 01/01/2023

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We want to thank our friends at Littler Mendelson P.C. for providing us with this information.

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