Multiple new laws took effect in Washington at the beginning of the year, including several that increased the minimum wage in various locations across the state. Further details can be found here.

California's Senate Bill 1162, a pay transparency law aimed at identifying pay disparities based on gender, ethnicity, and race, went into effect on January 1, 2023.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, California and several local jurisdictions implemented COVID-19 sick leave laws. Many of these laws are now expiring.

The Illinois legislature, on January 10, 2023, passed the Paid Leave for All Workers Act (PLFAW), which Governor Pritzker announced he will sign into law. Should the bill be enacted, Illinois would become the third state (after Maine and Nevada) to require private employers to provide employees with earned paid leave to use for any reason.

Starting in November 2023, covered employers in Berkley, California will need to be prepared to comply with the Berkeley Fair Workweek Ordinance (the Ordinance).

The city council of Mountain View, California, adopted Chapter 42 Article IV of the Mountain View City Code on September 13, 2022, establishing, in part, the Wage Theft Ordinance (the Ordinance) effective January 1, 2023.

Employers who utilize the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) standard mileage reimbursement rates should be aware that the IRS has updated its standard mileage rates, effective January 1, 2023.

Last fall, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new pay transparency law effective January 1, 2023. A description of the law can be found here.

On January 5, 2023, in an announcement that could have sweeping implications for employers across the country, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) proposed a new rule that would ban employers from imposing noncompete clauses on their workers and invalidate all existing noncompetes curren

On November 8, 2022, voters in Washington, D.C., overwhelmingly passed Initiative 82, the "District of Columbia Tip Credit Elimination Act of 2021," which will phase out the tipped mandatory base wage by 2027.

In October 2022, the Supreme Court of Virginia ruled that an individual cannot face personal liability as an "employer" under the Virginia Wage Payment Act (VWPA). The decision both clarifies Virginia law and serves as an important reminder for employers (and their managers and supervisors) that many states can impose personal liability on individuals for wage-and-hour claims.

Each year, the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) updates the minimum pay requirements for certain exempt professions. This October, the DIR updated the 2023 rates for computer software employees and licensed physicians and surgeons.

On September 5, 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the Fast Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act (FAST Recovery Act or A.B. 257).

Employers with Michigan employees should remain vigilant to the likelihood of profound changes to the state's wage-and-hour laws, including a new sick leave obligation, an increase in the minimum wage to $12.00 an hour, and a phase-out of the tipped employee wage classification. Pending the outcome of current litigation, these changes could take effect as soon as February 21, 2023.

Determining an employee's overtime rate of pay can be tricky. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently found an employer owed over $1 million in back wages to employees in California and Kentucky for violations that included miscomputation of overtime pay rates.