labor lawAdivision of labor law center

Employers have received fair warning from theWashington Division of Labor & Industry that they must update Washington labor law posters before January 1, 2009. The agency reports that a number of companies are not in compliance. In particular, several have neglected to update their federal labor law posters since the increase on July 24, 2008.

Although the Washington minimum wage is higher than the federal minimum wage, federal law still requires that Washington employers prominently display the federal poster, as well as state posters.

The required Washington labor law posters include:   (more…)

There have been a number of changes to the New Mexico labor law posters in the past 12 months, which every employer should be aware of.

Employers must keep current New Mexico labor law posters on display, where they can be seen by all employees (and in some cases, all applicants.) Employers who fail to do so are subject to citations, fines and/or penalties.

The New Mexico labor law posters New Mexico labor law posters include:

• OSHA - Health and Safety Protection
• New Ombudsman Workers’ Compensation
• Workers’ Compensation
• Minimum Wage
• Discrimination Notice 

The new Ombudsman workers’ compensation poster provides contact information for injured workers to appeal or contest denied claims, under the law.

New Mexico employers also must display (more…)

Under a new law, Iowa employers must have an employee’s written permission before mailing a paycheck.

A change in Iowa’s Wage Payment Collection Law took effect recently. The change amended the existing Iowa payment law. The new law requires that employers have a written request from an employee before wages can be sent by mail. The law applies to paychecks, but not to paystub information.

The previous law permitted employers to mail paychecks when an employee made a verbal request, or at the employer’s discretion. While requiring written permission is a best practice in the HR field, Iowa is one of the few states to make that policy law.

Even employers who have routinely paid workers by mail must now have written authorization to do so.

The amendment to Iowa Code 91A.3 was passed by the Iowa Legislature and signed by Governor Chet Culver.

According to (more…)

The $700 billion Wall Street bailout  recently signed by President George W. Bush also included an important provision related to employee health benefits.  

The law ensures that American workers continue to receive insurance coverage for mental health treatments, on parity with coverage for physical illness, under their group health insurance.  

A similar law in effect for the past 12 years was scheduled to expire on January 1, 2010. This measure (more…)

A number of states require employers to give workers time off to vote, including voting in the presidential election on Tuesday, November 4, 2008.

According to CCH, a nationwide leader in labor and employment information, more than half of the U.S. states have laws that mandate time off to vote. Employers who do not comply face fines and even jail time.

The states that do not require employers to give workers time off to vote are: Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, New Hersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont and Virginia.

In many states, (more…)