Posted on September 21, 2018

Law Effective January 1, 2019

Effective January 1, 2019, a new law in Illinois requires employers to provide military leave to service member employees. Highlights of the law are presented below.

Which Employers Are Covered by the Law?	Generally all Illinois employers.
Which Employees are Covered by the Law?	Generally all employees in military service.
What is Considered “Military Leave”?	A furlough or leave of absence while performing active service.
Must an Employer Compensate Military Leave?	Generally no.
What is “Military Service”?	Service in the U.S. Armed Forces, the National Guard of any state or territory regardless of status, and the State Guard. Service in a federally recognized auxiliary of the U.S. Armed Forces when performing official duties in support of military or civilian authorities due to an emergency. A period for medical or dental treatment for an illness or injury sustained during active service in which treatment is paid by the U.S. Department of Defense Military Health System.

Additional requirements and exceptions to the information above may apply, including notice requirements. Click here to read the law.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on September 19, 2018

Notice Available for Download

Beginning September 21, 2018, an updated Summary of Consumer Rights notice must be provided when required under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). As a reminder, the FCRA requires employers to provide an applicant or employee with this notice before rejecting a job application, terminating an employee, or taking any other adverse employment action based on information in a consumer report.

Click here to view more information and download the updated notice.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on September 12, 2018

Law Generally Applicable to All Employers

Michigan has passed a law generally requiring all Michigan employers to provide earned paid sick leave to their employees beginning in 2019. Highlights of the law are presented below.

How Much Earned Sick Leave May an Employee Use?	Employees of employers with fewer than 10 employees: 40 hours of paid earned sick leave and 32 hours of unpaid earned sick leave per year. Employees of other employers: 72 hours of paid earned sick leave per year.
How Does an Employee Accrue Earned Sick Leave?	Employees generally accrue 1 hour of sick leave for every 30 hours worked. Earned sick leave carries over from year to year.
When Can Employees Begin Accruing and Using Earned Sick Leave?	On the effective date of the law (exact date not yet set) or upon commencement of employment—whichever is later. An employee generally may use earned sick leave as it is accrued.
Which Life Events Qualify for Earned Sick Leave?	Mental or physical illness or injury of an employee or his or her family member. Meetings at a child’s school or place of care related to a child’s health or disability.

Additional requirements and exceptions to the information above may apply, including notice and recordkeeping requirements. Click here to read the law.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on September 11, 2018

Increases Set for 2019-2022

Michigan has passed a law raising its general and tipped minimum wages for 2019-2022. The following minimum wage rates will generally apply to employers with 2 or more employees who are at least 16 years old:

• $10.00 per hour (48% of this wage for tipped employees), beginning in 2019 (exact date not yet set)
• $10.65 per hour (60% of this wage for tipped employees), beginning January 1, 2020
• $11.35 per hour (70% of this wage for tipped employees), beginning January 1, 2021
• $12.00 per hour (80% of this wage for tipped employees), beginning January 1, 2022

Click here to read the law.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on September 10, 2018

Law Includes Notice and Training Requirements

Delaware has passed a new sexual harassment law, effective January 1, 2019, that generally applies to Delaware employers with 4 or more employees. A general summary of the law is provided below.

What is Unlawful Sexual Harassment?	Sexual harassment occurs when an employee is subjected to conduct that includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when, among other things, such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an employee’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment.
Must Employers Provide Notice to Employees?	Yes. Every employer must distribute a sexual harassment information sheet (to be created by the state): To new employees at the commencement of employment; and To existing employees within 6 months of January 1, 2019.
Must Employers Provide Sexual Harassment Training?	Yes. Employers with 50 or more employees in Delaware generally must provide interactive training and education regarding the prevention of sexual harassment to: New employees within 1 year of the commencement of employment and thereafter every 2 years; and Existing employees within 1 year of January 1, 2019 and thereafter every 2 years. A separate training requirement applies to supervisors.

Additional requirements and exceptions to the information above may apply. Click here to read the law.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on September 07, 2018

All Employers Must Develop Policy

California has released a sample sexual harassment prevention policy for employer use. As a reminder, all California employers must develop a sexual harassment prevention policy that meets specific requirements. Click here to view the sample policy.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on September 06, 2018

Notices Due to Medicare-Eligible Individuals

Employers who sponsor group health plans that offer prescription drug coverage to Medicare-eligible individuals are reminded that they must provide a Medicare Part D Creditable or Non-Creditable Coverage Notice to those individuals by October 15. This notice serves to inform Medicare-eligible individuals whether the prescription drug coverage offered is "creditable," meaning it is expected to pay, on average, as much as the standard Medicare prescription drug coverage.

For more information on this notice requirement, including links to downloadable model notices, click here.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on August 29, 2018

Model Notices Previously Set to Expire on August 31, 2018

The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division has updated the expiration date of several model federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) notices to August 31, 2021. Previously, these notices were set to expire on August 31, 2018. The impacted notices were as follows:

• Notice of Eligibility and Rights & Responsibilities
• FMLA Designation Notice
• Certification of Employee's Serious Health Condition
• Certification of Family Member's Serious Health Condition
• Certification of Qualifying Exigency for Military Family Leave
• Certification of Serious Injury or Illness of a Current Servicemember for Military Family Leave
• Certification of Serious Injury or Illness of a Veteran for Military Caregiver Leave

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on August 27, 2018

New Rates for Small and Large Employers in 2019

Effective January 1, 2019, Minnesota employers with annual gross revenues of $500,000 or more will generally be required to pay employees a minimum wage of at least $9.86 per hour. Minnesota employers with annual gross revenues of less than $500,000 will generally be required to pay employees a minimum wage of at least $8.04 per hour.

Click here for more information from the Minnesota Department of Labor.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on August 21, 2018

Ordinance Previously Scheduled to Take Effect October 1, 2018

A Texas court has stopped the City of Austin’s earned paid sick leave ordinance from taking effect while certain litigation is pending. This ordinance was previously scheduled to take effect on October 1, 2018.

Click here to read the text of the court order.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on July 26, 2018

Tips to Protect Against Damage from Spear-Phishing Emails

Cyberattacks and resulting data breaches often begin with a spear-phishing email. Spear phishing differs from regular email phishing in its use of extensive research to target a specific audience, which allows the spear phisher to pose as a familiar and trusted entity in its email to a mark. Spear phishers seek a company's valuable information—such as credentials providing access to customer lists, trade secrets, and confidential employee information—and some of their methods include:

• Directing email recipients to fake (but authentic-looking) websites that ask for information like account numbers, and passwords or other credentials.
• Inducing recipients to click on links or attachments that download malware onto the recipient's computer. The malware often allows the phisher to steal passwords and sensitive data by, for example, tracking keystrokes.

The IRS offers the following tips to protect against spear phishing:

1. Educate all employees about phishing in general and spear phishing in particular.
2. Use strong, unique passwords with a mix of letters, numbers, and special characters. Also remember to use different passwords for each account.
3. Never take an email from a familiar source at face value, especially if it asks you to open a link or attachment, or includes a threat about a dire consequence that will result if you fail to take action.
4. If an email contains a link, hover your cursor over the link to see the web address (URL) destination. If it's not a URL you recognize, or if it's an abbreviated URL, don't open it.
5. Poor grammar and odd wording are warning signs of a spear-phishing email.
6. Consider calling the sender to confirm the authenticity of an email you're unsure of, but don't use the phone number in the email.
7. Use security software that updates automatically to help defend against malware, viruses, and known phishing sites.

Click here for additional information about protecting yourself from spear-phishing attacks.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on July 24, 2018

Updated Poster Addresses Pregnancy Accommodations

South Carolina has updated its employment discrimination poster to include required language regarding pregnancy accommodations. The updated poster (English and Spanish) must be given to existing employees by September 14, 2018, and all new hires on or after that date. The notice must also be conspicuously posted at an employer’s place of business.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on July 19, 2018

Increase Takes Effect January 1, 2019

Delaware has adjusted its minimum wage increase to $8.75 per hour to take effect on January 1, 2019. Previously, this increase was scheduled to take effect on October 1, 2018. Effective October 1, 2019, Delaware's minimum wage will rise to $9.25 per hour.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on July 11, 2018

No Affirmative Duty to Resist Immigration Enforcement

As a result of a recent federal district court ruling, California employers are no longer prohibited from:

• Voluntarily allowing immigration enforcement agents to enter nonpublic work areas; or
• Reverifying the employment eligibility of a current employee at a time or manner not required by federal law, except if using the federal E-Verify system.

Click here to read the court ruling.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on July 03, 2018

Law Requires Employer Contributions

Massachusetts has adopted a paid family and medical leave program, which will be funded by a payroll tax that becomes effective July 1, 2019. Employees can begin taking paid family and medical leave under the program in 2021. A summary of the program is below.

Which employers are covered?	Employers with 1 or more employees
Which individuals are eligible for leave?	Employees who meet financial eligibility requirements for unemployment insurance (earned at least $4,700 during the last 4 completed calendar quarters, and 30 times the weekly benefit amount they would be eligible to collect)
Which life events qualify for leave?	The birth of a child; The need to care for a family member with a serious health condition; and The employee’s own serious health condition.
For how long can leave last?	Up to 12 weeks in a year for the birth of a child or to care for a family member with a serious health condition. Up to 20 weeks in a year for the serious health condition of the employee. If an employee elects to use leave for more than one life event, 26 weeks in a year at most.
Who pays for the paid leave?	Both the employer and the employee. The leave program will be funded by a 0.63% payroll tax split between employers and employees that becomes effective July 1, 2019.

Additional requirements and exceptions apply. Click here to read the law.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on July 02, 2018

Increases Begin January 1, 2019

Under a new law in Massachusetts, the minimum wage will increase as follows:

• $12.00 per hour ($4.35 for tipped employees), beginning January 1, 2019
• $12.75 per hour ($4.95 for tipped employees), beginning January 1, 2020
• $13.50 per hour ($5.55 for tipped employees), beginning January 1, 2021
• $14.25 per hour ($6.15 for tipped employees), beginning January 1, 2022
• $15.00 per hour ($6.75 for tipped employees), beginning January 1, 2023

The law also phases in the elimination of Sunday and holiday premium pay for retail workers. Click here to read the law.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on June 07, 2018

Amended Law Effective July 29, 2018

Under a new law, effective July 29, 2018, New Hampshire employers generally must pay wages within:

• 8 days after the expiration of the work week if the employee is paid weekly; or
• 15 days after the expiration of the work week if the employee is paid biweekly.

Prior to July 29, 2018, every employer generally must pay all wages due to employees at regular intervals not to exceed 14 days.

As a reminder, unless otherwise approved by the New Hampshire Department of Labor, New Hampshire employers must pay wages on a weekly or biweekly basis.

Click here to read the new law.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on May 31, 2018

Increased Rates Currently in Effect

The minimum wage rate for the City of Santa Fe, New Mexico has increased to $11.40 per hour. Additionally, the minimum wage rate for Santa Fe County has increased to $11.40 per hour ($3.41 per hour for tipped employees). These increased rates are currently in effect.

Additional details on the city and county wages are available.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on May 25, 2018

Law Contains New Notice & Poster Requirement

South Carolina has enacted a new law that prohibits employers with 15 or more employees from discriminating against employees with medical needs arising from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. In particular, the law prohibits covered employers from failing or refusing to make reasonable accommodations for employees' medical needs arising from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions unless it can demonstrate that the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on its business.

Notice & Poster Requirements
Covered employers must provide a written notice regarding the law to existing employees by September 14, 2018, and all new hires on or after that date. The notice must be also conspicuously posted at an employer's place of business. The South Carolina Human Affairs Commission is expected to issue a model notice in the coming months.

Click here to read the text of the law, which is currently in effect.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.

Posted on May 24, 2018

Workplace Flexibility and Changes to Daily Routines May Help Keep Employees Focused

The warm weather and eagerly anticipated outdoor activities of summer may take a toll on your workers' concentration. If you're noticing a lack of focus among your employees during this time of year, consider the following ideas to help keep them motivated:

1. Encourage your employees to step outside for at least 15 minutes each day. Exposure to natural sunlight can prevent workers from feeling confined to the office during the warm summer months. Holding business meetings outside may also help to boost workers' morale.
2. Change things up! Employees may become more motivated when their jobs are more challenging and interesting. Consider lateral moves to build your workers' skill levels and knowledge base.
3. Create opportunities for casual interaction. A company sports team, a family day or an outdoor after-hours social event can keep your employees engaged and interested in each other and in their workplace.
4. Consider flexible working arrangements. Arrangements such as flextime or staggered work hours may allow employees to enjoy summer activities and attend to family obligations, while coming to work refreshed. It's a good idea for employers to work with a knowledgeable employment law attorney when creating policies on flexible working arrangements, to ensure policies and practices are in compliance with the law and do not unlawfully discriminate against certain employees.

© 2018 HR 360, Inc.