April Legal Updates

INFINITI HR is happy to provide Monthly State Labor Law Updates as a service to our subscribers. These briefs provide a general description and are not meant to be all-inclusive of compliance requirements. This list is not inclusive of all legislative changes for employers across the U.S. Changes may have been addressed in previous updates, which can be accessed from our blog.

Employers are encouraged to work with their Inspiring HR Consultant before making policy changes to capture the full requirements of these laws.

Some of the notable recent and upcoming state changes in this issue are as follows:

Minnesota

CROWN ACT – Effective February 1, 2023

On February 1, 2023, the Minnesota Human Rights Act (MHRA) was amended to protect employees from discrimination due to traits associated with race, including but not limited to their natural hair type, texture, and style, such as braids, locs, and twists. The law provides explicit protection from any adverse employment action, such as discipline, termination, harassment, etc., due to an employee’s hair type, texture, or style associated with certain races or ethnicities.

Employers must update their Company policies that mention appearance, dress code and/or hair styles to ensure they do not prohibit natural hair type, texture or style. These policies should be communicated to all employees, especially managers and supervisors. Managers and supervisors should be trained on the importance of creating an inclusive workplace that is free from discrimination.

CITY OF BLOOMINGTON, EARNED SICK AND SAFE TIME (ESST) – Effective July 1, 2023

On July 1, 2023, all employers with employees working in Bloomington, Minnesota will be required to provide Earned Sick and Safe time.

Employer Eligibility

• Employers with less than 5 employees: Must provide one hour of unpaid ESST for every 30 hours worked, up to 48 hours each year.
• Employers with 5 or more employees: Must provide one hour of paid ESST for every 30 hours worked, up to 48 hours each year.

Employee Eligibility

• Must work at a location or locations within the geographic boundaries of Bloomington, MN; and
• Must have worked at least 80 hours within the last year.

Reasons for Taking ESST

• The employee’s or the employee’s family member’s mental or physical illness, injury or health condition. This includes the need for medical diagnosis, care, preventative care, treatment, and/or the death of the family member;
• An absence due to domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking of the employee or the employee’s family member, provided the absence is to:
  • Seek medical attention, psychological or other counseling services related to the domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking;
  • To obtain services from a victim services organization;
  • To seek relocation due to domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking;
  • To seek legal advice or take legal action, including preparing for or participating in any civil or criminal legal proceeding related to the abuse or stalking.
• The closure of the employee’s place of business by order of a public official to limit exposure to an infectious agent, biological toxin, hazardous material or other public health emergency;
• To accommodate an employee’s need to care for a family member whose school or place of care has been closed by order of a public official to limit exposure to an infectious agent, biological toxin, hazardous material or other public health emergency;
• To accommodate the employee’s need to care for a family member whose school or place of care has been closed due to inclement weather, loss of power, loss of heating, loss of water, or another unexpected closure.

Employers are required to provide a written notice to all employees regarding the ESST law. Employers should create an ESST policy, if they do not currently have one OR update their existing policy in accordance with the law requirements. Employers are also required to provide employees with the balance of accrued and used sick leave. This may be satisfied by including this information on the employee’s paystub.

Employers are required to maintain accurate ESST records for each employee. The records should include hours worked, available ESST leave amounts and leave used. These records must be maintained for the current calendar year plus three additional years.

Federal Updates

PREGNANT WORKERS FAIRNESS ACT – Effective June 27, 2023

Employers with 15 or more employees will be required to offer reasonable accommodations to pregnant workers.

Though pregnancy discrimination is already prohibited by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, under the PWFA covered employers are now required to provide reasonable accommodations to employees and applicants with known temporary limitations on their ability to perform the essential duties of their jobs based on physical or mental conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions.

The PWFA follows the same framework and definition of “reasonable accommodation” and “undue hardship” as outlined in the Americans with Disabilities Act, and expands previous ADA accommodation requirements to many more common pregnancy-related conditions, so employers will need to engage in the interactive process to determine an appropriate reasonable accommodation.

The EEOC has provided FAQ’s for employers here.

PUMP FOR NURSING MOTHERS ACT – Compliance required by April 28, 2023

The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act was signed into law on December 29, 2022. This law provides clarification about break time and space to pump breast milk at work and covers all employees (exempt and non-exempt), including nurses and teachers.

In general, if a break is 20 minutes or less, the time must be paid. If a break is longer, but the employee is not completely relieved of their duties, they must still be paid for their break time.

What hasn’t changed is companies are still obligated to provide a place to pump that’s shielded from view from coworkers and the public, other than a bathroom.  Additionally, employers with fewer than 50 employees can still rely on the small employer exemption, if compliance with the law would cause undue hardship on the business.

THE US DOL has provided FAQ’S for employers here.

EEO-1 REPORTING UPDATE – Delay through July, 2023

Employers with over 100 employees or government contractors with more than 50 employees are required to file an annual EEO-1 report. Usually, reports are due by May for the previous year. The EEOC has announced that the 2022 reporting period is delayed and expected to open in mid-July.

IRS MILEAGE INCREASE – Effective January 1, 2023

The standard mileage rates for the use of a vehicle were updated to 65.5 cents per mile driven for business use.

The standard mileage rate for business use is based on an annual study of the fixed and variable costs of operating an automobile. The rate for medical and moving purposes is based on the variable costs.

Interested in other current employment trends? Click the link to view the recent blog: Your Small Business HR Roadmap to Growth or check back for more on human resources, payroll, insurance, and benefits.

This article does not constitute legal advice, and there are subtle variations in employment law as it pertains to this topic, depending on where your business operates. It is strongly suggested that you seek consultation or legal counsel before making policy decisions.