[co-author: Tommy Rogers]

With the turn of the new year, your newly invigorated gym plans and salads every night are not the only changes from 2023. Federal and Ohio law are already making “New year, New me” changes. Some changes are here to stay while others…like the salads…are only proposed changes.

Minimum Wage Increases

• Indiana – Indiana minimum wage remains at $7.25 an hour for regular employees and $2.13 for tipped employees.
• Kentucky – Kentucky minimum wage remains at $7.25 an hour for regular employees and $2.13 for tipped employees.
• Michigan – On January 1, 2024, Michigan minimum wage increased from $10.10 an hour to $10.33 an hour for regular employees and $3.93 for tipped employees.
• Pennsylvania – Pennsylvania minimum wage remains at $7.25 an hour for regular employees and $2.83 for tipped employees.
• Ohio – On January 1, 2024, Ohio minimum wage increased from $10.10 an hour to $10.45 an hour for regular employees and $5.25 for tipped employees.
• West Virginia – West Virginia minimum wage remains at $8.75 for regular employees and $2.62 for tipped employees.

Joint Employer Rule. The National Labor Relations Board issued its Final Rule establishing a new standard under the National Labor Relations Act to determine whether two employers are “joint employers”. The new rule takes effect on February 26, 2024. Under the new standard, two or more entities may be considered joint employers of a group of employees if each entity:

(1) has an employment relationship with the employees; and

(2) has the authority to control one or more of the employees’ essential terms and conditions of employment.

This is a major departure from the 2020 standard and will likely lead to more businesses being considered “joint employers” – for example with employees of a temporary staffing agency. There has already been opposition to this rule from the United States Chamber of Commerce. The U.S. Chamber and a coalition of business groups filed a lawsuit against the NLRB on November 9, 2023. Continued opposition to the new standard is expected throughout 2024, but smart employers will take steps to limit exposure as much as possible.

EEOC’s Proposed Guidance on Harassment. New year, new guidance! In October 2023, the EEOC published a notice of Proposed Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace. The EEOC has not provided updated guidance on workplace harassment since 1999. Having fixed the Y2K bugs in their computers, the EEOC figured it was about time for an update. The proposed guidance explains the legal standards for harassment and employer liability to claims of harassment. The public comment period closed in November 2023. After comment review, the EEOC will decide whether to finalize the enforcement guidance. If the EEOC continues at its current pace, we anticipate updating you on the status of the EEOC’s progress sometime in 2048.

OSHA’s Proposed Rule to Amend On-Site Representatives. Be prepared to see changes in OSHA on-site inspections throughout the new year. In August 2023, OSHA published a proposed rule to allow employees to authorize an employee or other third party as their representative to accompany an OSHA Compliance Safety and Health Officer during a workplace inspection. The goal is to increase employee participation during workplace inspections. The public comment period for the proposed rule closed in November 2023. OSHA will likely publish a final rule later this year.

Other Potential Changes. 2024 is a presidential election year. TV ads aren’t the only thing you can expect to inundate your life. The Biden administration is expected to push regulatory activity throughout 2024. In addition to changes at the federal level, we anticipate plenty of state law changes to further complicate the lives of HR Directors with employees in multiple states. Likely areas that could change include pay transparency laws, paid time off regulations, sick leave, and minimum wage increases throughout the country.

Vigilant monitoring of employment legislation in 2024 is crucial for businesses to adapt to the ever-changing landscape throughout the year. 

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