The 2024 Regular Session of the Connecticut General Assembly, which concluded on May 8, 2024, was not especially prolific in terms of the volume of labor and employment related bills passed. ...more
5/17/2024
/ Connecticut ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
General Assembly ,
Labor Reform ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
On January 4, 2023, the 2023 session of the Connecticut General Assembly began. The session is scheduled to adjourn on June 7, 2023. Numerous proposed bills affecting Connecticut employers and employees will be unleashed...more
1/31/2023
/ Compensation & Benefits ,
Connecticut ,
Disability Benefits ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Labor Reform ,
Pensions ,
Public Hearing ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Retirement ,
State Labor Laws ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workers Compensation Awards
The 2022 Regular Session of the Connecticut General Assembly concluded on May 4, 2022. While not as groundbreaking as the two last full legislative sessions, and while many far-reaching bills that emerged from committee were...more
6/22/2022
/ Connecticut ,
Domestic Violence ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Free Speech ,
General Assembly ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Reform ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
Pending Legislation ,
Prevailing Wages ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Labor Laws ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Wage and Hour
Following its initial action, (Latest Developments from the Connecticut General Assembly: The Labor and Public Employees Committee Begins to Speak), the General Assembly’s Labor and Public Employees Committee likely finished...more
4/15/2022
/ Collective Bargaining ,
Connecticut ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
General Assembly ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Labor Relations ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Labor Laws ,
Union Elections ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour ,
Work Schedules
We have written repeatedly in these pages about the status of statewide masking and employee vaccination mandates for Connecticut schools (both public and private) schools. ...more
2/18/2022
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Public Health ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On September 10, 2021, Governor Lamont issued Executive Order 13G, which set forth a revised COVID-19 vaccination mandate for Connecticut school employees (and childcare facilities). As my colleague, Melinda Kaufmann noted,...more
9/21/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Essential Workers ,
Executive Orders ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Private Schools ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Public Schools ,
Teachers ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On Wednesday, August 25, 2021, the Connecticut State Department of Education (SDE) issued “Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Vaccinations for Covered Workers in Schools.” This guidance from the SDE addresses Governor Ned...more
8/27/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Essential Workers ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Screening Procedures ,
Teachers ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
The 2021 Regular Session of the Connecticut General Assembly concluded on June 9, 2021, and this office provided a summary of relevant employment related legislation. Subsequently, a “Special Session” took place and...more
7/23/2021
/ Breastfeeding ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
General Assembly ,
Hairstyle Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Reform ,
Layoffs ,
Prevailing Wages ,
Public Sector Unions ,
Recreational Use ,
Right of Recall ,
Salaried Employees ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Until recently, sparse access to the COVID-19 vaccines has rendered discussion of vaccination policies a distant and theoretical exercise for many organizations. The thought process among hesitant employers has largely been...more
At its February 18, 2021 meeting, the General Assembly’s Labor and Public Employees Committee began the process of approving bills. The following is a brief summary of the bills that the Committee voted favorably on and...more
3/2/2021
/ Breastfeeding ,
Call Centers ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hairstyle Discrimination ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Pensions ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Salaried Employees ,
Wage and Hour
Last week, in our sister blog, Education Law Notes, we addressed the ability of an employer to mandate the COVID-19 vaccine for its staff. As discussed in that post, we were awaiting updated federal guidance that would...more
12/18/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Back on April 17, 2020, Governor Lamont issued Executive Order 7BB generally requiring persons to wear “face-coverings” (e.g., masks) in public. The Order created an exemption to the obligation to use a mask or cloth face...more
8/19/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Executive Orders ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Required Documentation ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Workplace Safety
We recently wrote a prior alert about Governor Lamont’s Executive Order 7BB (“the Order”) that generally requires persons to wear “face-coverings” (such as masks) in public. ...more
On Friday afternoon (April 17, 2020), Governor Lamont issued Executive Order 7BB (“the Order”) requiring persons to wear “face-coverings” (e.g., masks) in public, effective as of 8:00 p.m. on Monday, April 20, 2020. ...more
All of us are, of course, concerned about what “Coronavirus Disease 2019” (COVID-19) will mean for each of us, our families, schools, workplaces, and our communities. As employers, we must hope for the best, but prepare for...more
3/6/2020
/ Best Practices ,
Business Continuity Plans ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
China ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Crisis Management ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Medical Leave ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Public Health ,
Risk Management ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws ,
Telecommuting ,
Unpaid Leave ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
Both the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) and its Connecticut counterpart provide eligible employees with leave to care for a covered family member (such as a child) who has a “serious health condition.” ...more
Governor Lamont signs House Bill 7501 into law on January 6, 2020.
As we say goodbye to 2019 (and await commencement of the 2020 session of the Connecticut General Assembly in February), the General Assembly via a “Special...more
1/9/2020
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Food Service Workers ,
General Assembly ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Labor Regulations ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Legislation ,
New Regulations ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Special Sessions ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Tip Credit ,
Tipped Employees ,
Tips ,
Wage and Hour
At its March 21, 2019 meeting, the General Assembly’s Labor and Public Employees Committee voted favorably on and advanced out of committee House Bill No. 6935 (“An Act Concerning The Right Of A Public Employee To Join Or...more
Firing an employee does not usually make national headlines, but the recent firing of FBI Director James Comey by President Donald Trump was a notable exception. The headlines continued when President Trump appeared to offer...more
On Thursday, February 16, 2017, the General Assembly’s Labor and Public Employees Committee will conduct a public hearing on the following proposed bills, many of which concern “wage and hour” and leave issues (and some of...more
2/15/2017
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Medical Leave ,
Minimum Wage ,
On-Call Employees ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Sick Leave Act ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pregnancy Disability Leave Law ,
Public Hearing ,
Unemployment ,
Wage and Hour
Generally speaking, our workers’ compensation laws provide certain benefits for injuries arising out of or in the course of employment. Certain employees (police officers and firefighters) are referred to as “portal to...more
Readers of this blog have seen several posts on the topic of pregnancy discrimination. In the last couple of weeks, the following additional developments concerning the topic have occurred...more
As we promised previously, we will be keeping you up to date with developments in the General Assembly. The following is an update as to where we stand on labor and employment related legislation....more
Our state has a comprehensive requirement for certain employees (particularly in the medical and educational spheres) to make reports to the Department of Children and Families (“DCF”) of suspected child abuse and neglect. ...more
School districts usually deny requests to view school video recordings, such as security tapes, in light of concerns about the privacy rights of students featured on these recordings. In a recent decision, the Freedom of...more
11/13/2014
/ Disclosure ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
FOIA ,
FOIC ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Media ,
Privacy Laws ,
Public Schools ,
School Districts ,
Students ,
Video Recordings