Employment Law This Week®: Pay Data Collection, Strengthening Worker Protections, NJ’s “Wage Theft” Legislation
New Jersey Employers Face Tougher Penalties for “Wage Theft” - Employment Law This Week® - Trending News
On January 4, 2022, Labor Law §198-e – known as New York’s Wage Theft Law – went into effect. The Wage Theft Law, which applies to private construction projects, makes the prime/general contractor responsible for unpaid wages...more
In Oregon, unpaid workers can sue their employers directly or file administrative complaints with the U.S. Department of Labor or its state counterpart, the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI). Workers often file...more
Three months into the new legislative year, with all but a handful of state legislatures currently in session, several employment law trends for 2025 have emerged. Some of the more significant trends reflect the country’s...more
California lawmakers introduced numerous bills early in the 2025 legislative session that could affect California employment law in significant ways. Although it is too soon to predict which bills, if any, will advance, the...more
Developers, owners, and contractors would all be wise to take note of Senate Bill 426, currently under consideration in the Oregon legislature....more
On March 17, 2025, the New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously held in Musker v. Suuchi that commissions are included in the definition of “wages” under New Jersey’s Wage Payment Law (“WPL”). Wages under the WPL are defined as...more
Wage and hour claims—especially under California’s Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) and class action lawsuits—continue to rise at an alarming rate. With more PAGA notices filed than ever before and wage and hour class...more
Beginning January 1, 2025, the City of St. Paul, Minnesota’s Wage Theft Ordinance went into effect. The Ordinance largely incorporates the State of Minnesota’s existing wage theft legislation. However, similar to the...more
The tragic fires in Southern California have touched many lives and impacted many businesses operating in California. Here, we want to alert employers of a notice requirement to newly hired nonexempt employees who will be...more
Amid the ongoing Southern California wind and fire emergencies, California employers should keep in mind key emergency-related legal protections for employees and obligations placed on employers. Specifically, the Wage Theft...more
You have probably heard about the plight of Rudy Giuliani. Once known as “America’s Mayor” for his handling of the attack on the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001, Mr. Giuliani has fallen on hard times. Because of a $148...more
Wage theft is a growing concern that poses significant threats to workers across Illinois and Chicago. This alert outlines recent legislative changes that expand the avenues for wage recovery for independent contractors,...more
In Guthrie v. Rainbow Fencing Inc., 113 F.4th 300 (2d Cir. 2024), the Second Circuit weighed in on a brewing dispute among New York district courts as to whether (and how) a plaintiff’s allegations may establish Article III...more
California - Workplace Violence Prevention Plans: Effective July 1, 2024, most employers will be required to establish and maintain a workplace violence prevention plan. Additionally, employers will be required to maintain...more
On May 15, 2024, the New Jersey Supreme Court held in Maia v. IEW Construction Group that both the six-year look-back period and liquidated damages provided by the state Wage Theft Act (WTA) do not apply retroactively....more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The New Jersey Supreme Court held that amendments to New Jersey’s Wage and Hour Law and Wage Payment Law that increase employer wage-hour liability are not retroactive....more
In a unanimous decision, on May 15, 2024, the New Jersey Supreme Court held that the state’s amendments (Chapter 212) to the Wage Payment Law (WPL) and the Wage and Hour Law (WHL) apply prospectively, and therefore plaintiffs...more
Governor Kathy Hochul signed an amendment to the New York Penal Law this past fall, designating “wage theft” as a form of criminal larceny. In doing so, she and the State Legislature targeted “bad faith” employers who violate...more
In October 2023, we wrote an alert detailing an amendment to New York's Penal Code that added wage theft as a means of committing criminal larceny. This amendment, along with the creation of a specialized Worker Protection...more
The allure of doing business in California is undeniable. It is the world’s fifth largest economy (moving toward fourth) and a market of more than 39 million people. For employers, however, California presents unique...more
Continuing a years’ long trend of extensive alterations to workplace laws, New York State and New York City continued to enact new workplace legislation impacting employers. A substantial number of enacted bills in the past...more
A recently signed state law will soon protect New York freelance and contract workers from wage theft and delayed payments – and require businesses to put certain terms in writing. Businesses across the state will need to...more
The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) recently published a revised employee wage theft notice, effective January 1, 2024, that reflects legislation enacted in California in October 2023 requiring notice of...more
New York Codifies Employer Requirement to Notify Employees of Unemployment Benefit Rights - Gov. Hochul signed S4878A/A298. The law amends New York Labor Law Section 590 by adding a section that requires employers...more
The California Legislature has enacted several new laws that will impact the workplace in 2024. This Holland & Knight alert provides a brief summary of select employment laws that go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024, unless stated...more