2022 is coming to a close, and the new year will be here beforewe know it. While many states, cities and counties seem to bewilling to pass employment laws and regulations at any time, thefirst day of a new year is still the number one day for newemployment laws to take effect. 2023 will be no exception.
Littler Workplace Policy Institute (WPI) has been tracking ahost of new employment laws as they have been debated over the pastfew months. Below is WPI's annual summary of some of thenotable compliance obligations employers will soon be facing. As inthe past, this article is not intended to be an exhaustivediscussion of every single new employment and labor law. Thearticle focuses on laws of "general application,"although a few industry-specific laws are mentioned. We also covermost large jurisdictions, but not all, and we do not discuss thehost of new minimum wage laws, which are just around thecorner.
So get ready—new labor and employment law compliancechallenges are here to ring in the new year!
Law, Ordinance orRegulation
Main Topic
Summary
Effective Date
Fast Food Industry: Regulation
Creates the Fast Food Accountability and Standards RecoveryAct. This law establishes a state Fast Food Council within theDepartment of Industrial Relations, which will be empowered toimpose sector-wide minimum standards on wages, working hours, andother conditions related to the health, safety, and welfare of fastfood restaurant workers.
January 1, 2023
Protected Time Off: Scope of Coverage
Expands the definition of a "familymember" under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) andCalifornia's Healthy Workplaces Healthy Families Act (HWHFA) toinclude a "designated person." Employees will be able toidentify a designated person for whom they want to use leave whenthey request unpaid (CFRA) or paid (HWHFA) leave.
January 1, 2023
Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN): CallCenter Employees
Requires call center employers to provide notice of mass layoff,relocation, or termination.
January 1, 2023
Title III Accommodations
Requires businesses open to the public that have restrooms foremployees to allow individuals who have Crohn's disease,ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, or any other similarmedical condition, to use the employee restrooms.
January 1, 2023
Background Checks: Home Health Services
Removes requirement for specified individuals connected withhome healthcare facilities to sign a declaration regarding priorcriminal convictions.
January 1, 2023
COVID-19: Workers' Compensation
Extends to January 1, 2024, the current rebuttable presumptionthat an employee's illness resulting from COVID-19 wassustained in the course of employment for purposes of workers'compensation benefits.
January 1, 2023
Employer Liability: Human Trafficking
Provides that hotel employers are liable for human trackingpenalties if a supervisory employee knew of or acted with recklessdisregard of sex trafficking activity.
January 1, 2023
Protected Time Off: Bereavement Leave
Amends the California Family Rights Act to require employerswith five or more employees to provide up to five days of unpaidbereavement leave for an employee within three months of the deathof a family member.
January 1, 2023
COVID-19: Workplace Posters
Requires certain health and safety posters relating to COVID-19to be posted in additional languages.
January 1, 2023
Benefits: Reproductive Health
Applies to religious employers' healthcare service plans andinsurers that do not provide coverage for abortion andcontraception. These plans and insurers will be required to provideinsured employees with written information about free abortion andcontraception benefits or services available through the CaliforniaReproductive Health Equity Program.
January 1, 2023
Labor-Management Relations: Farm Workers
The Agricultural Labor Relations Voting Choice Act givesagricultural workers the option to vote by mail in unionrepresentation elections that were previously required to be heldin person.
January 1, 2023
Employer Liability: Reproductive Health
Prohibits a person from being subject to civil or criminalliability based on their actions or omissions with respect to theirpregnancy or actual, potential, or alleged pregnancy outcome orbased on their actions to aid or assist a woman or pregnant personwho is exercising their reproductive rights.
January 1, 2023
Discrimination & Harassment: Hate Crimes
Expands the definition of hate crimes in places of employment toinclude display of hate imagery.
January 1, 2023
COVID-19: Exposure Notifications
Amends California Labor Code section 6409.6 (Duties of employerwhen notified of potential exposure to COVID-19) and extends itsprovisions until January 1, 2024. The main modification will give employers theoption to post a notice of potential COVID-19 exposure at theworksite (and on existing employee portals) instead of providingwritten notice.
January 1, 2023
Civil Procedure
Amends the Fair Employment and Housing Act to toll right-to-suenotice deadlines during mandatory or voluntary dispute resolutionproceedings.
January 1, 2023
Protected Categories: Reproductive Health
Amends the Fair Employment and Housing Act to prohibitemployment discrimination on the basis of an individual'sreproductive health decision-making; expands required health plancoverage for contraceptives.
January 1, 2023
Background Checks: Criminal
Amends the state penal code to provide for criminal recordrelief. Seals records of defendants convicted of most felonies onor after January 1, 2005, if they completed their sentence,probation, supervision, parole and any other terms of theirconviction, and are not convicted of a new felony for fouryears.
January 1, 2023
Labor-Management Relations
Permits an employee organization to file a claim against anemployer before the Public Employee Relations Board (PERB) allegingviolations of Government Code section 3550, which prohibits apublic employer from deterring or discouraging public employees orapplicants from becoming or remaining members of an employeeorganization.
January 1, 2023
Protected Time Off: FMLA Paid
Increases the amount of unemployment and wage replacementbenefits for low-wage employees under the family temporarydisability insurance program, for disabilities or covered incidentsoccurring on or after January 1, 2025.
January 1, 2023
Privacy: Surveillance
Disclosure regarding use of GPS tracking location technology infleet vehicles. Allows an employee to disable off hours.
January 1, 2023
Data Privacy
Substantially expands the privacy and information securityobligations of most employers doing business in California,requiring significant changes to existing policies, procedures, andpractices for handling HR Individuals' personal information.Creates the Privacy Protection Agency to enforce the state consumerdata privacy laws.
January 1, 2023
Protected Time Off: Non-Retaliation
Prohibits an employer from taking adverse action against anemployee for refusing to report to or leaving work during anemergency condition; prohibits an employer from preventing anemployee from accessing a mobile device during that time.
January 1, 2023
Home Care Agencies: Background Checks
Permits applicants for home healthcare licenses to requesttransfers of criminal record clearance online; removes requirementto submit government issued identification when requestingtransfer.
January 1, 2023
Benefits: 401K/Retirement/Pension
Expands the definition of "eligible employer" underthe CalSavers program to include those with one or more employees;requires employers with one or more employees that do not offer aretirement savings program to implement a payroll depositretirement savings arrangement by December 31, 2025.
January 1, 2023
Wage Transparency
Requires employers of 100 or more contracted employees to submit separate annual pay data reportsregarding the contracted employees; requires employers of 15 ormore employees to provide the pay scale for a position in any jobposting.
January 1, 2023
Wage & Hour: Garnishments
Reduces the maximum amount of wages that may be subject togarnishment.
January 1, 2023
The content of this article is intended to provide a generalguide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be soughtabout your specific circ*mstances.
