February 2021 Employment Law and Regulations Update

Welcome back to the Reflexis Employment Law and Regulations Update! In this month’s article, we’ve included notable changes in United States regulations from February 2021 onward.

This list of new laws and regulations is not exhaustive, nor is it intended as legal advice. Reflexis strongly recommends you consult with your legal counsel regarding any substantive employment law and regulation changes that may affect your organization.

Readers should check for any newer developments on COVID-19 regulations at state and local levels.

Effective March 1, 2021

Federal

US Department of Labor Final Rule permits, among other things, tip-pooling with “back-of-house” employees, if all employees are paid full minimum wage, and no tip credit is taken.  The Final Rule prohibits employers from sharing in the tips, including any managers or supervisors, mandates that all tips be distributed with the employee’s regular pay for the same weeks that tips are received, and allows employers to apply the tip credit for non-tipped duties performed “either contemporaneously with or for a reasonable time immediately before or after performing tipped duties.”

Effective March 15, 2021

PA – Pittsburgh

Paid Sick Days’ Act requires employers with 14 or fewer employees to allow full-time and part-time employees who work in Pittsburgh 35 or more hours in a year to accrue 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 35 hours worked, up to a maximum of 24 hours in a year. Employees must be allowed to carryover up to 24 hours of accrued paid sick leave from one calendar year to the next. Employers are not required to pay out any accrued, but unused, paid sick leave upon terminating an employee or upon the employee’s resignation. The Paid Sick Days’ Act does not apply to seasonal employees who are notified in writing upon hire that they will work no more than 16 weeks during the calendar year.

Effective July 1, 2021

Massachusetts

Eligible employees may receive Paid Family and Medical Leave benefits to bond with a new child, address needs relating to a family member who is a covered service member of the armed forces, for the employee’s own serious medical condition, and to care for a family member with a serious medical condition.

Effective October 1, 2021

New Mexico – Bernalillo County

Maximum accruals of paid time off under the Employee Wellness Act increase to 44 hours per year for employers with greater than 10 employees.  (Maximum accrual for employers with 2 to 10 employees remains the same at 28 hours per year).

Effective January 1, 2022

Connecticut

Connecticut Paid Family and Medical Leave (CPFML) benefits become available for approved applicants.

Massachusetts

Sunday and holiday premium pay rate decreases to 1.1 times the employee’s regular hourly rate of pay.

Oregon

Payroll contributions begin for Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance, unless the employer offers an equivalent plan approved by the State of Oregon Employment Department.

(H.B. 2005)

Washington

Employers are required to withhold 0.58% of employee wages for the Long-Term Services and Supports Trust Program, with benefits becoming available in 2025, to be remitted to the WA Employment Security Department.

(H.B. 1087)

To learn more, stay tuned for the update in March! Visit www.reflexisinc.com for more information on how Reflexis (now a Zebra Technologies company) can help you increase compliance rates and stay on top of new labor laws and regulations.