5 Key Themes from the GovDocs Quarterly Webinar

The GovDocs December quarterly webinar, A Look Back, A Look Ahead: 2017 – 18 Employment Law Trends, was not one to miss! We reviewed the top trends of 2017 and what to expect in 2018, all in a GovDocs-style “fireside chat” with a panel of GovDocs Employment Law Experts.

If you couldn’t attend, don’t worry! We have gathered the top 5 takeaways here:

1. The complexity of minimum wage management exists among all employer sizes and industries.

In 2017, we saw 226 bills introduced and three laws passed at the state level involving minimum wage. We also saw 32 bills introduced and nine laws established at the local level. Even if you are a small company, it’s hard to keep track of all the movement in this subject area, as these laws see changes almost daily.

GovDocs Panel Thoughts

Our clients describe minimum wage management with one word: complex. They’re not finding an all-in-one tool that can manage their company locations and minimum wage laws at the federal, state, county and city levels. This requires hours of researching and tracking via spreadsheets, all to do it again with the next month’s changes.

If you’re having trouble tracking minimum wage rates for your locations, check out GovDocs Minimum Wage.

2. Not all paid leave laws contain the same provisions, so employers cannot expect to comply with a “one size fits all” approach.

As you know, there has been an increase in paid leave bills at the state level. We saw 150 bills introduced and eight laws enacted at the state level. At the local level, we saw 18 bills introduced and one law enacted. You may feel like you have a grip on the details, but there is one thing you may not have noticed …

GovDocs Panel Thoughts

Very few of these laws contain the same provisions. So, even if you feel you have a good grip on paid leave management, it’s likely that you’re going to be applying different paid leave requirements for different groups of employees in each location. Learn more about paid leave here.

3. Discrimination laws are not limited to ban-the-box.

Discrimination laws come in various forms, including:

• Sexual orientation and gender identification
• Equal pay
• Criminal history
• Veteran status
• Reproductive health decisions
• Unemployment status

GovDocs Panel Thoughts

Most activity regarding discrimination is happening around equal pay and salary history bans, as 2017 started new widespread conversations about how women have not been paid equally to men, for doing equal work. Although these conversations have always existed, 2017 saw a renewed vigor. These new equal pay and salary history bans are focused specifically on the compensation aspect of women’s workplace equality. We expect these conversations to continue into 2018 at both the state and local level.

We will also continue to see an increase in veteran, reproductive health and unemployment status discrimination bills in 2018.

4. It’s too early to tell if E-Verify will go nationwide in 2018.

In 2017, there was an increase in movement around E-Verify, as we saw a federal E-Verify posting update and a new bill introduced to Congress, The Legal Workforce Act of 2017. However, it’s too early to tell if this will go nationwide.

GovDocs Panel Thoughts

Once Congress finishes up work on their tax bill, they will start working on the budget for 2018. The Department of Homeland Security has asked Congress for funding for E-Verify operation, upgrades, and expansion. If Congress decides to write this line item into the budget, E-Verify stands a good chance of going nationwide in 2018.

However, there are many senators that argue the E-Verify program needs to be reformed before it’s implemented further. This adds a new twist, as the time it would take to do so is unknown.

Many GovDocs clients have decided to implement E-Verify to all their locations, even though it’s not required for all. One reason for this is to focus their efforts on employee experience. Also, some feel that it’s easier to manage if they do it for all states, not just some.

In short, there are a lot of factors surrounding the E-Verify debate, and only time will tell if E-Verify will go nationwide in 2018.

5. Scheduling laws are here, and they aren’t slowing down anytime soon.

Scheduling laws – also referred to as predictive scheduling – provide employees with a work schedule that allows them to plan their lives beyond work.

A total of 13 states introduced 40 bills in 2017, all which are in various stages of legislation. This year Oregon became the first state to introduce a statewide predictive scheduling law, and we expect to see more states making the move in the future.

GovDocs Panel Thoughts

Our clients are finding that scheduling laws are adding on yet another layer of complexity to their compliance strategies. Just like paid sick leave and minimum wage, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to manage these laws at all levels of government.

Learn More

View the Webinar Recording

Watch the entire webinar, along with the commentary by the GovDocs Panel, here.

View Our Infographic

Check out our latest infographic, Top Labor Law Trends of 2017, for more information on these trends, and what we can expect in 2018.