Labor Law Updates

2015 was an action-packed year for labor law posting changes – largely due to a sweep of state-level legal developments. Specifically, there were 64 mandatory labor law changes across 37 states.

In the latest development with the federal contractor minimum wage, the Department of Labor finalized a five-cent increase over the previous year’s rate.

As previously reported, President Obama signed Executive Order 13658 establishing a minimum wage for federal contractors in February 2014. Effective January 1, 2015, the minimum hourly wage for workers on covered contractors was $10.10 an hour. As part of the Executive Order, however, the Secretary of Labor was authorized to make annual increases based on inflation.

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has released a new “EEO is the Law” poster. Supplementing the already required Equal Employment Opportunity poster, the additional posting reflects a number of regulatory changes from the past several years.

September has been a busy month for regulatory and legal changes affecting federal contractors. In addition to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFFCP) releasing a supplemental “EEO is the Law” poster, President Obama recently issued Executive Order 13706 requiring federal contractors to provide paid sick leave.

On June 26, the United States Supreme Court issued a decision in Obergefell v. Hodges that requires all states to recognize and issue licenses for same-sex marriages. The decision is one of the most significant changes to constitutional law in many years, and its impact is far-reaching, including implications for employers.