Employee handbooks are important for establishing employee expectations, addressing workplace issues and defending against potential lawsuits. Failing to update the employment policies in these handbooks regularly can make employers vulnerable to legal risks and liabilities that may result in costly fines, penalties and attorney fees. Employment laws are often complicated, and employers must know about new regulatory developments that may impact their organizations and workforce. The start of the year provides employers with an excellent opportunity to review and update their policies.
1. Captive Audience Bans
In 2024, several states passed or introduced legislation to bar employers from requiring employees to attend “captive audience” meetings on religious or political matters. These laws prohibit employers from coercing employees into attending or participating in meetings that are sponsored by the employer and that concern the employer’s views on religious or political matters, including union organization. The bans on captive audience meetings generally include exceptions for certain communications that employers are legally required to make.
This trend is likely to not only continue in 2025 but also grow. For example, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Mexico have introduced similar laws that remain under consideration.
2. PWFA Accommodations
The PWFA, which went into effect on June 27, 2023, requires reasonable accommodations for a qualified individual’s limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions. The PWFA requires employers with at least 15 employees to provide reasonable accommodations to workers with known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions unless the accommodation will cause the employer an “undue hardship.” On April 15, 2024, the U.S. EqualEmployment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a final rule to implement the PWFA, which went into effect on June 18, 2024. The final regulation clarifies definitions and limitations under the PWFA and seeks to help employers understand their duties under the law. The final rule includes information to help employers meet their responsibilities under the new law.
The PWFA has significantly expanded workplace rights and protections for employees affected by pregnancy, childbirth and related conditions, and employers will likely continue to face increased compliance burdens and litigation risks as they attempt to comply with the law.
3. Paid Family and Medical Leave
Paid family and medical leave laws ensure workers continue receiving a portion of their wages when they’re unable to work under certain circumstances, such as illness or the birth of a child. In 2024, many states and localities enacted paid leave laws, and several states have proposed paid leave legislation pending. The trend of paid leave is expected to continue in 2025 as more states adopt paid family, medical and sick leave laws. For example, in 2025, paid leave laws will become effective inAlaska, Maryland, Maine, Delaware and Michigan. Currently, nearly one-third of states (and the District of Columbia) have passed their own paid sick leave laws.
Because of the increasing number of states and localities adopting paid leave laws, employers need to ensure their leave policies are current and comply with local laws. It is critical to review existing policies to confirm they conform to state and local regulations of the location where employees physically work. An employer’s leave policies can clearly explain when employees are eligible for paid leave and any steps they must follow to request it. Employers should also verify their leave policies do not unintentionally discriminate against employees based on a protected class.
4. CROWN Acts
CROWN Act legislation has gained traction across state and local legislatures in recent years. As of 2024, 27 states and more than 50 localities have passed a CROWN Act. These laws intend to eliminate discrimination based on traits historically associated with race—specifically, hair textures and hairstyles. CROWN laws generally prohibit racially discriminatory workplace dress codes and hygiene policies that ban employees from maintaining certain hairstyles commonly or historically associated with race, such as afros, braids, twists, cornrows, locs and other similar hairstyles.
As more states and localities adopt hair discrimination laws, employers must ensure their workplace dress codes, grooming policies and related handbook provisions are current and comply with state and local laws. It is critical to review existing policies to ensure they accommodate different hairstyles by not banning or restricting certain hair textures and styles that are associated with race, national origin and ethnicity.
5. Expanded Protected Classes
In general, employers may not discipline, discharge, refuse to hire or otherwise discriminate in terms, privileges or conditions of employment on the basis of an individual’s protected class. Federal anti-discrimination laws protect individuals from discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity and sexual orientation), national origin, disability, age (40 or older) and genetic information. In recent years, several states have expanded the scope of characteristics that are protected under their anti-discrimination laws.
Employers must ensure that their workplace policies keep up with the expansion of protected classes under state and local anti-discrimination laws. Employers should review and revise their discrimination policies to address any new protected classes in the locations where their employees are located. Additionally, employers should monitor for state and local legislative action expanding protected classes that may impact their workforce.
6. Pay Transparency
Pay transparency laws have increased in recent years, and states continued to pass and introduce pay transparency legislation in 2024. In general, pay transparency is when an employer openly communicates pay-related information to prospective and current employees through established practices. These laws aim to address pay inequality and promote wage transparency by requiring employers to disclose compensation information and increasing employee access to salary data. While these laws vary in their requirements, they often require employers to post salary ranges in job postings or disclose salary information to existing employees and job applicants.
Given the rapid spread of pay transparency laws, even if employers are currently unaffected by pay transparency mandates, they should consider developing strategies to address this issue, as pay transparency likely already impacts them directly or indirectly. Employers can protect themselves and help ensure compliance with applicable laws by understanding applicable pay transparency requirements and regularly reviewing job postings. Employers should consider implementing practices—such as publishing pay scales for their open positions or hosting informational training sessions on pay-related topics—and updating their employment policies accordingly.
7. NLRA Employee Rights
Section 7 of the NLRA grants employees the right to engage in concerted activity for the purpose of collective bargaining and mutual aid or protection. These protections apply to both unionized and nonunionized nonsupervisory employees. Concerted activity generally includes any activity by a group of employees attempting to improve wages, hours and working conditions for the group. As a result, the NLRA generally prohibits employers from maintaining or applying policies that interfere with employees’ rights to engage in union or other concerted activities.
In recent years, the NLRB has been very active in enforcing the NRLA. During the first half of FY 2024, there was a 7% increase in unfair labor practices (ULP) charges. This increase in ULP charges follows a trend over the last few years. For example, in FY2023, ULP charges increased 10% compared to FY 2022 and 19% in FY 2022 compared to FY 2021.
In addition to prioritizing enforcement actions, the board has expanded potential remedies under the NLRA, placed restrictions on confidentiality and nondisparagement provisions in severance agreements of nonsupervisory employees, and revised its test for determining whether an employer’s policy or workplace rule infringes on employees’ protected concerted activity. Therefore, it’s critical that employers ensure their workplace policies related to employee conduct and speech do not infringe upon employees’ rights under Section 7. Employers should consider reviewing the following policies:
Personal conduct;
Nondisparagement;
Conflicts of interest;
Confidentiality provisions related to wages, discipline, investigations and harassment complaints;
Outside employment;
Audio and video recording in the workplace;
Restrictions on speaking to the media;
Electronic communications;
Complaint policies;
Class action waivers;
Dress codes and uniform policies;
Solicitation and distribution policies;
At-will employment waivers; and
Social media policies.
This Compliance Bulletin is not intended to be exhaustive nor should any discussion or opinions be construed as legal advice. Readers should contact legal counsel for legal advice.
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