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Connecticut
Pay History:
Connecticut
employers are now prohibited from asking job candidates
about their salary history during job interviews.
Proponents of the so-called “pay equity” legislation
said asking about salary history maintains the existing pay
gap between men and women. Prospective employees will still
have the option to voluntarily disclose that information.
States including Rhode Island and Massachusetts have similar
laws. [Public
Act No. 18-8]
Mandatory IRA:
Requires private-sector employers without their own
workplace-based retirement plans to enroll employees in
Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) sponsored by the
state. Per recent announcement, the law will be phased-in
beginning in 2019. The requirement stems from legislation
enacted in 2016.
[Conn.
Gen. Stat. §§ 31-410 et seq.15]
Delaware
Sexual Harassment:
And, a new Delaware
law will require employers with 50 or more employees to
provide sexual-harassment training to current workers within
the next year, or within one year of hiring new employees.
Training must be offered every two years thereafter.
[HB.360].
Training Wages and Youth Wages:
Creates a minimum training wage and youth wage of no
more than $0.50 less than the state minimum wage. Training
wage applies during the first 90 days of employment of an
employee who is age 18 or older.
[HB.483].
Notification:
Requires employers with 50+ employees to provide 60
days' notice to affected employees, the Delaware Department
of Labor WARN Act Administrator, and the Delaware Workforce
Development Board of mass layoffs, plant closings, or
relocations that will cause employment loss.
[HB.409].
Maine
Minimum Wage:
Good news for low income workers! The first of the year
marks an increase in the minimum wage, up to $11 an hour,
according to the Journal Tribune. Tipped workers will earn a
minimum of 5.50 an hour.
Marijuana:
Today's a big day
for medical marijuana businesses throughout Maine.
Legislation passed last summer is taking effect, and it
promises to make it easier for Mainers to obtain marijuana
products to treat whatever ails them.
Massachusetts
Minimum Wage:
The road to a $15
minimum wage starts Tuesday. The state's hourly minimum wage
increases from $11 to $12, the beginning of a four-year
steady increase. Restaurant servers will see their hourly
wage increase from $3.75 to $6.75.
Tax Cut:
The income tax will
fall from 5.1 percent to 5.05 percent Tuesday.
Tobacco:
The most important
piece of the legislation raises the minimum age for buying
tobacco products from 18 to 21.
The legislation also says pharmacies can't sell
tobacco products.
Airbnb Taxes:
Airbnb and other
short-term housing rental websites will be subject to a 5.7
percent hotel and motel room tax. The compromise bill, which
was struck late in the year, will exempt homeowners who rent
out their units for 14 or fewer days a year. Municipalities
can levy their own taxes of up to 6 percent, and 6.5 percent
in Boston.
New Hampshire
Tax Reduction:
Reductions to the
state's Business Profits Tax and Business Enterprise Tax
take effect a few days into 2019, on Jan. 4. For taxable
periods ending on or after December 31, 2019 the BPT rate is
reduced to 7.7% and for taxable periods ending on or after
December 31, 2021 the BPT rate is reduced to 7.5%
Vermont
Pay to Move:
The state is giving
people up to $10,000 over two years for those employed by
out-of-state companies who are willing to work remotely from
Vermont in a home office or cooperative work space.
Pay History:
Elsewhere,
Connecticut and Hawaii are making it illegal for employers
to ask job applicants about their pay history. That brings
to 10 the number of states with similar bans, which are
intended to stop the cycle of pay discrimination against
women and minorities. [H.294]
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