Regulatory Wrap-Up: Where state and national policy impact retail

Wages

Overtime Regulations: This week the Labor Department edged closer to dismantling an Obama-era overtime regulation that has been in limbo for months due to a court injunction. The department sent a formal request for information on the rule to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and will then open it up for public comment. Many view this as a first step in the process to rescind and replace the rule.



California: A state overtime pay bill that matches the salary threshold of the Obama administration’s overtime regulation at $47,476 passed out of the Senate Labor Committee and moves on to Appropriations. New York recently instituted an overtime rate at a similar level.



Delaware: Senate leadership announced they will not schedule a vote on the minimum wage increase during the last week of session, effectively killing the legislation.



Illinois: The bill to raise the state minimum wage to $15/hr by 2022 finally reached the governor’s desk but it is still unclear whether or not he will sign it. In an effort to assuage the business community, the bill includes a tax rebate for companies with 50 or fewer employees, expiring in 2025. The governor has signaled a willingness to increase the minimum wage but at a lower rate. The well-timed move by the legislature comes just days before a $15/hr wage ordinance takes effect in Cook County, IL. More than two-thirds of localities within the county have already opted out of the law.



Maine: The governor signed a bill restoring the tip credit that voters chose to eliminate as part of a minimum wage ballot initiative passed last November.



Minneapolis: By an 11-1 vote, the City Council passed legislation increasing the minimum wage to $15/hr. over five years, with a compliance date of 2024 smaller businesses.



Seattle: A new University of Washington study commissioned by the city details the negative impact of Seattle’s minimum wage rate. The research and report is considered highly credible by economists. The findings were based on the previous year when the wage rate escalated to $13/hr and found the minimum wage increase boosted worker pay by three percent but also led to a nine percent reduction in hours worked (a loss of about $125 per month). Entry-level jobs also declined by 6.8 percent, or by more than 5,000 positions.



Cook County, Ill.: - Municipalities continue to opt out of the Cook County minimum wage and paid leave mandate ahead of the July 1 implementation date. More than two-thirds of Cook County’s 134 municipalities have opted out.

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Wage Theft

Los Angeles: The city’s Office of Wage Standards and the city attorney announced $1.45 million in fines and back wages assessed to CKE Restaurants (Carl’s Jr.) for allegedly failing to pay several workers the city’s $10.50/hr minimum wage.

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Paid Leave

New Jersey: Legislation that would increase the amount of paid family leave workers can take in New Jersey passed the legislature and has gone to Governor Christie’s desk. It is unclear whether he will sign or veto the legislation. The expanded benefit would provide workers up to 12 weeks of paid family leave at 90 percent of their weekly pay, which would be covered by an existing state fund to which all workers in New Jersey already contribute.

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Scheduling

Oregon: The House passed, in a bipartisan manner, a compromise scheduling bill this week following passage in the Senate last week. The governor is expected to sign the bill into law. Oregon will become the first state to enact a restrictive scheduling mandate and the bill will likely become the national model. The requirement applies to “chains” that employ at least 500 employees worldwide. Primary components of the legislation include: seven days advanced notice for the first three years and 14 days beginning in 2020 with one hour of penalty pay for changes; a rest period of at least ten hours between employee shifts; employers may use the “voluntary standby list” to address unanticipated customer needs or unexpected employee absences without penalty pay, and; a permanent, statewide preemption of all local government scheduling mandates. The law will be enforced by the state labor department with a narrow private right of action for retaliation.



Chicago: The City Council proposed a scheduling ordinance modeled after other jurisdictions like San Francisco and Seattle. The legislation includes two weeks advance notice for schedules, predictability pay, a ban on “clopening” and a requirement to offer additional hours to part-time workers before hiring new workers. A timeline of legislative action has not been specified.



Emeryville, Calif.: The city has set a new timeline for enforcement of its new scheduling mandate. The “soft” effective date of July 1, 2017 is still in effect, however operators will not be penalized for non-compliance during the soft rollout period. The implementing regulations are still under consideration and the city council recently set a new timeline for both comments and enforcement. The comment period was extended to July 31 with a “full” effective date of January 1, 2018. The scheduling ordinance, passed in 2016, applies to entities with 56 or more employees globally. It includes two weeks advance notice for schedules, predictability pay and a requirement to offer additional hours to part time workers before hiring new workers.

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Labor Policy

NLRB Nomination: President Trump nominated William Emanuel for a seat on the National Labor Relations Board. Emanuel is a partner at management-side law firm Littler Mendelson. He has extensive experience working with Members of Congress, major trade groups from an array of industries and represented employers many times before the Board.