Workforce Bulletin

On November 21, 2024, legislation will take effect in South Carolina, making that state the latest jurisdiction to regulate earned wage access (EWA) programs. EWA programs are generally targeted towards lower-wage earners, allowing employees to obtain a portion of their paycheck before the employer’s scheduled payday. While EWA can be a lifeline for employees living paycheck to paycheck, consumer advocates worry that hidden and not-so-hidden fees associated with such programs could increase users’ aggregated debt, to the detriment of their long-term financial well-being.

To combat such concerns, states have begun to implement rules requiring employers and third parties offering EWA programs to abide by certain standards. States differ, however, on whether payroll advances though EWA programs should be treated as loans. Categorizing EWA advances in this way obligates employers and third-party providers to abide by a complex set of banking regulations. Thus, it is important for employers that offer or are considering an EWA program to understand the implications, which vary depending on the states where the employer does business.

How EWA Programs Work

Advances under EWA programs are either provided directly by employers as a benefit to employees or by third-party providers directly to consumers. If an employee opts to advance a portion of their paycheck through an employer-provided program, the employer or payroll provider reduces the subsequent paycheck amount on payday to recover the advance. If an employee enrolls in an EWA through a third-party provider, the provider removes the advanced amount from the employee’s direct deposit account on payday.

New Jersey has joined the growing ranks of jurisdictions that have enacted pay transparency laws. Senate Bill 2310 (“the Law”) was enacted on November 10, 2024, and approved on November 18, 2024 as Public Law 2024, chapter 91. The Law will take effect on June 1, 2025, i.e., “the first day of the seventh month next following the date of enactment,” and will require most New Jersey employers to disclose a wage or salary range and a general description of benefits and other compensation programs in their job postings and advertisements. The Law also will require covered employers to make “reasonable efforts to announce, post, or otherwise make known opportunities for promotion” to current employees, a feature that is not common in similar laws enacted by other jurisdictions.

Covered Employers

The Law applies to any employer that has 10 or more employees over 20 calendar weeks and does business, employs persons, or takes applications for employment within the state.

Note that employers in Jersey City with five or more employees within Jersey City are already required to comply with that city’s ordinance mandating the disclosure of salary information in postings. This ordinance remains in effect, which means that Jersey City employers with five to nine employees that will be exempt from the state’s law must still comply with the city’s law.

With 2024 winding down, New York employers should be aware of the updates to the New York State Paid Family Leave (PFL) program that take effect in 2025.

As a reminder, PFL allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of job-protected, partially paid time off within a 52-week period for permitted reasons, such as to bond with a newborn, care for a family member with a serious health condition or assist when a family member is deployed abroad on active military service.

As we noted in a bulletin post last year, New York has modified its program several times since establishing PFL in 2018. While PFL’s changes for 2025, as explained below, are ministerial, it should be noted that New York recently expanded other mandatory benefits, including the provision of paid lactation breaks and the addition of paid leave for prenatal care under the New York paid sick leave program. 

New York State has long required employers to support working mothers by providing certain accommodations for nursing employees. Last year, the State imposed a written lactation accommodation policy requirement on all employers, following the lead of New York City and California (among other jurisdictions) [see our Insight on the lactation accommodation legislation here]. As of June 19, 2024, employers’ obligations have again expanded: all New York State employers must provide 30 minutes of paid break time for employees to express breast milk for their nursing child for up to three years following the child’s birth.

The obligations are prescribed by an amendment to the State’s breastmilk expression law, New York Labor Law § 206-C (the “Law”), which was enacted as part of a package of legislation accompanying the New York State Budget for Fiscal Year 2024-2025, signed into law on April 20, 2024 by New York Governor Kathy Hochul. Shortly before the Law took effect, the New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) published new materials under the headline “Breast Milk Expression in the Workplace,” including general information about the Law, a policy statement, information sheets for employees and employers, and frequently asked questions (FAQs).

In a recent decision affirming summary judgment in favor of defendant Human Resources Agency of New Britain, Inc. (the “Agency”), the Connecticut Appellate Court (decision.pdf) provided employers with useful guidance about managing disabled employees who are also qualified medical marijuana users, and appropriately requiring reasonable suspicion drug testing.

Background

In early 2018, the Agency hired Alyssa Bartolotta (“Bartolotta”) as a teaching assistant in its early childhood division.  As part of her onboarding, Bartolotta acknowledged receipt of an ...