3 law changes with implications for the new year

As 2023 quickly comes to a close, are you scratching your head and wondering where the time has gone? For business owners and human resources professionals, time flies when you’re busy navigating a bevy of law changes that impact your company policies and benefits. Check out these three laws changes that impacted workplaces in 2023—and what to expect in 2024.

1. The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
After more than a decade of advocacy, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act took effect on June 27, 2023. 

This law requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum recovery. This could include accommodations for fertility treatments, morning sickness, complications, lactation, pregnancy loss, postpartum depression, breastfeeding issues and more.

Under the law, pregnant workers don’t need to prove they should be accommodated; instead, employers must provide accommodations to workers in good faith. Examples of accommodations could include a lighter workload, intermittent breaks and seating changes.

2. Expanded family leave benefits
There is no U.S. federal law providing a right to paid family leave, and there are only a handful of states that offer paid family leave. However, 2023 saw changes and progress in state paid family leave policies. Here are a few examples:

• On January 1, 2023, New York State Paid Family Leave expanded its definition of family member to include sibling, extending benefits to workers who are caring for their siblings
• Vermont doesn’t legally guarantee workers right to paid leave, but on July 1, 2023, enacted the Vermont Paid Family and Medical Leave law, which provides a voluntary opportunity for state employees to purchase insurance coverage that provides paid family and medical leave benefits. The program is expected to roll out to private companies in 2024. New Hampshire has a similar law.
• In May 2023, Minnesota Legislature passed a paid family and medical leave law that will take effect January 1, 2026.
• In July 2023, Maine Governor Janet Mills approved a budget that creates a new paid family and medical leave program that will start in 2026.

3. More pay transparency

There’s no federal pay transparency law in the U.S., but it’s becoming more widespread at state and city levels. Pay transparency laws went into effect on January 1, 2023, in California, Rhode Island and Washington, and on September 17 in New York. These laws require employers to be more transparent about salary ranges and benefits to help promote more equitable pay.

What’s coming in 2024:

• A final vote for a non-compete ban will take place in April 2024, possibly banning employers from requiring employees to agree to non-compete clauses and making existing agreements void.
• There are some SECURE Act 2.0 provisions effective January 1, 2024, that could impact employers, including student loan repayment and emergency savings account provisions.
• California’s minimum wage is increasing to $16.00 effective January 1, 2024.
• The ACA affordability percentage is decreasing for the second year in a row to 8.39%; this rate is the percentage of household income an employee can spend on a plan called “affordable” by the employer under the ACA.

Optavise is here for you!

Complying with rules and regulations requires significant time and energy from employers. While you’re busy staying up to date, let us take some burden off your plate. We can help you stay compliant when it comes to benefit regulations. Our ERISA and ACA compliance team provides comprehensive support that can help you reduce litigation risk, reduce risk of penalties, improve efficiency, and improve participant understanding of benefits. Contact Optavise to learn more.