Welcome to the latest edition of AlphaStaff's Monthly Compliance Updates!

We are pleased to provide you with a recap of National and State Legal Updates and highlight resources provided by some of AlphaStaff’s trusted legal partners to guide and help keep you in compliance.

 

National Updates

 

DHS Ends COVID-Related Form I-9 Remote Flexibility

On May 5, 2023, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that the Form I-9 verification flexibilities implemented during the COVID pandemic will end effective July 31, 2023. Any employer that previously relied on the temporary flexibilities to verify Section 2 documents remotely must complete in-person physical document inspections for those employees. The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (USCIS) has given employers until August 30, 2023, to comply with this requirement.

For more information, visit this link from our trusted legal partner, Fisher Phillips.

 

FCRA Compliance - Updated Summary of Rights 

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently released updates to the Final Rule on the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) Summary of Rights. These new rules will impact any employer that utilizes a consumer reporting agency to perform background checks. Most significantly, employers will need to ensure that they distribute the most up-to-date version of the Federal Summary of Rights. Although these new rules became effective on April 19, 2023, employers have until March 20, 2024, to comply with the updated rules. AlphaStaff has confirmed with our vendor, Verified First, that the updated FCRA forms have been incorporated into their portal. However, clients utilizing a different vendor may want to confirm their compliance with the new rules.

For more information, visit this link from our trusted legal partner, Jackson Lewis.

 

 

State Updates

 

Deadline Extended Until August 31, 2023, for Businesses to Comply with Connecticut's Mandatory Retirement Program

Connecticut has become the most recent state to roll out a state-run Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA) program. Under the Connecticut Retirement Security Program, covered private employers must either join the state-run program or claim an exemption if they offer a qualified, employer-sponsored retirement plan for employees. A covered employer is any employer that has five or more Connecticut employees that earned at least $5,000 in the previous calendar year. The deadline for compliance has been extended to August 31, 2023.

Follow this link from Littler Mendelson to find out more.

 

Florida Will Soon Require Employers to Use E-Verify with New Hires

On May 10, 2023, Governor DeSantis signed Senate Bill 1718 into law, expanding the scope of employers required to utilize E-Verify. Previously, public and private employers contracting with state and local governments were required to utilize E-Verify. Effective July 1, 2023, private employers with at least 25 employees will be required to use E-Verify when onboarding new hires. The penalties for non-compliance include a one-year probationary period before potential license revocation and a fine of $1,000 per day for any period of non-compliance. Penalties for non-compliance go into effect on July 1, 2024. Covered employers currently not utilizing E-Verify will want to begin enrolling in the program. Please reach out to your HR Account Manager if you are not using this service and would like to explore your options.

Follow this link from Fisher Phillips to read about five key takeaways from this new legislation.

 

Illinois Department of Labor Amends its Regulations Governing the State's Business Expense Reimbursement Law

Illinois’ Wage Payment and Collection Act (IWPCA) provides business expense reimbursement protection to Illinois employees. Under the IWPCA, employees are entitled to reimbursement of “necessary expenditures and losses incurred by the employee within the employee’s scope of employment and directly related to services performed for the employer.” Effective April 14, 2023, the Illinois Department of Labor amended the regulations for the IWPCA to introduce a five-factor test that should be used to evaluate whether the employee’s expenditure was primarily made to benefit the employer. The regulations do not, however, provide any examples of the type of business expenditures that are “reasonable” or “necessary.” Therefore, Illinois employers will remain uncertain pending further regulations or a substantive court decision. The new regulation also requires employers to maintain the following records for three years:

  1. All policies regarding reimbursements
  2. All employee requests for reimbursement
  3. Documentation showing approval or denial or reimbursements
  4. Documentation showing actual reimbursement and supporting documentation   

For more information on the amended regulations, follow this link from Littler.

 

New York City Adopts Final Regulations of Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Hiring and Promotion

The April 2023 edition of the AlphaAdvisor discussed Local Law 144 and its impact on employers utilizing automated employment decision tools (AEDTs) as part of the hiring process. Initially, enforcement of this law was set to begin on April 15, 2023, but has been postponed until July 5, 2023. Employers must review their current practices and determine if and to what extent they utilize AEDTs. If these tools are utilized to make employment decisions, employers must perform an annual audit, publish a public summary of the audit, and distribute notices to any applicant or employee subject to screening by the tools. 

To find out more, including how to satisfy these requirements and to review additional obligations, follow this link from Littler.

 

Virginia's Legislative Session Concludes with a Handful of New Employment Laws

Virginia has passed several new laws that will impact employers in the state, all effective July 1, 2023. Below is a summary of the new laws: 

  • Employers are prohibited from using an employee’s social security number or any derivative of their social security number as an employee’s identification number.
  • Employers are prohibited from requiring an employee or potential employee to execute a non-disclosure agreement or confidentiality agreement that includes provisions relating to claims of sexual harassment.
  • Employers are prohibited from paying sub-minimum wages to disabled workers unless they have an appropriate exemption in place prior to July 1, 2023.  
  • Employers with 50 or more employees must provide up to 60 business days of unpaid leave for employees that donate an organ and up to 30 business days of unpaid leave for employees that donate bone marrow. 

Visit this link for additional information from Littler.