Compliance Stuff

Real World Impact:  Governor Ron DeSantis has allowed Florida’s expansive noncompete bill to become law without his signature. As discussed in our May 19, 2025  Alert , the Florida Contracts Honoring Opportunity, Investment, Confidentiality, and Economic Growth (CHOICE) Act significantly expands the enforceability of noncompete agreements in Florida. The law addresses both garden leave agreements and noncompete agreements. With regard to noncompete agreements, the law expands the permissible duration of noncompete agreements from two years to a maximum of four years and contains no geographic scope limitation . Thus, noncompete agreements that comply with the CHOICE Act can last two years longer and can extend to employees who move out of Florida . The law’s salary requirement means it will not apply to lower wage workers (employees or contractors who do not earn a salary, excluding benefits or discretionary compensation, greater than twice the annual mean wage of the county...

Key Takeaways Illinois recently concluded its legislative session, with many employment-related bills being sent to Governor JB Pritzker for possible enactment into law. As of this publication, the governor has already enacted two laws that amend Illinois Equal Pay Act and Prevailing Wage Act requirements. Additional bills that may be signed into law include changes to the Illinois Human Rights Act, the Illinois Workplace Transparency Act, nursing breaks, and new categories of leaves of absence, among others. Employers with Illinois workers should be aware of several proposed new employment laws and amendments to existing laws that may be enacted if signed by the Governor later this year. Below are summaries of the proposed new laws, as well as bills the Governor has already signed into law. Paid Breaks for Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Effective: January 1, 2026 |  SB 212 SB 212 proposes changes to the Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Act, joining New York in requiring employer...

New Jersey officials recently released proposed privacy regulations that would create several new compliance obligations for businesses above and beyond what existing state law and many other state laws require, meaning you may need to adjust your compliance approach if you do business there. The June 2 release by the Office of Consumer Protection aims to stretch the boundaries of the New Jersey Data Privacy Act (NJDPA) – so much so, in fact, that you should not assume your existing compliance programs would fully satisfy these proposed requirements. They include detailed standards for obtaining  consumer consent , specific content and timing requirements for  loyalty program notices , expanded definitions of  personal and sensitive data , and new restrictions on the use of data for  AI model training . The public comment period for businesses that want to make their voice heard runs through August 1, 2025. What do you need to know about these proposed rules, and wh...

  The Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) has again issued new Service Contract Act (SCA) health and welfare (H&W) rates. Effective July 7, 2025, WHD increased the prevailing H&W fringe benefits from a rate of $5.36 per hour to $5.55 per hour . Where a contractor is obligated to comply with Executive Order (EO) 13706 sick leave obligations, the rates increased from $4.93 per hour to $5.09 per hour. Updated rates of $2.42 per hour (without the EO) and $1.96 (with the EO) also apply to employees in Hawaii covered by the Hawaii Prepaid Health Act.   For government contractors with an existing SCA contract, obtaining a new SCA contract, renewing options, or modifying existing contracts with a new wage determination, PilieroMazza covers what you need to know below .   Should I increase H&W rates on all of my SCA contracts now? No. Although the new wage determinations have been issued by DOL, the only H&W rate that is applicable to your cont...

Picture this: An employee stops showing up to work. No call, no text, no explanation. Frustrating, right? That’s why so many employers bury “job abandonment” policies in their handbooks—often declaring that disappearing for three consecutive days without notice means the employee has voluntarily quit. Seems tidy and efficient. But here’s the truth: Job abandonment policies can land you in serious legal hot water if you’re not careful. Let’s break down why. Protected Leaves Are a Thing That silent employee might not be off on a beach somewhere. They could be on protected leave under laws like the FMLA (Family and Medical Leave Act), the CFRA (California Family Rights Act), pregnancy disability leave (PDL), or the ADA or FEHA (disability-related accommodations). If you terminate someone without figuring out whether their absence is protected, you’re flirting with a wrongful termination claim. Disability Discrimination Risks Not all “no shows” are intentional. An employee’s absence might ...