Compliance Stuff

In its 2026 session, the Maryland General Assembly passed several significant pieces of legislation that, if enacted, will impact private employers in Maryland, including one that streamlines the process for bringing civil actions under county discrimination laws, several that bolster employee labor rights, and other bills that are more specific to a particular industry or public employees. 00:00 11:13 Quick Hits SB694  would establish that filing a complaint with the Maryland Commission on Civil Rights satisfies the administrative prerequisites for bringing a civil action under county discrimination laws. SB831 /HB1480 would establish new civil penalties for child labor violations, prohibit the formation of certain workplace groups to address working conditions, and conditionally create a private sector state labor board. SB417 /HB45 would prohibit employers from conducting mandatory meetings on religious or political matters, which includes union organizing matters (e.g., “captiv...

Employers will soon be obligated to provide employees with severance benefits if they want to have an enforceable noncompete in Virginia and they also will be prohibited from entering into noncompetes with health care professionals, except in connection with the sale of a business. These obligations and several other new restrictions are part of  Senate Bill 170  and  House Bill 627 , landmark legislation recently passed by the General Assembly and slated to take effect on July 1, 2026. The new noncompete legislation applies to  all  employees and categorically bans noncompetes for almost all health care professionals, in sharp contrast to Virginia’s existing noncompete statutes, which currently cover only low-wage employees, including hourly employees. Moreover, because of recent case law from the Court of Appeals of Virginia in  Sentry Force Security, LLC v. Barrera , 2026 WL 200848 (Va. Ct. App. Jan. 27, 2026), the new legislation will also apply to co...

  States and cities are as busy as ever passing new workplace regulations throughout the calendar year. Here is our mid-year report summarizing the notable labor and employment laws that take effect from roughly July through October.  Wyoming Bill / Ordinance / Regulation Main Topic Summary Effective Date Wyoming SB 107   Noncompete Agreements Provides that contractual covenants not to compete, with certain noted exceptions, are void; specifies requirements for covenants not to compete for physicians. 7/1/2025 This article provides a general snapshot of generally applicable labor and employment laws taking effect soon. Please note that while some of the laws listed below are industry-specific, this article is not meant to be all-inclusive. In addition, many state legislatures are still active, so new laws are taking effect on a near-daily basis. Littler monitors federal, state and local legislation, executive orders, and administrative regulations and other agency activit...

  States and cities are as busy as ever passing new workplace regulations throughout the calendar year. Here is our mid-year report summarizing the notable labor and employment laws that take effect from roughly July through October.  Virginia Bill / Ordinance / Regulation Main Topic Summary Effective Date Virginia HB 14   Unemployment Provides that an employer waives all rights in connection to unemployment claims where the employer failed to respond in a timely manner. 7/1/2025 Virginia HB 1730 ;  Virginia SB 894 Employer Liability Provides for employer liability for criminal sexual assault by an employee or agent under certain circumstances. 7/1/2025 Virginia HB 2269 ;  Virginia SB 1260 Healthcare Requires hospitals to establish a workplace violence reporting system, including reporting, record retention, and antidiscrimination requirements. 7/1/2025 Virginia SB 1218   Noncompete Agreements Amends the definition of “low wage employee” in the statute proh...