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Top Wage and Hour Legislation to Watch in 2023

Law360 Employment Authority

A potential compromise on federal minimum wage, paid leave programs starting in three states and a push to eliminate subminimum wage for workers with disabilities are among the top wage and hour legislative issues to watch in 2023, attorneys said.

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Of the nine times Congress has raised the federal minimum wage since the passage of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, Democrats controlled both chambers all but once. That other time, Republicans controlled both houses.

"When the House is on one side and the Senate's on the other side, that just makes it increasingly difficult to get things through, and minimum wage increases is not a bipartisan issue, normally," said Jason Reisman of management-side firm Blank Rome LLP.

More minimum wage movement is set to happen in states. Twenty-six states and the District of Columbia have automatic increases to their wage floors set for 2023 due to past legislation or ballot measures, according to the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute, and state and local lawmakers could introduce new minimum wage legislation, too.

"There will probably be a continuing trend of more states and locales that are increasing the minimum wage," Reisman said.

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One such law that is set to go into effect at the start of 2023 is California's S.B. 1162. The law requires employers to include salary ranges in job advertisements and certain employers to disclose annual pay data reports.

Blank Rome's Reisman said employers are having to get used to the new requirements, especially when it means salary range postings could raise questions for not only job applicants, but also existing workers.

"It's just hard for employers to get their minds wrapped around doing that when it has not been the practice, and it creates employee relations tensions, questions and potential battles," Reisman said.

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"Top Wage and Hour Legislation to Watch in 2023," by Max Kutner was published in Law360 Employment Authority on January 2, 2023.