Labor & Employment Law Update

We are now almost three weeks into the New Year and while it might be tempting to ease into 2017, the time is now to ensure that the required compliance updates have been made to your payroll and Form I-9 procedure to comply with the 2017 changes.

Minimum Wage

The following 21 states have updates to their minimum wage that affect your payroll for 2017:

1. Alaska (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $9.75 to $9.80.
2. Arizona (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $8.05 to $10.00.
3. Arkansas (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $8.00 to $8.50.
4. California (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $10.00 to $10.50.
5. Colorado (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $8.31 to $9.30.
6. Connecticut (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $9.60 to $10.10.
7. Florida (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $8.05 to $8.10.
8. Hawaii (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $8.50 to $9.25.
9. Maine (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $7.50 to $9.00.
10. Massachusetts (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $10.00 to $11.00.
11. Maryland (Effective July 1, 2017) – minimum wage increases from $8.75 to $9.25.
12. Michigan (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $8.50 to $8.90.
13. Missouri (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $7.65 to $7.70.
14. Montana (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $8.05 to $8.15.
15. New Jersey (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $8.38 to $8.44.
16. New York (Effective 12/31/16) –minimum wage increases from $9 to $9.70.
17. Ohio (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $8.10 to $8.15.
18. Oregon (Effective July 1, 2017) – statewide minimum wage increases from $9.75 to $10.25 (Portland Metro minimum wage increase from $9.75 to $11.25).
19. South Dakota (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $8.55 to $8.65.
20. Vermont (Effective 1/1/17) – minimum wage increases from $9.60 to $10.00.
21. Washington (Effective 1/1/17) –minimum wage increase from $9.47 to $11.00.

Employers should ensure that these required changes have been conveyed to your payroll manager and payroll provider and perform an audit to ensure that the change was made effective in your payroll system.

Form I-9

As we reported on November 17, 2016, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released the new version of the Form I-9 on November 14, 2016. NO LATER THAN January 22, 2017, employers MUST use the revised form (dated 11/14/2016 N) for all new hires and any employee that requires reverification of employment eligibility.

Employers should review their Form I-9 practices, ensure they are complying by using the new form by the deadline, and train employees responsible for completing the form regarding the new form requirements.