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Changes to Minn. laws that may impact you: Ensure your business is in compliance by Jan. 1, 2024
CHANGES TO MINNESOTA LAWS THAT MAY IMPACT YOU
Ensure your business is in compliance by Jan. 1
***************************************************************************************Minnesota Business Leaders, are you located in, or do you have employees in Minnesota? These new laws may affect you.
As you may know – throughout this past year, the Minnesota Legislature passed many business compliance and regulatory laws that will impact the way you run your businesses. Many of these new state policies have been or will be coming into effect soon, so we want to ensure your business is prepared to comply with them. There are numerous nuances to these laws, so I recommend that you consult an attorney and/or human resources professional. Ensure your business is in compliance with these newly enacted laws by January 1, 2024.
EFFECTIVE JANUARY 1, 2024
New Earned Sick and Safe Time Requirements: Employers are mandated to provide one hour of fully paid sick time for every 30 hours worked, up to 48 hours a year, with a carryover up to 80 hours, including temporary and part-time employees. Employees must be paid at the same rate they would earn if they were working. Employees may take this time off to care for a broad-based definition of “family members.” The Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) oversees compliance and penalties.
(Article 12 & Article 13)
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State Website: https://www.dli.mn.gov/sick-leave
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Poster: https://dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/esst_poster.pdf
New Workplace Ergonomic Standards: Establishes new ergonomics standards for warehouse, meatpacking and health care workers. These new standards apply to all warehouse distribution center employers with 100 or more employees, meatpacking and poultry processing sites with 100 or more employees, and healthcare facilities.
(Article 11 | Sec 21)
Amendment of the Human Rights Act: Bans salary history questions during the hiring process.
(Article 19 | Sec 56)
- State Website: https://mn.gov/mdhr/employers/pay-history/
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RECENT CHANGES IN 2023
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EFFECTIVE AS OF JULY 1, 2023New Noncompete Ban: Noncompete and restrictive-franchise provisions in nearly all employee agreements are banned.
(Article 6 | Section 1)
New Pregnant and Lactating Employee Accommodations: Expanded accommodations for pregnant employees include a temporary leave of absence, work schedule or job assignment modifications and more frequent or longer breaks. Lactating employees should now receive specific break times of their choice and lactation spaces, and notice of these accommodations must be given to employees in writing. Businesses with fewer than 15 employees, and in some cases fewer than 21 employees, will be newly subject to these statutes as existing small business exemptions have been rescinded.
(Article 11 | Sec 27)
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State Website: https://dli.mn.gov/newparents#law
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Employee Notice: https://dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/WESA_employee_notice.pdf
Amendment of the Human Rights Act: Updates include hair in the definition of race.
Amendment of the Human Rights Act: Updates change the definitions of sexual orientation and gender identity.
(Article 19 | Sec 47 to Sec 48)
Amendment of OSHA Penalties and Rules: Penalties are increased to conform with federal OSHA penalty levels and are now tied to inflation. Additionally, the legislature amended the OSHA's Authority to Inspect provision excluding the employer in employee interviews and added classified citation data as public.
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Penalty Legislation: https://www.revisor.mn.gov/laws/2023/0/Session+Law/Chapter/53/
(Article 1 | Section Sec 15 to Sec 20)
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Penalty Outline: https://www.dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/mnosha_penalties_effective_070123.pdf
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Inspection Legislation: https://www.revisor.mn.gov/laws/2023/0/Session+Law/Chapter/53/
(Article 11 | Sec 39)
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Classification Legislation: https://www.revisor.mn.gov/laws/2023/0/Session+Law/Chapter/53/
(Article 11 | Sec 41)
New Joint Labor-management Safety and Health Committee: Every public or private employer of 25 or fewer employees is required to establish and administer a safety committee if it is subject to the requirement of Minnesota Statutes 182.653, subdivision 8 (AWAIR). See also, Minnesota Rules 5208.1500, Standard industrial classification list for AWAIR.
(Article 11 | Sec 43)
New Ergonomic Reporting and Grant Program: Any employer subject to this section must not institute or maintain any program, policy or practice that discourages employees from reporting injuries, hazards or safety and health standard violations, including ergonomic-related hazards and symptoms of musculoskeletal disorders. Additionally, the commissioner shall establish an ergonomics grant program to provide matching funding for employers who are subject to this section to make ergonomic improvements recommended by an on-site safety survey.
(Article 11 | Sec 21)
Amendments to the Packinghouse Workers Bill of Rights: Expands the Packinghouse Workers Bill of Rights to include poultry processing. Additionally, these amendments require packinghouse employers to provide notice of workers’ compensation rights and create a right to a civil cause of action for employees who do not receive that notice, or the pre-existing notice regarding pay, benefits, safety, labor and leave rights.
(Article 2 | Sec 1 to Sec 19)
New Safe Workplaces for Meat and Poultry Processing Workers Act: The Safe Workplaces for Meat and Poultry Processing Workers Act creates new workplace safety obligations for meatpacking employers, such as new-task and annual training requirements, safety rules for future public health emergencies and provider training requirements for workplace medical services. The Act also creates a civil action for employees, employee representatives or other individuals who are aggrieved by an employer’s violation of the act.
(Article 5 | Section 1)
New Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board: The Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board was created to conduct investigations into working conditions in the nursing home industry and adopt rules establishing minimum employment standards reasonably necessary and appropriate to protect the health and welfare of nursing home workers.
(Article 3 | Sec 1 to Sec 10)
EFFECTIVE AS OF AUGUST 1, 2023
New Captive Audience Protections for Employees: State law prohibits employers from taking or threatening to take any adverse employment action against employees who decline to attend employer-sponsored meetings concerning religious or political matters (see Minnesota Statutes 181.531).
(Article 11 | Sec 25)
New Warehouse Distribution Centers Enforcement Authority: This new law impacts employers that directly or indirectly employ or have control over the wages, hours or working conditions of either 250 or more employees at a single warehouse distribution center or 1,000 or more employees at one or more warehouse distribution centers in the state of Minnesota. This allows Minnesota OSHA Compliance additional enforcement authority to protect workers in warehousing and storage, merchant wholesaler, electronic shopping and mail-order houses, and couriers and express delivery service industries.
(Article 9 | Sec 1)
New Construction Worker Wage Protections: The Construction Worker Wage Protection Act (CWWPA) is a law that holds the contractor liable for any unpaid wages, fringe benefits, penalties and liquidated damages owed to a construction worker by a subcontractor under the contractor. If an owner enters into a construction contract with more than one contractor or subcontractor on a construction site, then the owner is considered a contractor and liable for such nonpayment of wages.
(Article 10 | Sec 1 to Sec 8)
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ADDITIONAL CHANGES COMING YOUR WAY
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Effective July 1, 2024-
Delivery fee on retail deliveries over $100
Effective January 1, 2025-
State-Facilitated Employee Retirement Accounts
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PFAS Product Ban
Effective January 1, 2026
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Paid Family and Medical Leave Program
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New PFAS Reporting Requirements
Additional Resources:
Department of Labor and Industry
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Workplace Protections: https://www.dli.mn.gov/news/new-workplace-protections-programs-make-minnesota-best-state-workers
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MN OSHA: https://www.dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/2023-mnosha-legislative-summary.pdf
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MN Employee Notice Law: https://www.dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/about_employee_notice.pdf
Get involved with The Chamber’s public policy efforts to make pragmatic adjustments to these regulations. Visit fmwfchamber.com/public-policy
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