Oregon Passes Social Media in the Workplace Law
On May 22, 2013, Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber signed into law House Bill 2654, making Oregon the tenth state to enact a law prohibiting employers from accessing employees' private social media sites. The new law, which becomes effective January 1, 2014, makes it an unlawful employment practice for employers to compel employees or applicants for employment to provide access to their personal protected social media accounts.
Portland City Council Unanimously Passes Sick Leave Law
On March 13, 2013, Portland’s City Council unanimously passed a sick leave ordinance that, effective January 8, 2014, will require private sector businesses with six or more employees to provide up to 40 hours per year of paid time off for sick leave. Businesses with less than six employees will be required to provide up to 40 hours per year of unpaid time off for sick leave. To qualify for this benefit, an employee must work at least 240 hours in a calendar year within the geographic boundaries of the City.
Portland, Oregon, Mandates Employer-Provided Sick Leave
Following examples set by San Francisco to the South, and Seattle to the North, the Portland, Oregon, City Council unanimously passed Portland’s new sick leave ordinance. The new law imposes significant burdens on employers in addition to mandating up to 40 hours of annual sick leave. The new sick leave entitlements apply to all private-sector employers, regardless of location of the employer’s primary place of business. The law goes into effect January 1, 2014.
Portland Paid Sick Leave Ordinance Passes
The city of Portland joined San Francisco, Seattle, Washington D.C., and the state of Connecticut today when it passed a paid sick leave ordinance. Under the new ordinance, businesses with six or more employees must provide up to 40 hours of paid sick leave a year; smaller businesses must allow employees to take up to 40 hours of unpaid sick time. The law will go into effect on January 1, 2014.
Paid Sick Leave Law May Be in the Offing for Portland, Oregon Employers
The City of Portland is considering an ordinance mandating that protected sick leave rights be extended to virtually all employees in the City. If passed, Oregon private-sector employers would join those in San Francisco, California, and Washington, D.C., in being required to provide employees with a minimum number of paid sick days each year. The proposed ordinance’s effect would be far reaching, potentially granting new sick leave rights to 40 percent of Portland’s workforce and creating new compliance requirements for private-sector employers with Portland operations.
Oregon’s ‘Independently Established Business’ Requirement for Independent Contractors
Businesses constantly are challenged with correctly classifying workers as either employees or independent contractors. Of course, employers have good reason to be vigilant: misclassification can result in costly audits, assessments of back taxes, and stiff penalties. Under the Oregon independent contractor statute, the “independent contractor” must be engaged in an “independently established business.” This last term is interpreted restrictively and strictly by the state’s courts.
Oregon - New State Law Further Regulates Hiring
Billed as a means to protect out-of-work Oregonians from discrimination, the Oregon legislature passed a new law that prohibits overt unemployment discrimination in job advertisements. Oregon has become only the second state in the country – joining New Jersey – to prohibit this practice.
Oregon Employers Have Something New To Worry About
Employers with jobs to fill have a lot to worry about. Not only are they trying to fill a void effectively, but also in the right way and without legal missteps. Experienced hiring managers are aware of dozens of questions and practices to avoid during the recruitment and interviewing process. And Oregon employers soon will face a new challenge when hiring: not discriminating against unemployed individuals.
New Oregon Employment Laws Passed in the 2011 Legislative Session
As you prepare to ring in the new year, one of your resolutions should be to update your company’s employment policies. During the 2011 legislative session, Oregon legislators passed several labor and employment related laws. Employers should take note of the following bills – all effective January 1, 2012 – and update their policies and procedures accordingly. Below is a summary of the key changes. The entire text for each bill can be found at http://www.leg.state.or.us/.
Oregon Employers Breathe Sigh of Relief: 2011 Legislative Session Concludes On Positive Note
Employers in Oregon – you have cause to celebrate, or at least breathe a sigh of relief. The Oregon state legislature recently wrapped up its 2011 session without passing any major pieces of legislation that could be considered harmful to employers. Although there are a few new statutes that will soon go into effect that may slightly alter the way you do business, the impact of these new laws are minimal. In fact, a few new laws were passed that are actually beneficial to employers.