Articles Discussing Human Resources Topics In Connecticut.

Executive Summary: As of January 1, 2019, Connecticut employers are prohibited from inquiring about an applicant’s prior salary history. The new law, Public Act No. 18-8, An Act Concerning Pay Equity (the “Act”), is aimed at closing the gender wage gap. Statistics still show that women earn 79 cents for every dollar earned by men to perform the same work. Many speculate that the gap persists, in part, because employers often base salary for new hires on their salary at their previous job. As a result, the continuation of lower pay rates for women persists, and the wage gap continues unabated. This law and similar laws prohibiting asking about prior salary are an effort to close the gap between what men and women earn.

Executive Summary: Effective January 1, 2017, Connecticut becomes the latest state to join the “Ban the Box” movement. Pursuant to Public Act No. 16-83, “An Act Concerning Fair Chance Employment,” and Conn. Gen. Stat. § 31-51i, as of January 1, 2017, it is illegal for private and public sector employers with one or more employees to request information about an applicant’s prior arrests, criminal charges or convictions on an initial employment application.

Certain health care facilities specializing in long-term care in Connecticut will be required to register with a statewide background check portal beginning February 8, 2016.

This 2015 update reflects the revisions the Connecticut Legislature passed to the law (eff. 01/01/15) and the associated revisions the Connecticut Department of Labor made to its Guidance.

The Connecticut Paid Sick Leave legislation has been amended (1) to allow employers to determine the 50-employee applicability threshold in the same manner as under the state’s Family and Medical Leave Act, (2) to allow accrual of paid sick leave hours on any annual basis, not just a calendar year, and (3) to expand slightly the list of “service worker” titles that are the beneficiaries of the law.

Connecticut recently made several important revisions to its paid sick leave law in response to requests by businesses for clarification of the law’s requirements. On June 6, 2014, Governor Dannel P. Malloy signed into law an amendment to Connecticut’s Paid Sick Leave Act (Act) that: 1) changes the method for determining if an employer is exempt from providing paid sick leave; 2) changes the time-frame for accruing paid sick leave and 3) adds radiologic technicians to the employees covered by the Act. The amendment, Public Act 14-128, will take effect on January 1, 2015.

A new law in Connecticut generally prohibits employers from using credit reports in making employment decisions regarding existing employees or applicants. The law, effective on October 1, 2011, applies to all employers in Connecticut that have at least one employee.