Articles Discussing General Topics In Virginia Labor & Employment Law.

On August 26, 2021, the Virginia Safety and Health Codes Board adopted revised amendments to the Final Permanent Standard for Infectious Disease Prevention of the SARS-CoV-2 Virus That Causes COVID-19 (the Final Permanent Standard).  Governor Ralph Northam then proposed an additional amendment, which the Board adopted as well.  As

Over the past 16 months, a quiet labor and employment law revolution has been underway in Virginia. In the first quarter of 2021, the Virginia General Assembly doubled down legislative initiatives, imposing several additional labor and employment changes that will present challenges for many employers across the Commonwealth. By way

In Virginia, returning — or planning to return — to the physical workplace following the COVID-19 pandemic means ensuring employment practices comply with the Commonwealth’s significantly changing legal landscape.

The Virginia Office of Civil Rights has issued its new poster for employers regarding reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities. Starting July 1, 2021, covered Virginia employers must post this poster in a conspicuous location and provide a copy of the poster to any employee who discloses they have a disability,

Consistent with legislative trends, Virginia weighed in further on the nationwide marijuana debate by enacting two new comprehensive cannabis-related laws. The first prohibits discipline for employee’s medical use of cannabis oil. The second is an omnibus bill permitting all individuals over the age of 21 to lawfully possess recreational marijuana. All provisions

Consistent with legislative trends, Virginia weighed in further on the nationwide marijuana debate by enacting two new comprehensive cannabis-related laws.

Starting on July 1, 2021, most Virginia employers must include information in their employee handbooks about reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities and provide that information directly to any employee within 10 days after receiving notice that the employee has a disability.

The Virginia Overtime Wage Act (VOWA), Va. Code § 40.1-29.2, becomes effective July 1, 2021, and will significantly alter employers’ wage and hour obligations in Virginia. At first glance, the VOWA appears to track federal law under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Upon closer examination, however, this new law

On April 21, 2021, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam signed into law House Bill No. 2312 and Senate Bill No. 1406, moving the date of recreational marijuana legalization in Virginia up to July 1, 2021. The legalization movement, which has increased in momentum in the Commonwealth since Democrats gained a majority

On March 30, 2021, Governor Ralph Northam signed into law the Virginia Overtime Wage Act (VOWA), creating new wage and hour requirements for Virginia employers. Set to take effect July 1, 2021, the VOWA also includes numerous employee protections. The VOWA amends the Virginia Code to authorize collective actions and allows for a lengthier statute of limitations period and increased damages provisions.

Virginia employers are at increased risk of class action wage litigation following passage of the Virginia Overtime Wage Act.

“Previously, Virginia had been content to rely on the overtime pay requirements of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA),” note Kristina H. Vaquera and Shaun M. Bennett in a

Effective July 1, 2021, Virginia joins the District of Columbia and many other states with paid leave for designated workers (Virginia’s Paid Sick Leave Law), home health workers in this case. Paid sick leave is compensated at the same hourly rate and with the same benefits, including healthcare benefits, as an employee normally earns during hours worked.

Statements made in a disciplinary action form that did not hold the requisite defamatory “sting” to the reputation of the plaintiff cannot support a defamation claim, and statements made during proceedings before the Virginia Employment Commission (VEC) are protected by absolute privilege and cannot form the basis of a defamation claim, the Supreme Court of Virginia has held.

Effective July 1, 2021, Virginia further expands the scope of the Virginia Human Rights Act (VHRA) to prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability. The state also enacted protections and benefits for domestic workers.

Given the current political trifecta (where democrats control both houses of the state legislature and the governorship), paid sick leave proponents had high hopes that Virginia would follow other states’ lead and pass legislation to mandate employers provide paid leave, particularly in light of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic.  On