iI have noted here before the increasing important to employers of city ordinances on employers’ obligations. More and more it seems, change is taking place on a micro level. See, for example, this list of 200 cities and counties prohibiting employment discrimination on the basis of gender identity. These nifty maps showing those laws in one map and maps prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in the other show the patchwork that employers may deal with even with one state. Ohio, Florida, and Texas are three high population states where one location may have such restrictions while another does not.
Paid sick days are much less prevalent, but are another development where much of the activity is on a municipal level. Discrimination against the unemployed has been addressed in a handful of state legislatures as well as New York City. Municipalities – and states telling their municipalities to butt out – have also been a battleground for minimum wages, with Seattle’s $15 minimum wage attracting much attention in 2014.
Are there employment law developments taking place in your municipality?
