Virginia: Legislative Updates
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APPLIES TO
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EFFECTIVE
JUL 1, 2026 |
QUESTIONS?
Contact HR On-Call
(888) 378-2456
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Quick Look
- SB 128 prohibits noncompete agreements with certain health care professionals.
- HB 238 expands the definition of “wages,” requires retention of pay statements for at least three years, and broadens civil remedies available for wage law violations.
- HB 675 prohibits employers from using immigration status as a basis for coercion or threats related to wage payment obligations.
- HB 320 prohibits drivers from interacting with live streams on social media while operating a motor vehicle.
- Multiple bills address workplace safety, weapons, and workplace violence.
- SB 771 increases the maximum burial expense benefit for dependents of employees killed in work-related accidents.
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Discussion
Virginia continues to pass new and amended laws impacting employee rights and employer obligations, all of which go into effect on July 1, 2026. Key updates are summarized below.
Noncompete Agreements Prohibited for Healthcare Professionals. SB 128 prohibits employers from entering into, enforcing, or threatening to enforce a noncompete agreement with a health care professional, defined as any person licensed, registered, or certified by the Board of Medicine, Nursing, Counseling, Optometry, Psychology, or Social Work. The prohibition applies prospectively and does not affect agreements entered into or renewed before the effective date. Exceptions exist for noncompetes entered as part of a business sale and for repayment provisions tied to recruitment-related costs for professionals employed fewer than five years. Nonsolicitation provisions remain permissible, subject to certain limitations protecting patients’ right to be informed of a departing provider’s new practice. Violations are subject to the same remedies and penalties applicable to low-wage employee noncompete violations.
Wage Payment Law Amendments. HB 238 amends Virginia’s wage payment law in three notable ways. First, the definition of “wages” is expanded to expressly include hourly wages, minimum wages, piece rates, day rates, overtime, legally required prevailing wages, commissions, tips, bonuses, and damages available due to worker misclassification. Second, employers are now required to retain employee pay statements, or their online equivalent, for at least three years following the date of the work performed. Third, existing civil remedies for violations of the wage payment law are expanded to cover minimum wage violations, overtime violations, worker misclassification, and prevailing wage violations.
Prohibition on Wage-Related Coercion or Threats Based on Immigration Status. HB 675 prohibits employers from coercing or threatening employees based on their immigration status to facilitate violations of the Virginia Minimum Wage Act or other state wage payment laws. The law defines coercion as a threat meant to encourage illegal conduct or discourage legal conduct, and defines a threat as any implicit or explicit reference to an employee’s, or their family member’s, immigration status intended to deter the employee from engaging in protected activities or exercising rights under Virginia’s employee protection laws.
Employees who believe they have been subjected to such coercion or threats have 180 days to file a complaint with the state Labor Commissioner. Each act of coercion or threat constitutes a separate violation, and civil penalties may reach up to $5,000 for a first violation, $9,000 for a second, and $12,000 for a third, in addition to any other applicable penalties. The Commissioner will consider the employer’s size and the gravity of the violation when determining penalty amounts, and may investigate and take enforcement action without requiring the employee to file a new or separate complaint.
Prohibition on Live Streaming While Driving. HB 320 prohibits drivers from initiating, participating in, or manipulating an electronic device to interact with any live stream while operating a motor vehicle. The law defines “live stream” as a real-time audio or video transmission to any social media platform. Drivers are also prohibited from manipulating a device to enable or maintain live stream functions while driving. An exception applies when a driver uses a live stream to report an emergency or the commission of a crime. The law does not authorize warrantless searches of electronic devices, and does not prohibit the use of dashboard cameras not used for live streaming or manufacturer and fleet safety systems that record video without transmitting real-time content.
Handgun Storage in Unattended Vehicles. SB 496 requires that any person, including an employee, who knowingly leaves a handgun in an unattended vehicle must store the firearm out of plain view in a locked, hard-sided container. A locked glove compartment or locked center console satisfies this requirement, as does a locked container affixed to the vehicle’s interior by a steel cable, bolt, or welding. Exceptions apply for antique firearms, law enforcement officers acting in their official capacity, and individuals who report the theft or loss of a firearm to a law enforcement agency.
Expanded Workplace Violence Reporting for Hospitals with Emergency Departments. Under HB 1489, Virginia expands workplace violence reporting requirements for hospitals that operate emergency departments. Covered hospitals must now collect more detailed information about reported incidents, including specific incident descriptors and the degree of physical injury to staff; report facility-level data at least quarterly to additional internal recipients, including the chief of staff, chief executive officer, and medical staff executive committee; submit annual aggregated facility-level data to the Virginia Department of Health with all personally identifiable information removed; and include in their annual report a statement indicating whether any existing policies were changed in response to workplace violence incidents during the reporting period. The Department will publish an annual summary of the aggregated data by health planning region, with the first public report due by December 31, 2027. Facility-level data related to workplace violence is confidential and exempt from disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.
Prohibition of Weapons in Certain Hospitals. HB 229 prohibits knowingly and intentionally possessing a firearm, location-restricted knife (defined as a knife with a blade over three and one-half inches), or other dangerous weapon, including explosives and stun weapons, in the building of any hospital that provides mental health or developmental services, including emergency departments and facilities rendering emergency medical care. Exceptions apply for law enforcement officers and correctional institution officers acting in their official capacity, individuals with written authorization from the hospital (including authorization related to an employee’s scope of employment), and individuals brought into a hospital pursuant to an emergency custody or involuntary detention order. Hospitals must post conspicuous notice of the prohibition at each public entrance.
Increased Burial Expense Benefits for Work-Related Deaths. SB 771 increases the maximum burial expense benefit paid to dependents of an employee killed in a work-related accident from $10,000 to $15,000. Beginning January 1, 2028, and annually thereafter, the burial expense amount, as well as reasonable transportation expenses, will be adjusted each year by the same percentage increase in the U.S. Consumer Price Index.
Action Items
- Have noncompete agreements reviewed and updated by legal counsel.
- Review and update pay statement retention and wage payment practices.
- Review and update vehicle use and mobile device policies, as applicable.
- Review and update vehicle policies to address handgun storage requirements, as applicable.
- If operating a covered hospital, review and update workplace violence reporting procedures, incident data collection practices, workplace postings, and internal reporting workflows for compliance.
- Review workers’ compensation practices, as applicable.
- Have appropriate personnel trained on the requirements.
Virginia: Paid Sick Leave is Officially Coming!
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APPLIES TO
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EFFECTIVE
As Indicated |
QUESTIONS?
Contact HR On-Call
(888) 378-2456
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Quick Look
- Virginia has enacted a paid sick leave law applicable to nearly all private employers, as well as state and local governments. Implementation is staggered by employer size.
- Employees accrue one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, up to 40 hours per year, with carryover required unless the employer frontloads the full annual allotment.
- Permitted uses include the employee’s own or a covered family member’s medical care and preventive care, as well as absences related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
- Employers must provide written notice of employee rights, maintain records of accrual and use, and comply with confidentiality requirements for health and domestic violence-related information.
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Discussion
Virginia enacted HB 5/SB 199, requiring nearly all private employers, as well as state and local governments, to provide paid sick leave to employees. Implementation is set to be staggered by employer size as follows:
- Employers with 50 or more employees: July 1, 2027;
- Employers with 25 or more employees: January 1, 2028; and
- Employers with one or more employees: January 1, 2029.
Accrual. Paid sick leave begins accruing at the start of employment at a rate of one hour for every 30 hours worked. Employees may carryover unused paid sick leave from year to year but may not accrue or use more than 40 hours in a single year unless the employer sets a higher limit. FLSA-exempt employees are assumed to work 40 hours per workweek for accrual purposes unless their normal workweek is shorter.
Employers may satisfy accrual requirements by frontloading the full 40-hour allotment at the beginning of the year, in which case unused leave need not carry over. Employers with existing paid leave policies that provide sufficient leave for the same purposes and under the same conditions as the law are not required to provide additional paid sick leave.
Accrued leave must be maintained when an employee transfers within the same employer. Employees rehired within 12 months must have previously accrued, unused leave reinstated. Successor employers must maintain accrued leave balances for retained employees. Employers are not required to pay out unused accrued leave upon separation.
Permitted Uses. Employees may use paid sick leave for the following:
- Their own or a covered family member’s medical diagnosis, care, or treatment for a physical or mental illness, injury, or health condition, or for preventive care; or
- Absences related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, including to obtain medical or mental health care, legal services, relocation assistance, or other victim services.
“Family member” is defined broadly to include children, parents, spouses and domestic partners, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, and any individual for whom the employee is responsible for arranging health or safety-related care, as well as any individual related by blood or affinity whose close association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship.
Employee Notice and Documentation. Employees may request paid sick leave by any means acceptable to the employer, and when the need is foreseeable must make a good-faith effort to provide advance notice and to schedule leave in a manner that does not unduly disrupt operations. Employers that require notice must provide employees with a written notice policy, and cannot deny a request based on noncompliance if that policy was never provided to the employee.
Employees may not be required to find a replacement worker or work an alternative shift as a condition of using paid sick leave. Leave is used in hourly increments unless the employer permits smaller increments.
For absences of three or more consecutive workdays, employers may require reasonable documentation. Documentation signed by a health care professional is deemed reasonable for health-related leave. For leave related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, reasonable documentation may include a police report, court document, statement from a victim services advocate or health care professional, or the employee’s own written statement. Employers may not require disclosure of detailed health information or details of domestic violence as a condition of approving leave, and any such information must be kept confidential.
Employer Notice and Recordkeeping. Employers must notify employees of their rights under the law in writing and through a workplace posting, including the right to file a complaint or bring a civil action. Employers must maintain records of paid sick leave accrual and use for three years and ensure the confidentiality of any protected health information or domestic violence-related information.
Enforcement and Penalties. Employers are prohibited from retaliating against employees for requesting or using paid sick leave, for raising a complaint or participating in an investigation, or for informing others of their rights under the law. Employers may not use absence-control policies to count paid sick leave usage as an absence that could lead to adverse action.
Employees have one year from the date they knew or should have known of a potential violation to file a complaint with the commissioner of Labor and Industry. The commissioner or state attorney general may also bring an administrative or civil action.
Employees also have a private right of action and may bring a civil action within two years of the violation without first exhausting administrative remedies. Available remedies include double the amount of any uncompensated sick leave, double actual damages, lost wages and benefits with interest, injunctive relief, reinstatement, and reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs.
Action Items
- Determine which implementation deadline applies based on employer size.
- Review existing paid leave policies.
- Begin preparing for notice, recordkeeping, and documentation obligations, as applicable.
- Have appropriate personnel trained on paid sick leave requirements.
Disclaimer: This document is designed to provide general information and guidance concerning employment-related issues. It is presented with the understanding that ManagEase is not engaged in rendering any legal opinions. If a legal opinion is needed, please contact the services of your own legal adviser. © 2026 ManagEase
