Discussion

Delaware: Updates to Rules for Wage Payment

Effective May 7, 2026, Delaware updated its rules regarding deductions from wages and wage notification. The updates address meal breaks in certain situations. Employees exempt from meal breaks must be allowed to eat meals at their workstation or other authorized locations and to use restroom facilities as necessary. These employees should be compensated for this time. The 30-minute break requirement also does not apply where public safety or an individual or property may be injured, harmed, or damaged during the course of that break. There is now also an exception for employers who have fewer than five employees on a single shift. Employers can comply with the requirement to pay wages by issuing a payroll debit card. Wage theft is also defined as a crime punished by civil penalties and criminal charges and can include a potential felony conviction for repeat offenders. Deductions must be made only if allowed by law or are expressly authorized in writing by the employee and for the benefit of the employee. Employers also must provide written notice of wage rates to each new hire and post it in a prominent and accessible place at the worksite. The notice must contain: (1) rate or rates of pay, including any additional compensation related to the payment of wages; (2) how the employee is paid: by the hour, shift, day, week, commission, etc.; (3) the regular payday; (4) a detailed statement for each pay period; (5) official name of the employer and any other names used for doing business; (6) address and phone number of the employer’s main office or principal location; (7) allowances taken as part of minimum wages, including tips, meals and lodging deductions; and (8) employment practices and policies regarding vacation pay, sick leave and comparable matters. The rules have also expanded the scale of investigations into violations so employers need to ensure they are in compliance.

 

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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

Discussion

Georgia: New Criminal Background Check Requirements for Mental Health Facilities

APPLIES TO Certain Mental Health Facilities Employers with Employees in GA

EFFECTIVE JUL 1, 2026

QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call (888) 378-2456

 

Quick Look Owners, applicants and employees of licensed community living facilities, drug abuse treatment and education programs, and adult residential mental health programs are required to submit to criminal background checks, license status check, and registry checks. Facilities are required to terminate employees who do not pass such checks.

Discussion

Effective July 1, 2026, HB 1097 requires the owners, applicants and employees of licensed community living facilities, drug abuse treatment and education programs, and adult residential mental health programs to submit to criminal background checks, license status check, and registry checks. This includes individuals who have direct access to individuals such as duties that involve routine personal contact with a patient, resident, or client, including, but not limited to, face-to-face contact, hands-on physical assistance, verbal cuing, reminding, standing by or monitoring or activities that require the person to be routinely alone with the patient’s, resident’s, or client’s property or access to such property or financial information, including, but not limited to, the patient’s, resident’s, or client’s checkbook, debit and credit cards, resident trust funds, banking records, stock accounts, or brokerage accounts.

 

A criminal records check means a search of the criminal records maintained by the Georgia Crime Information Center and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to determine whether an owner, applicant, or employee has a criminal record. A registry check means a review of the nurse aide registry, the national and state sexual offender registries, and the List of Excluded Individuals and Entities as authorized in Sections 1128 and 1156 of the federal Social Security Act, as it existed on February 1, 2018, or any other registry useful for the administration of background checks for applicable facilities.

 

Negatively affected applicants or employees can challenge the findings. A personnel file containing evidence of the required checks must be maintained by each facility. Facilities are required to terminate employees who do not pass such checks. A facility that does not terminate an employee who has been found to have an ineligible or failed a registry check shall be liable for a civil monetary penalty in the amount of $500.00 for each day that a violation occurs, not to exceed a total of $10,000.00.

 

Action Items

1. Review and update policies and procedures for required background checks, as applicable.
2. Obtain consent prior to conducting background checks.
3. Maintain personnel files with the results of the required background checks.
4. Have appropriate personnel trained on background screening requirements.

 

 

Georgia: Updates to Service Dog Requirements

Effective July 1, 2026, HB 668 amends several titles of the Official Code of Georgia to modernize and strengthen protections for service dogs and the individuals who rely on them. The bill replaces references to “assistance dogs” and “guide dogs” with the unified term “service dog,” which is broadly defined to include any dog individually trained to perform tasks directly assisting a physically or mentally impaired person. It also expands the protected class of persons from those with specific physical or sensory disabilities to any “physically or mentally impaired person,” a broader category that includes those with cognitive, psychological, developmental, or learning disabilities. New definitions are introduced for key terms including “activities of daily living,” “owner training,” and “trainer,” and the bill extends rights related to public accommodations, public transit, and housing to this wider group of individuals. The amended law also creates a tiered penalty structure for offenses involving service dogs such as interfering with a service dog (frightening, obstructing, or allowing one’s own dog to harass it) Additionally, the bill creates a misdemeanor penalty for individuals who deliberately misrepresent themselves as qualified to use or train a service dog to obtain accommodations under the law.

 

Georgia: Human Trafficking Prevention Training

Effective July 1, 2026, SB 570 amends the Georgia Human Trafficking Prevention Training Act to require all inn employees and third-party short-term rental property managers to complete annual human trafficking awareness training within 60 days of hire and by December 31 of their first full year, with exemptions for owner-managed properties, properties rented fewer than 15 days per year, and individuals who completed qualifying training within 12 months prior to July 1, 2026. Training content must cover trafficking identification, labor vs. sex trafficking distinctions, employee reporting roles, and hotline contact information. Covered employers must also adopt written reporting policies, maintain training acknowledgment records for the duration of employment plus one year post-separation, and produce those records to the Office of the Attorney General within ten business days of a written request.

 

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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

Discussion

Idaho: Updates on Background Checks

APPLIES TO As Indicated

EFFECTIVE JUL 1, 2026

QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call (888) 378-2456

 

Quick Look Employers who have access to children, elderly, or vulnerable adults must use fingerprint-based background screening.

Discussion

The Idaho legislature recently enacted bills requiring employers who have access to children, elderly, or vulnerable adults to use fingerprint-based background screening.

 

Background Check Requirements. HB 494 requires fingerprint-based background checks for individuals working with the Department of Health and Welfare with direct access to children, elderly, or vulnerable adults, such as daycare facilities, home health agencies, and assisted living facilities. The requirement applies to employees, contractors, and volunteers for a number of listed entities or programs. An employer that acts in reasonable reliance on the clearance determination of a background check is immune from liability thereafter.

 

Background Check Process. HB 521 says that any private, noncriminal justice entities qualifying to participate under the National Child Protection Act of 1993 and Volunteers for Children Act that serve vulnerable populations such as children, the elderly, and individuals with disabilities must submit a request for fingerprint screening to the bureau for a covered individual, independent contractor, vendor, employee, or volunteer who has supervised or unsupervised access to children, the elderly, or individuals with disabilities. Notably, criminal history records must be kept confidential.

 

Action Items

1. Implement background check processes consistent with the new requirements.
2. Have appropriate personnel trained on background screening requirements.

 

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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

Discussion

Indiana: Legislative Updates

APPLIES TO All Employers with Employees in IN

EFFECTIVE JUL 1, 2026

QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call (888) 378-2456

 

Quick Look Indiana’s discrimination law is amended to expressly incorporate Title VII violations as state-law violations, significantly expanding liability exposure for covered employers. Indiana’s new FAIRNESS Act prohibits employers from knowingly or intentionally employing unauthorized workers, but provides a safe harbor for employers that use E-Verify or comparable diligence practices. Indiana increases battery penalties for assaults against health care and school employees and creates a new semiannual reporting obligation to the Indiana Department of Labor for employers of those workers.

Discussion

Indiana passed several bills this session impacting employer obligations across discrimination, immigration compliance, and workplace violence. Key aspects of each are summarized below.

 

Employer Liability Under State Discrimination Law. HB 1193 amends the definition of “discriminatory practice” under the Indiana Civil Rights Law (ICRL) to expressly provide that any violation of Title VII also constitutes a violation of state law. The practical impact is greatest for Indiana employers with 6 to 14 employees that fall below Title VII’s 15-employee threshold and have historically been outside federal discrimination law’s substantive reach. Now, the ICRL’s lower six-employee threshold holds those employers to the same discrimination and retaliation standards as larger, Title VII-covered employers. Separately, the bill also reduces the Indiana Civil Rights Commission’s role in litigating claims on behalf of individuals, shifting more of that burden to private parties and the state.

 

New FAIRNESS Act. Indiana’s new Forging American Independence, Restoring National Exceptionalism Safely and Securely (FAIRNESS) Act (SB 76) prohibits employers from knowingly or intentionally recruiting, hiring, or continuing to employ unauthorized workers. “Employer” is defined broadly to include any person or agent employing workers in Indiana. Importantly, the law provides a compliance safe harbor when an employer is not in violation if it exercised “reasonable diligence” before recruiting, hiring, or continuing to employ the individual, which includes using E-Verify (absent circumstances suggesting the verification was unreliable) or following industry-standard verification practices.

 

The Indiana attorney general is empowered to enforce the law, typically by issuing a Civil Investigatory Demand to employers under investigation. Before filing an enforcement action, the attorney general must provide written notice of probable cause, giving the employer 15 business days to either demonstrate reasonable diligence or submit a corrective affidavit confirming it has terminated unauthorized workers, verified all current employees’ work eligibility, and will not knowingly employ unauthorized workers going forward. Satisfying either option stops the enforcement action.

 

If an employer fails to satisfy either option and the attorney general determines probable cause exists, the state may bring an action to enjoin the violation and seek additional relief, including a graduated penalty structure tied to an employer’s operating authorizations (licenses, permits, certificates, registrations, charters, and similar authorizations):

 

• First violation (single): Suspension of all operating authorizations at the violation location for five business days.
• First violation (multiple): Suspension at affected locations for ten business days.
• Repeat violation: Suspension at affected locations for 180 days.
• After 180-day suspension: Permanent revocation of all operating authorizations at affected locations.
• Willful violations (three or more locations, after prior revocation): Permanent revocation of all operating authorizations statewide.

 

Courts may also impose a probationary period of six months to two years with quarterly compliance reporting. Notably, a suspended or revoked employer remains responsible for its tax withholding obligations.

 

Workplace Violence Against Healthcare and School Employees. HB 1249, a broader criminal law bill, increases penalties for battery committed against certain health care and school employees. More significantly for employers, the law creates a new semiannual reporting obligation, requiring employers of health care or school employees who are victims of battery to report these incidents to the Indiana Department of Labor. Relatedly, the law repeals the prior framework that required public schools to report student-caused employee injuries to the Department of Education for inclusion in a public database, consolidating that reporting into the new Department of Labor process.

 

Action Items

1. Review anti-discrimination, harassment, and retaliation policies and procedures for compliance.
2. Review employment eligibility verification practices for compliance.
3. Consult with legal counsel on application of employer safe harbor protections.
4. Implement tracking and reporting procedures for covered workplace batteries, as applicable.
5. Have appropriate personnel trained on all updated requirements.

 

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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

 

Louisiana Legislative Updates

APPLIES TO All Employers with Employees in LA

EFFECTIVE AUG 1, 2026

QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call (888) 378-2456

 

Quick Look Voluntary portable benefits accounts are available for independent contractors. The use of expunged criminal history record information for hiring decisions is clarified. Workers’ compensation coverage is extended to employees of independent contractors who spend a substantial part of their time engaged in manual labor. Unpaid leave (up to 30 consecutive calendar days) must be granted to employees who request it in writing to serve as a human organ or bone marrow donor.

Discussion

The Louisiana legislature passed several new laws expanding employee rights and protections. The significant updates are summarized below.

 

Portable Benefit Accounts for Independent Contractors. HB 301 provides for voluntary portable benefits accounts for independent contractors. A portable benefit account is owned by the independent contractor and is not associated with the hiring party. The purpose of funding the account is to provide and pay for health insurance, income replacement insurance, disability pay insurance, life insurance, and retirement benefits. Any individual may contribute funds to the account, or the hiring party may withhold a percentage from compensation owed to the independent contractor and contribute to the account, subject to a voluntary written agreement between the parties. An independent contractor can also opt out of such an agreement. The existence of such contributions is not evidence of an employment relationship.

 

Use of Expunged Criminal History Records. SB 288 clarifies the use of expunged criminal history record information for hiring decisions. The Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information (Bureau) will not release expunged criminal history record information to private employers. However, the Bureau can release such expunged information to public entities at its discretion, based on strong evidence provided by the entity that release of the expunged information would be in the best interest of protecting the children, elderly, or individuals with disabilities served by the public qualified entity.

 

Workers’ Compensation Coverage Extended. HB 185 extends employee coverage under Louisiana’s workers’ compensation law to include employees of independent contractors who spend a substantial part of their time engaged in manual labor.

 

New Organ and Bone Marrow Donor Leave. SB 409 requires employers to grant an unpaid leave of absence when an employee requests in writing to serve as a human organ or bone marrow donor, for up to 30 consecutive calendar days, though employers may voluntarily offer longer or paid leave beyond this minimum. Employers may require physician verification of the purpose and duration of the leave; however, if an employee is ultimately determined medically ineligible to donate, any paid leave already taken is not forfeited. No employee may be discharged, demoted, suspended, threatened, harassed, or otherwise discriminated against for requesting or using organ donation leave. Any paid leave granted for organ donation carries no cash value upon separation from employment, and this leave does not diminish or affect any other employment benefits to which an employee may otherwise be entitled. Employers retain the flexibility to provide leave beyond what is outlined here, and nothing in this provision limits an employee’s rights under any other applicable employment benefit.

 

Action Items

1. Consult with legal counsel regarding written agreement for contributions to qualified portable benefits for independent contractors, if applicable.
2. Review and update procedures for requesting criminal history record information.
3. Review independent contractor arrangements involving manual labor to determine potential workers’ compensation coverage obligations.
4. Update leave policies to include organ and bone marrow donor leave.
5. Have appropriate personnel trained on the updated requirements.

 

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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