Minnesota: Pregnancy and Parenting Leave Act Expanded

/in /by

APPLIES TO

All Employers with MN Employees

EFFECTIVE

July 1, 2023

  

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Quick Look

  • The Pregnancy and Parenting Leave Act now applies to employers with one or more employees.
  • There are expanded protections for lactation and pregnancy accommodation requirements.
  • Employers must provide employees with a notice of rights under the Act.
  • If employers have an employee handbook, they must also include notice of employee rights and remedies under the Act.

Discussion

SF 3035 expanded employee rights and protections under the Pregnancy and Parenting Leave Act. Specifically, the Act now applies to employers with one or more employees (previously 21 or more employees). Employers are also now prohibited from discharging, disciplining, penalizing, interfering with, threatening, restraining, coercing, or otherwise retaliating or discriminating against an employee for requesting or taking leave under the Act or asserting their rights or remedies under the Act.

Lactation accommodations were also expanded. Employees must be provided break time to express milk, without regard to the age or parentage of the child. Break times “may” run concurrently with other break periods already provided but are not required to. Additionally, language permitting an employer exemption for undue disruption to the employer’s operations was removed. Employers are now simply obligated to provide the required break time. Further, the lactation location must be “clean, private, and secure,” and still cannot be a bathroom.

There are also expanded pregnancy accommodations. Pregnant employees may now be given longer breaks upon request without being required to provide a doctor’s note. Reasonable accommodations were expanded to include a temporary leave of absence, modification in work schedule or job assignments, and more frequent or longer break periods.

There is also a new notice requirement. Specifically, employers must inform employees of their rights under the Act at the time of hire and when an employee makes an inquiry about or requests parental leave. Information must be provided in English and the primary language of the employee. If an employer provides an employee handbook, it must include notice of employee rights and remedies under the Act.

Action Items

  1. Have lactation and pregnancy accommodation policies and procedures updated.
  2. Review pregnancy and parent leave policies for updates.
  3. Implement a required notice of rights when available from the state Department of Labor.
  4. Subscribers can call our HR On-Call Hotline at (888) 378-2456 for further assistance.

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. © 2023 ManagEase