MID-FLORIDA SHRM           

                                 

2019 WORKPLACE LEGISLATION

E-VERIFY

SB 164 & HB 89- E-Verify [Sen. Bean- Nassau/Duval- Dist. 4 and Reps. Fitzenhagen-Lee- Dist. 78; Sabatini-  Sumter/Lake-Dist. 32; and Siriois- Brevard- 51]

Verification of Employment Eligibility- Requires employers to register with & use E-Verify system to verify employment eligibility of new employees; suspends employer licenses until registration with E-Verify system; provides for license reinstatement; prohibits employer from knowingly employing unauthorized alien; authorizes complaint to be filed with DEO; provides specified immunity; requires DEO to maintain public database containing certain information & make such information available on its website; authorizes injunctive relief; provides private cause of action & remedies; requires public employers, contractors, & subcontractors to register with & use E-Verify system for specified purposes; prohibits such entities from entering into contract unless each party to contract registers with & uses E-Verify system; authorizes termination of contract; authorizes challenge to such termination.

Actions: (SB) 12/18/18 Filed; 1/10/19 Referred to Judiciary, Commerce and Tourism, Appropriations (HB) 12/11/18 Filed; 1/3/19 Referred to Workforce Development and Tourism, Transportation and Commerce

CRIMINAL BACKGROUND

SB 394- Criminal History Records in Applications [Sen. Farmer- Broward- Dist. 34]

Criminal  History Records in Applications- Prohibiting a public employer from inquiring into or considering an applicant’s criminal history on an initial employment application unless required to do so by law; prohibiting public postsecondary educational institutions from inquiring into or considering the criminal history of an applicant seeking admission, etc.

Actions: 1/18/19 Filed; 2/1/19 Referred to Gov. Oversight and Accountability

SB 946- Background Screening [Sen. Powell- Palm Beach- Dist. 30]

Background Screening; Prohibiting employers from excluding applicants from an initial interview for employment under certain conditions; requiring the Department of Economic Opportunity to enforce the act, etc.

Actions: 2/11/19 Filed

DISCRIMINATION / HARASSMENT

SBs 430 and 438 & HB 485- Prohibited Discrimination [Sens. Rouson- Hillsborough/Pinellas- Dist. 19, Gruters- Sarasota/Charlotte- Dist. 23, Berman-Palm Beach- Dist. 31, Pizzo- Miami-Dade- Dist. 38 and Reps. Eskamani-Orange- Dist. 47; Good- Sarasota- Dist. 72 ; Hattersley- Brandon/Riverview- Dist. 59; Mercado –Orange- Dist. 48; Smith, C. –Orange- Dist. 49; Valdes- Hillsborough- Dist. 62]

 “Florida Competitive Workforce Act” and “Florida Inclusive Workforce Act”- adding sexual orientation and gender identity as impermissible grounds for discrimination in public lodging establishments and public food service establishments; providing an exception for constitutionally protected free exercise of religion; revising the purposes of the Florida Civil Rights Act of 1992 to conform to changes made by the act.

Actions: 1/22/19 Filed; 2/1/19- Referred to Gov. Oversight and Accountability

SBs 474 & HB 419- Discrimination in Labor and Employment [Sens. Stewart- Orange- Dist. 13 and Berman Palm Beach- Dist. 31 and Rep. Joseph- St. Lucie- Dist. 84]

 Discrimination in Labor and Employment; “Helen Gordon Davis Fair Pay Protection Act”- Prohibits employer from providing less favorable employment opportunities to employees based on sex, with exceptions; provides affirmative defense; provides civil penalties; provides exemption for minority business enterprises; prohibits employer from taking certain employment actions against employees; prohibits employer from engaging in certain activities relating to employee wages & benefits or requiring employees to sign certain waivers & documents; authorizes employer to confirm wage or salary history under certain conditions.

Actions: 1/22/19 Filed in House; 1/24/19 Filed in Senate; 2/8/19 Referred to Commerce and Tourism

SB 776 and HB 665- Sexual Misconduct Reporting in Health Care [Sen. Baxley- Lake Marion/Sumter- Dist. 12 and Rep. Stone- Levy/Marion- Dist. 22]

Requiring specified health care facilities, as a condition of obtaining or maintaining licensure, to enact policies requiring employees, contractors, volunteers, and interns of such licensees to report actual or suspected sexual misconduct involving a patient to the licensee, the Department of Children and Families, and the appropriate local law enforcement agency, etc.

Actions: 2/6/19 Filed; Referred to Criminal Justice

SB 866- Workplace Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault [Sen. Berman- Palm Beach- Dist. 31]

Workplace Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault; Prohibiting an employer from requiring an employee to sign a nondisclosure agreement, waiver, or other document, as a condition of employment, to prevent the employee from disclosing sexual harassment or sexual assault; prohibiting an employer from discharging or retaliating against an employee for disclosing or discussing workplace sexual harassment or sexual assault, etc.

Actions: 2/7/19 Filed

MINIMUM WAGE

SB 432- Employment Conditions [Sen. Gruters- Sarasota/Charlotte- Dist. 23]

Employment Conditions- Prohibiting a political subdivision from establishing, mandating, or otherwise requiring an employer to offer conditions of employment not otherwise required by state or federal law; specifying that certain requirements related to minimum wage and other conditions of employment are expressly preempted to the state.

Actions: 1/23/19 Filed; 2/1/19 Referred to Gov Oversight and Accountability

VAPING

SPB 7012- Vaping [Submitted by Innovation, Industry, and Technology Committee]

Vaping; Prohibiting vaping in an enclosed indoor workplace, except as otherwise provided; providing exceptions to the prohibition against vaping and smoking in an enclosed indoor workplace; requiring the proprietor or other person in charge of an enclosed indoor workplace to develop and implement a policy regarding specified smoking and vaping prohibitions, etc.

Actions: 1/28/19 On Innovation, Industry, and Technology Committee Agenda; 2/5/19 Reported Favorably by Innovation, Ind, and Tech (Yeas1- Nay 0); Filed

LEAVE

SB-692- FL Family Leave Act [Sen. Cruz –Hillsborough- Dist. 18]

Employment Practices; Creating the "Florida Family Leave Act"; requiring an employer to allow certain employees to take paid family leave to bond with a new child upon the child’s birth, adoption, or foster care placement; requiring that family leave be taken concurrently with any leave taken pursuant to federal family and medical leave provisions; requiring an employer to provide notice to employees of the right to paid family leave, etc.

 Actions: 2/4/19 Filed; Referred to Commerce and Tourism

HB 393- Employment Practices: Leave [Rep. Joseph- St. Lucie- Dist. 84]

Employment Practices; Requires employer to allow certain employees to take paid family leave for certain purposes; specifies limitations & duties related to employer's administration of family leave; provides family leave requirements; provides responsibilities and powers of DEO; provides penalties; authorizes civil action; authorizes award of specified compensation, damages, & fees; provides protections for employee who acts in good faith; prohibits employee from taking certain actions in bad faith; authorizes department to adopt rules; prohibits specified employment practices; provides certain rights for employee who is disabled from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical condition; reenacts & revises provisions relating to administrative & civil remedies for violations of Florida Civil Rights Act of 1992.

Actions: 1/22/19 Filed; 1/30/19 Referred to Business and Professions Subcommittee

TAX CREDITS / REFUNDS

SB-840- Internship Tax Credit Program [Sen. Powell –Palm Beach- Dist. 30]

Internship Tax Credit Program; Creating the “Florida Internship Tax Credit Program”; providing a corporate income tax credit up to a specified amount for a qualified business that hires employees who have completed specified internships; limiting the amount of the tax credit which a qualified business may claim, etc.

 Actions: 2/7/19 Filed; Referred to Education

SB-198 &HB 643- Internship Tax Credit Program [Sen. Lee –Hillsborough/Pasco/Polk- Dist. 20 and Rep. Trumbull-Bay- Dist. 6]

Sales Tax Refund for Eligible Job Training Organizations; Providing that eligible job training organizations are entitled to receive a refund of a specified percentage of certain sales taxes remitted to the Department of Revenue; requiring such organizations to use the refund only for specified purposes; requiring that refunds be granted on a first-come, first-served basis, etc.

Actions: 2/15/19 Filed

RESTRAINTS OF TRADE OR COMMERCE

SB-882 – Restraints of Trade or Commerce [Sen. Gruters – Sarasota/Charlotte- Dist. 23]

Restraints of Trade or Commerce; Revising the requirements for a contract that restricts or prohibits competition; redefining the term “legitimate business interest” to include only interests related to intellectual property.

 Actions: 2/7/19 Filed

DRUG-FREE WORKPLACE

SB-890 and HB 707- Drug-Free Workplace [Sen. Baxley –Lake Marion/Sumter- Dist. 12 and Rep. DiCeglie –Pinellas- Dist. 66]

Drug-free Workplaces; Revising the contents of an employer policy statement with respect to employee drug use; revising the frequency of followup testing; revising specimen collection, verification, and documentation procedures, etc.

 Actions: 2/7/19 Filed

UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION

SB-990 & HB 563- Unemployment Compensation [Sen. Gibson- Duval-Dist. 6 and Reps. Joseph- St. Lucie- Dist. 84 Cortes- Seminole/Orange- Dist. 30, and Jenne- Broward- Dist. 99]

Unemployment Compensation; Prohibiting certain victims of domestic violence from being disqualified for benefits for voluntarily leaving work; prohibiting the employment record of an employing unit from being charged in certain circumstances, etc.

Actions: 2/13/19 Filed