Roundup: New minimum wage rates, Claiming CARES Act tax credits, Washington Long-term Care Fund Withholdings, N.Y. noncompete legislation, and AI in employment decisions

Wage and hour violations can be extremely expensive nightmares for employers, especially when the problem applies to all your employees. Prevention is the way.

So, if you pay employees minimum wage or have tipped employees, check this article and interactive map to find out if you need to make changes in your pay rates.

You can still get CARES Act tax credits for 2020 and 2021. And it's definitely worth looking into if your company had significantly reduced income, had to suspend business, or you started the business during COVID-19 in 2020 or 2021. Who didn't?

Here's an excellent summary of the law and whether you qualify.

Washington State is trying something new. They started a state-run program to help people pay for long-term care services when people get sick, are seriously injured, or need care after retirement. Employees pay into the system through payroll deductions starting July 1, and benefits start for those eligible in 2026.

Here's a nice explanation, what's required, and what happens if employers have already started making deductions.

I'm not sure why legislatures and federal agencies are all considering banning noncompete agreements now. But with continued labor shortages, the economy and business benefit from not having employees sidelined by noncompetes.

Here's a great explanation of two New York bills banning noncompetes and a fun rant about how messed up legislation can get.

AI can tell you information. It can even tell you what to do. But it can't ever tell you the right thing to do under all the circumstances. Don't make employment decisions without considering the what the right thing to do is.

Check out this article that beautifully summarizes the issues and directives.