Join | Member Login
Arlington (VA) Chamber of Commerce | Arlington, VA 22201
  • Membership
    • Membership Benefits
    • Join Now!
    • Chamber Assisted Grand Openings
    • Chamber Member Retirement Program
    • ShopChamber
    • Advertising >
      • Website Ads
      • E-Newsletter Ads
      • Print Ads
    • Committees
    • LeadShare
    • Annual Corporate Sponsors
    • Member Login
  • Business Directory
  • Events
    • Chamber Calendar
    • Community Calendar >
      • Submit a Community Event
    • Networking Events >
      • Chamber 101
      • Breakfast Connection
      • Business After Business
    • Signature Events >
      • Arlington Business Gala
      • Hospitality Awards
      • Legislative Breakfast
      • Arlington Chamber Volunteer Day
      • AWE Women in Business Summit
      • Best Business Awards
      • State of the County & Public Safety Awards
      • Annual Meeting
    • Educational Events
    • Women in Business
    • Travel
    • Online Learning Center
    • COVID-19 Event Policy
  • Community
    • Arlington Restaurant Week
    • Small Business Accelerator
    • Early Childhood Financial Resiliency Accelerator
    • Coronavirus Resources
    • Coupons
    • Job Board
    • Scholarship Fund
    • About Arlington >
      • Business Resources
      • Map of the Area
      • Visiting Arlington
  • Business Advocacy
    • Public Policy Positions
    • Arlington Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Planning
      • Project Support
      • Economic Development
      • Processes
      • Retail & Signage
      • Transportation
    • Virginia Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Transportation
      • Economic Development
      • Other Topics
    • Recent Advocacy
  • About the Chamber
    • Board of Directors
    • Staff Directory
    • Chamber in the News
    • Strategic Plan
    • FAQs
    • Blog
    • Publications >
      • Arlingtonian Archives
      • Arlingtonian Archives
    • Press Releases
    • Contact Us
  • Membership
    • Membership Benefits
    • Join Now!
    • Chamber Assisted Grand Openings
    • Chamber Member Retirement Program
    • ShopChamber
    • Advertising >
      • Website Ads
      • E-Newsletter Ads
      • Print Ads
    • Committees
    • LeadShare
    • Annual Corporate Sponsors
    • Member Login
  • Business Directory
  • Events
    • Chamber Calendar
    • Community Calendar >
      • Submit a Community Event
    • Networking Events >
      • Chamber 101
      • Breakfast Connection
      • Business After Business
    • Signature Events >
      • Arlington Business Gala
      • Hospitality Awards
      • Legislative Breakfast
      • Arlington Chamber Volunteer Day
      • AWE Women in Business Summit
      • Best Business Awards
      • State of the County & Public Safety Awards
      • Annual Meeting
    • Educational Events
    • Women in Business
    • Travel
    • Online Learning Center
    • COVID-19 Event Policy
  • Community
    • Arlington Restaurant Week
    • Small Business Accelerator
    • Early Childhood Financial Resiliency Accelerator
    • Coronavirus Resources
    • Coupons
    • Job Board
    • Scholarship Fund
    • About Arlington >
      • Business Resources
      • Map of the Area
      • Visiting Arlington
  • Business Advocacy
    • Public Policy Positions
    • Arlington Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Planning
      • Project Support
      • Economic Development
      • Processes
      • Retail & Signage
      • Transportation
    • Virginia Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Transportation
      • Economic Development
      • Other Topics
    • Recent Advocacy
  • About the Chamber
    • Board of Directors
    • Staff Directory
    • Chamber in the News
    • Strategic Plan
    • FAQs
    • Blog
    • Publications >
      • Arlingtonian Archives
      • Arlingtonian Archives
    • Press Releases
    • Contact Us

ChAmber Blog

Virginia Enacts New, Far-Reaching Employment Laws

6/3/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
By R. Doug Taylor, Bean, Kinney, and Korman

​Virginia’s governor recently signed into law nearly two dozen bills that provide significant new rights for Virginia employees, to combat wage theft, prohibit non-compete covenants for low-wage workers, and expand the scope of the ban on workplace discrimination. Also signed into law were enhanced employee whistleblower protections against retaliation for reporting suspected violations of state law or cooperating with law enforcement.

Picture
Employee Protections for Non-Payment of Wages
HB 123 provides Virginia employees with the right to proceed directly to court to seek the recovery of unpaid wages. Until now, Virginia employees did not have a statutory right to sue their employers for non-payment of wages. Their only recourse was to file a complaint with the Virginia DOL, which was viewed by many as slow or unresponsive. 
The new wage payment law provides for enhanced damages, including: (1) the amount of wages due, (2) 8% interest from the wage due date, (3) liquidated damages, and (4) reasonable attorney fees and costs, if the court finds that the employer knowingly failed to pay wages. If the employer's failure to pay wages was willful and with intent to defraud the employee, the court may award the employee treble damages and reasonable attorney fees and costs. Employers also may be subject to a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for each violation. 

Prohibition on Non-Competes for Low-Wage Workers
Virginia courts have always been skeptical of non-compete agreements as unfair restraints on trade. Yet employers have widely relied on them as a means of protecting against employee misuse of client relationships and opportunities to start a competing business. Now, as of July 1, 2020, Virginia employers will not be able to enter, enforce, or threaten to enforce a covenant not to compete with a “low-wage employee.” "Covenant not to compete" is an agreement that “restrains, prohibits, or otherwise restricts an individual's ability to compete with his former employer.” 

A "low-wage employee" is (i) an employee, intern, student, apprentice, or trainee earning less than the average weekly wage in Virginia, or employed without pay, or (ii) an independent contractor compensated for services at an hourly rate that is less than the median Virginia hourly wage. The Virginia Employment Commission’s most recent quarterly report showed the average weekly wage for Virginia workers as $1,125 ($58,500 annually). 

A low-wage employee subject to a covenant not to compete may bring a civil action against an employer for damages that include injunctive relief, liquidated damages, lost compensation, and reasonable attorney fees and costs of litigation.

Employers are required to post a notice of the prohibition on non-competes approved by the DOL and may be subject to a civil penalty for a repeated failure to post such notice. 

New Protections against Workplace Discrimination
Effective July 1, 2020, the Virginia Human Rights Act (VHRA) prohibition on employment discrimination will include “sexual orientation” and “gender identity,” along with race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, or disability. "Gender identity" means gender-related identity, appearance, or other gender-related characteristics of an individual, without regard to the individual's designated sex at birth. "Sexual orientation" is a person's actual or perceived heterosexuality, bisexuality, or homosexuality.

The new laws dramatically expand the private right of action available to employees claiming discrimination. Until now, the VHRA was applicable only to employers with at least 5, but fewer than 15, employees (for age discrimination, up to 20 employees). Federal antidiscrimination laws become applicable at the 15-employee level. The VHRA’s expansion to cover employers with 15 or more employees from discriminatory employment practices is expected to increase in the number of law suits filed against employers in Virginia state courts, where cases are more likely to go to a jury because state procedural rules limit the ability of courts to dismiss a case on summary judgment. Potential recoveries under the VHRA include compensatory damages, which, unlike federal law, are uncapped, punitive damages of up to $350,000, back pay, front pay, and emotional distress damages.

In addition, the VHRA was amended to provide workers with protections from employment discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, and lactation, and to require employers to provide reasonable accommodations related to pregnancy and childbirth. Employees have a private right of action to sue for workplace pregnancy discrimination.

Virginia employers are required to post conspicuously, include in any employee handbook, and provide within 10 days to new employees, notice of the new prohibitions on discrimination, and the employee’s rights to reasonable accommodations. Notice must also be given to new employees at the start of their employment, and within 10 days to any employee who gives notice that she is pregnant. 

Whistleblower Protections for Virginia Employees
HB 798 provides new whistleblower protections, and a private right of action, against retaliation for Virginia employees who, in good faith, report a violation of any federal or state law or regulation. 

Whistleblower retaliation damages include: (i) injunctive relief, (ii) reinstatement of the employee, and (iii) recompense for lost wages, benefits, and other remuneration, interest on such amounts, as well as the recovery of reasonable attorney fees and costs of litigation.

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    The mission of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce is to strengthen businesses and the economic environment for those who work, live and do business in Arlington.
    Picture
    Contribute to the blog!
    Educate the Chamber membership and Arlington business community by writing a post for our blog! To get started download the blog guidelines and blog template. For questions and more information, contact the Communications Manager.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013

    RSS Feed

© Copyright 2023 Arlington Chamber of Commerce. All rights reserved.
2009 14th Street, North  | Suite 100 | Arlington, VA 22201 | Directions
Tel (703) 525-2400 | chamber@arlingtonchamber.org
MemberClicks
Subscribe to This Week At Your Chamber
For Email Marketing you can trust.
Home | ​Join Now | Site Map