The Connecticut General Assembly is in full swing with the budget dominating the discussion. But expect to hear of several high-profile bills continuing to make their way through the legislature. 

Here is a brief update on a few of them:

  • Last week, the House unanimously passed H.B. 5174 which deals with workplace violence in the publc employee ranks. Specifically, the bill requires all state employees to be trained on workplace violence awareness, prevention and preparedness.  The bill now moves on to the Senate for a vote.  H.B. 5464, which is still is on the "Go" list (meaning it’s cleared committees and is ready for a vote), would take that further and require that reports of workplace bullying by public employees be tracked and reported. 
     
  • H.B. 6347 would provide an enforcement mechanism for state employees to exercise their rights under state FMLA laws. That bill is also awaiting a vote before the legislature.
     
  • The so-called "Captive Audience" bill cleared the Judiciary committee last week is is also on the "Go" list now.  The bill would prohibit employers from requiring that employees attend meetings where the primary purpose is to discuss "religious or political matters".

    But what this bill is really designed to prevent is meetings by the employer in advance of a union representation vote, where the employer discusses why  voting for a union may not be in the employees’ best interest.  You can continue to track the status of the bill here. 
     

  • The bill mandating paid sick leave to all employees (of employers of 50 or more employees) is still winding its way through the General Assembly.  Senate Bill 913 now set for the Senate calendar where the votes are exceedingly close by all indications. 
     
  • News on Senate Bill 984 has been quiet for several weeks now. This is one worth following though as it would prohibit employers from looking at the criminal records of any temporary employees unless a background check is required by law for that position. 
     
  • If you like that bill though, you’ll love H.B. 6641 which would prohibit all employers from seeking credit reports on applicants, absent limiting conditions applying.  That bill is also ready for a vote in the General Assembly. 

The next four weeks promise to be busy ones. Stay tuned for more details. We’ll be providing an update at our May 20th free seminar as well. if you haven’t signed up yet, there is limited availability now so if you’ve been on the fence, be sure to do so.