New Colorado laws for 2024 include minimum wage hike, FAMLI Act, polystyrene container ban
More than 15 new laws will go into effect statewide on Jan. 1, and a few will impact Coloradans immediately. Here are four laws that go into effect on New Years Day that will change the state's minimum wage, establish equal pay for equal work protections, expand statewide insurance benefits, and further restrict the use of polystyrene and Styrofoam products.
Colorado's 2024 minimum wage
Statewide, the minimum wage will increase from $13.65 to $14.42 per hour. The wage increase will also change for tipped employees to $11.40 per hour. Additionally, the law requires wage changes for emancipated minors, agricultural workers, highly technical computer employees, certain drivers, and certain seasonal camp and outdoor recreation workers.
Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act
In 2021, an add-on to the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act passed and now the lengthy wait is over. The addition to the law will go into effect on New Years Day. It requires employers to provide information on new job opportunities to all existing employees before making a hiring decision. It also requires that employers give information on a new hire or internal promotion to the people they will work with, as well as information on how existing employees can demonstrate interest in similar jobs in the future. The law also requires that a process for people to submit wage complaints be created by July 1, 2024.
FAMLI Act expands paid leave for Colorado workers
On Nov. 3, 2020, Colorado voters approved Proposition 118, the culmination of a long-running effort to mandate paid family and medical leave for all Colorado employees.
This year, Colorado workers will have the opportunity to take expanded paid parental or medical leave as required by the new law.
FAMLI will be funded by both employers and employees. Employers can elect to pay the full coverage, otherwise employees will be charged a small amount pre-tax from each paycheck. The tax for the program can cover up to 12 weeks of paid leave at 90% of pay rate for childbirth and other medical leave for individuals and their families.
FAMLI+ will go into effect in the new year. My FAMILI+ is an online portal for almost all full, part-time, seasonal, and contract Colorado workers to manage paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance. My FAMLI+ allows Coloradans to apply for benefits, submit required serious health condition forms, review the status of their claims and manage their benefit payment options.
Colorado enacts polystyrene ban for food service
Jan. 1 will welcome the next phase of a law passed in 2021 to eliminate plastic waste. The next phase will require the elimination of polystyrene and Styrofoam food containers. It also bans the use of single-use plastic bags at grocery stores statewide, a move that many communities have already taken.
The act prohibits retail food establishments from distributing an expanded polystyrene product for use as a container for ready-to-eat food. Retail food establishments that purchase expanded polystyrene products, commonly called clamshells, before Jan. 1 may continue to use the products until their supply is depleted, but the state will otherwise authorize local governments to enforce fines for any violations.
The act authorizes a county to impose a civil penalty against a store or retail food establishment of up to $500 for a second violation or up to $1,000 for a third or subsequent violation. Food establishments within schools are exempt.
The act also does not apply to materials used in the packaging of pharmaceutical drugs, medical devices, or dietary supplements.
To view the full list of laws going into effect in 2024, click here.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: New Colorado laws in 2024: Minimum wage hike, FAMLI Act, polystyrene ban
