Labor & Employment

Amend KRS 336.130 to delete references restricting rights of public employees to organize, associate collectively, or strike; amend KRS 336.180 to redefine "labor organization" and delete definitions of "candidate," "committee," "contributing organization," "contribution," "election," "electioneering communications," "employer," "fundraiser," "independent expenditure," "political activities," "public employee," "slate of candidates," and "testimonial affair"; amend KRS 336.990 to conform; amend KRS 67A.6904 to allow urban-county governments to make an agreement with a labor organization to require membership in the organization as a condition of employment; amend KRS 67C.406 to allow consolidated local governments to make an agreement with a labor organization to require membership in the organization as a condition of employment; amend KRS 70.262, 78.470, and 78.480 to remove exceptions; amend KRS 345.050 to allow public employers to make an agreement with a labor organization to require membership in the organization as a condition of employment; amend KRS 336.1341 and 336.135 to conform; repeal KRS 65.016, 336.132, and 336.134.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 336 to prohibit all employers of 75 or more employees from demoting, dismissing, disciplining, or discriminating against an employee who misses work because of duties related to being a candidate, member-elect, or member of the General Assembly or legislative body of certain local governments; require an employer to grant a leave of absence if the employee requests it, not to exceed 3 terms for a member of the House of Representatives, or 2 terms for a member of the Senate or a member of a specified legislative body of a local government; amend KRS 336.990 to provide a penalty for employers who violate Section 1 of the Act.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 338 to require employers to develop emergency action plans for the workplace; establish minimum requirements for the plans.

Create a new section of KRS 344.030 to 344.110 to prohibit employers from considering or requiring disclosure of prior criminal history as part of the initial job application; provide that the Act may be cited as the Ban the Box - The Criminal Record Employment Discrimination Act.

Amend KRS 61.702 and 78.5536 to provide full hospital and medical insurance benefits for a member, their spouse, and their dependents if the member becomes disabled in line of duty with a hazardous disability; EMERGENCY.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 337 to provide a remedy for employees misclassified as independent contractors; amend KRS 337.010 to define "independent contractor" and "misclassified"; repeal KRS 336.137, relating to marketplace contractors.

Amend KRS 341.350, relating to unemployment insurance benefits, to reduce the required weekly verifiable work search activities from 5 to 3 and the required formal submitting of applications or interviewing for employment from 3 to 1.

Create new sections of KRS Chapter 337 to prohibit subcontractors from misclassifying employees on capital projects as independent contractors; define terms; establish criteria for classifying workers as employees or independent contractors; provide a complaint and appeal process for misclassification violations; provide that no prime contractor or subcontractor, nor any agent thereof shall retaliate against any person for taking action or providing information to investigators for violations; provide that a complaint shall be dismissed without prejudice if the Department of Workplace Standards fails to take action within 180 days after filing a complaint; provide that prime contractors or subcontractors shall post a notice for filing complaints or inquiries with the commissioner of the Department of Workplace standards; require each contract for a capital project shall require a prime contractor and any subcontractors to enroll and verify the work eligibility of all employees through the E-Verify program; require the department to promulgate administrative regulations; require the commissioner to provide any order or decision that a subcontractor has misclassified an employee as an independent contractor to the Department of Worker's Claims, the Department of Revenue, and the Office of Unemployment Insurance no later than 60 days after the order or decision; amend KRS 337.990 to establish penalties for violations; amend KRS 45A.145 to prohibit subcontractors or any corporate officer or shareholder that owns at least 10% of the outstanding stock of the corporation with 2 or more violations in 5 years from contracting with the state for 2 years; create new sections of KRS Chapters 341 and 342 and amend KRS 131.190 to require the Department of Revenue, the Office of Unemployment Insurance, and the Department of Workers' Claims to provide one another with any assessment or orders arising out of the misclassification of an employee; create a new section of KRS Chapter 337 to require the secretary of the Education and Labor Cabinet to develop a training program relating to employee misclassification; provide that Sections 1 to 8, 13, and 14 of this Act may be cited as the Kentucky Workers Fairness Act; EFFECTIVE, in part, January 1, 2027.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 198B to establish requirements for projects using structural steel welding, such as hiring a certified welder and meeting national welding standards; define terms; exempt welding projects performed or requested on the premises of a homeowner or farmer; EFFECTIVE January 1, 2027.

Amend KRS 337.010 to increase the applicable threshold of employees of retail stores and service industries from $95,000 to $500,000 average annual gross volume of sales for the employer; amend KRS 337.275 to incrementally raise minimum wage of hourly and tipped employees and require adherence to any future federal increase in excess of the new state wage rates; include anti-preemption language permitting local governments to establish minimum wage ordinances in excess of the state minimum wage.