Minnesota: New Laws Taking Effect on January 1, 2025 and Employment Law Considerations following the 2024 Presidential Election

By Martin D. Kappenman - Peters & Kappenman, P.A.

November 18, 2024

There are a number of laws going into effect on January 1, 2025, that will have wide-reaching ramifications for Minnesota employers. The following is a summary of some of the new laws that Minnesota employers should keep in mind as the new year approaches.

Salary Disclosure in Job Postings

Minnesota employers that employ 30 or more employees at one or more sites in Minnesota will be required to “disclose in each posting for each job opening with the employer the starting salary range” along with “a general description of all of the benefits and other compensation, including but not limited to any health or retirement benefits, to be offered to a hired job applicant.” Job postings are defined to include recruitment solicitations done “indirectly through a third party,” and include any electronic or hard copy documents that include qualifications for desired applicants.

Minimum Wage Increases

Minnesota’s minimum wage rate will be adjusted for inflated to $11.13 per hour for all employers in the state regardless of size, eliminating the previous lower rate allowed for small employers.  Various municipalities have their own even higher minimum wage requirements that will also take effect on January, 1st.    

Earned Sick and Safe Time Updates

A change to the Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST) is set to become effective on January 1, 2025. During the recent legislative session, the legislature added the following language to the ESST statutes: “All paid time off and other paid leave made available to an employee by an employer in excess of the minimum amount required… for absences from work due to personal illness or injury, but not including short-term or long-term disability or other salary continuation benefits, must meet or exceed the minimum standards and requirements [of ESST]…”  I read this to mean that if you are meeting your ESST requirements through a PTO program that is more generous than required by the ESST law, all hours available for PTO must be available for ESST usage.

Increased FLSA Salary Threshold Set Aside Nationwide

The pay requirements for exemptions from overtime pay requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which were set to increase significantly, have been set aside by a Federal District Court in Texas. The so-called “white collar” exemptions apply to executive, administrative, or professional employees who meet a certain salary threshold and perform certain duties. On July 1, 2024, the salary threshold to meet these exemptions was increased from $684 per week ($35,568 annually) to $844 per week ($43,888 annually). Set to increase further on January 1, 2025, this ruling will revert the salary threshold to the pre-July 1, 2024, amount of $684 per week ($35,568 annually).

Presidential Election Considerations

President Trump’s re-election will have wide reaching implications for employers and employees. Throughout Trump’s campaign, he floated the idea of eliminating taxes on both tips and overtime. Immigration reform was another cornerstone of Trump’s campaign. As a result, employers can anticipate a sharp rise in I-9 audits from the Department of Homeland Security. Employers who are not in compliance could face significant monetary penalties. An employer can also face possible criminal penalties for continuing to employ an unauthorized worker. Our firm can assist in preparing an internal I-9 audit in order to avoid potential penalties from the Department of Homeland Security.

Significant changes will likely occur on the labor side as well, as Trump has the ability to fire the current NLRB General Counsel and can appoint his own General Counsel as soon as inauguration day. In addition, in at least 2026, Republicans will have a majority on the Board, which would allow them to scale back a number of employer friendly decisions made during the Biden administration, including potentially overturning the Board’s decision to find captive audience meetings illegal.

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