REMINDER: FLORIDA BUSINESSES WITH 25 OR MORE EMPLOYEES MUST NOW USE E-VERIFY FOR NEW HIRES

Starting July 1st, Florida businesses with 25 or more employees are required to verify that new employees are eligible to work in the United States by using the federal E-verify system at e-verify.gov. 

New employees hired on or after July 1st must be verified through E-verify within three business days after they start working. Only new hires must be verified through E-verify; current employees do not have to be checked.

Employers that hire workers without verifying their employment eligibility with E-verify can be fined $1,000 a day by the State of Florida and have their licenses suspended.

BACK-TO-SCHOOL SALES TAX HOLIDAY IS JULY 24 – AUGUST 6

From Monday July 24th through Sunday August 6th, the following items will be exempt from the Florida sales tax:

  • School supplies with a sales price of $50 or less.
  • Clothes, shoes, and accessories with a sales price of $100 or less.
  • Learning aids and jigsaw puzzles with a sales price of $30 or less.
  • Personal computers and some computer accessories with a sales price of $1,500 or less when purchased for personal use (not business use).

Businesses selling these items must report sales of tax-free items as exempt sales to the Florida Department of Revenue on their next sales tax filing after the tax-free holiday.

Businesses may choose not to participate in the back-to-school tax holiday if these items made up less than 5% of their gross sales in 2022. To opt out, a business must send written notice to the Florida Department of Revenue by July 11, 2023 on company letterhead stating that the business meets these qualifications and has chosen not to participate in the sales tax holiday. The notice must be signed by someone authorized to sign on behalf of the business and can be emailed to registration@floridarevenue.com or faxed to 850-922-0859. 

Eligible businesses that opt out of the sales tax holiday must post a notice in a conspicuous location telling customers that they are not participating in the Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday. A suggested notice is:

In accordance with Chapter 2023-157, Laws of Florida, (Name of business) has chosen not to participate in the Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday July 24, 2023 through August 6, 2023. For questions, please contact (name of contact person at business) at (contact phone number or email).

The notice must include a signature from an authorized individual along with that person’s title.

For more information or to review the complete list of tax-free items, please visit the Florida Department of Revenue’s website.

NEW LAW REQUIRES WORKPLACE ACCOMODATIONS FOR PREGNANT WORKERS

Effective June 27, 2023, a new federal law called the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) requires businesses with 15 or more employees to make reasonable accommodations for their pregnant workers. The law is designed to help pregnant women keep working through their pregnancy instead of having to take leave.    

Employees whose pregnancy impacts their ability to perform their job are entitled to a reasonable accommodation unless it would cause significant hardship or expense to the employer.  Some examples of reasonable accommodations are:

  • Chairs or stools for employees who have to be on their feet at work.
  • Closer parking.
  • Temporary reassignment to a job with lighter duty.
  • More bathroom breaks.
  • Additional leave or time off to recover from childbirth or for checkups.

Under the new law, employers are required to discuss accommodations with the employee who requests it and cannot require the employee to take leave if a reasonable accommodation would let the employee keep working. Employers are also prevented from retaliating against an employee for requesting or using an accommodation. 

This new law applies to businesses with 15 or more employees and will be enforced by the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The EEOC has released a new version of its poster that employers are required to post at their workplace. We will be providing FUBA members with updated posters soon.

FUBA MEMBERS: YOU DON’T HAVE TO BUY WORKPLACE POSTERS FROM A POSTER COMPANY!

One of the many benefits of your company’s FUBA membership is a free subscription to the state and federal employment posters required at your workplace. All FUBA members receive a comprehensive All-in-One labor law poster when they first join FUBA, and if any posters change, we send you updated panels at no charge.

Two federal posters have recently been updated, so your business may receive emails or letters from poster companies soliciting your business. If your business is a FUBA member, you can throw that notice right in the trash. As long as your company maintains its FUBA membership, you do not need to pay for posters. 

The two federal posters that have changed in the last few weeks are:

  • The “Employee Rights Under the Fair Labor Standards Act” poster was updated in April 2023 due to the PUMP Act that protects employees who are nursing; and
  • The “Workplace Discrimination is Illegal” poster was updated in June 2023 due to the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (see article above).

FUBA is currently incorporating these two new panels into the All-in-One poster that we provide free of charge to members. As soon as they are printed, we will be sending new All-in-One posters to current FUBA members. 

If you are a FUBA member and have questions about which posters are required at your workplace, please call the FUBA offices at 800-262-4483 and ask for Karen or Mallory.