Maryland has enacted legislation that modifies the required information that employers must provide on employee’s wage statements and creates a new hire notice mandate. The law is effective Oct. 1, 2024.
The details:
On April 25, 2024, Maryland Governor Wes Moore signed into law House Bill 385 (HB 385), which modifies and expands employee wage statement requirements as well as mandating that employers provide a new hire notice.
Wage statement
Under current law, Maryland employers are required to display “a statement of the gross earnings of the employee and the deductions from those gross earnings” on employee wage statements for each pay period.
Effective Oct. 1, 2024, employers must provide written pay statements on the physical pay stub or on the online pay statement with the following information:
(1) The employer's name registered with the state, address, and telephone number.
(2) The date of payment and the beginning and ending dates of the pay period for which the payment is made.
(3) Unless the employee is exempt from overtime under federal and state law, the number of hours worked during the pay period.
(4) The rates of pay.
(5) The gross and net pay earned during the pay period.
(6) The amount and name of all deductions.
(7) A list of additional bases of pay, including bonuses, commissions on sales, or other bases.
(8) For each employee paid at a piece rate, the applicable piece rates of pay and number of pieces completed at each piece rate.
The enacted legislation requires that “the commissioner shall create and make available to an employer at no charge a pay stub template that may be used by the employer to comply with this section.”
Other provisions in HB 385 include:
· Employers that violate the pay statement provisions will be subject to an administrative penalty of up to $500 per employee.
· A description of the process that is necessary for an employer to be assessed an administrative penalty.
· Employers are required to provide at least one pay period in advance, notice of any change in a payday of wage.
· An employer may increase an employee’s wage without advance notice.
New Hire Notice
HB 385 also establishes a new mandate that requires employers to provide written notice upon hire that includes the following:
(1) Rate of pay of the employee.
(2) Regular paydays that the employer sets.
(3) Leave benefits.
Next steps:
Prior to Oct. 1, 2024, Maryland employers should update the wage statements provided to employees on pay day as well as develop a new hire notice with the information as required under House Bill 385.
· Please review the wage statement for Maryland based employees to ensure your specific pay details are displayed in accordance with the Wage Statement requirements.
· Please review the new hire paperwork for Maryland based employees to ensure the New Hire Notice requirements are included.
If changes are needed, you may reach out to your dedicated service professional for support.
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