Intro to Delaware Labor Laws

Five years after establishing its Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, Delaware has issued its first set of regulations, which generally mirrors the federal WARN Act. Delaware WARN notices must include details like affected employees’ names, job titles, and contact information, as well as severance packages, relocation opportunities, and workers’ compensation coverage. The regulations also tighten exceptions to the 60-day notice rule, requiring more detailed justification.

Employers in Delaware should review these regulations, understand how they differ from federal rules, and update their notification procedures to ensure compliance.

The Delaware Legislature has amended the state’s anti-discrimination law to add housing status as a protected characteristic in employment practices. Employers with 4 or more employees in Delaware are banned from discriminating against the permanence or habitability of an employee or their family’s overnight residence. Employers should review and update their equal employment policies accordingly.

Delaware employers with 4 or more employees are prohibited from asking candidates to provide their age, birth date, or dates they attended an educational institution on an initial employment application, with limited exceptions. Employers may require this information if there is a bona fide occupational qualification or to comply with a state or federal law.

As previously reported, effective January 1, 2025, employer and employee payroll tax contributions towards Delaware’s Paid Family & Medical Leave will commence. Employees and employers with 10-24 employees are required to make payroll contributions to the program. Benefits will be available to eligible employees beginning January 1, 2026. Justworks PEO will automatically collect and remit contributions from eligible customers beginning in the new year.

Delaware passed a new law legalizing the use of recreational marijuana for adults 21 and older. Like similar laws in other states, Delaware employers are not required to permit the use of cannabis at work or during work time and may take disciplinary action against an employee who tests positive for cannabis. Employers should continue to monitor updates and are encouraged to review their current policies and testing procedures in accordance with this law.

Delaware is poised to join ten states and DC in offering statutory paid leave benefits as Delaware’s General Assembly recently passed a bill that would provide up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave benefits for covered employees. Employer & employee contributions towards the program would begin January 1, 2025, and benefits would be available to employees beginning January 1, 2026. Employers with fewer than 10 employees would be exempt from the bill’s requirements, while employers with 10-24 employees will only be required to comply with the parental leave requirements. Governor Carney is expected to sign the bill, after which it would become law. Impacted customers should continue to monitor this situation.