On April 4, 2024, Governor Tina Kotek signed HB 4156 to modernize and expand protections under Oregon’s anti-stalking laws.  The new law criminalizes newer forms of threatening and predatory conduct which have emerged with the technological advances of recent decades.  The new law also impacts Oregon employers by expanding employees’ access to paid and unpaid

More than four years since the passage of Oregon’s Paid Family Medical Leave Act into law, paid leave benefits will finally be available to Oregon employees starting September 3, 2023.  Applications for benefits, toolkits and quick start guides are all now available online at paidleave.oregon.gov.  Here is what employers need to know:

Benefits

Any

The Paid Leave Oregon program commences on January 1, 2023. As an initial step, most Oregon employers must alert employees about the program and begin paying into the state insurance plan. The law requires employers post the Oregon Employment Department’s model notice at the worksite and distribute the same notice to remote workers.

Additionally, for

Oregon has amended its Family Leave Act (OFLA) to allow an eligible employee to take leave to “deal with the death of a family member” by attending the funeral (or alternative service), making arrangements, and grieving the death.  Under the OFLA, a “family member” includes a spouse, parent, child, parent-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, same-gender domestic partner