**Content updated on March 26, 2020 to provide a link to the U.S. Department of Labor model poster released on March 25, 2020 and to update the new effective date of the FFCRA.**
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, employers now have new emergency paid leave obligations for employees in Colorado and across the United States.
On March 18, 2020, a new federal law, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, was enacted to provide paid sick leave and family leave to employees in the U.S. impacted by COVID-19. Last week, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment adopted emergency rules, the Colorado Health Emergency Leave with Pay Rules, to provide paid sick leave for employees in specific industries in Colorado.
A summary of the new federal law and the Colorado emergency rules is outlined below:
Continue Reading COVID-19 Emergency Paid Sick and Family Leave Laws
As of January 1, 2013, 
Effective January 1, 2012, Colorado’s minimum wage increased by $0.28, from $7.36 per hour to $7.64 per hour (for tipped employees, from $4.34 to $4.62). This is $0.39 more than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. 
I have received quite a few requests for inclement weather policies of late, and since the topic of “snow days” frequently arises this time of year, I wanted to provide some (hopefully) useful information for employers. The question of whether an employer is obligated to pay employees for “snow days” depends largely on two questions: