Workplace law in Virginia is poised to undergo a conservative shift starting this week as Republicans reclaim control of the state House and governor’s office, potentially affecting issues from minimum wage to on-the-job vaccine mandates.
The state’s labor and employment policies tilted in employees’ favor over the past two years, under Gov. Ralph Northam (D) and Democratic leadership in both chambers of the state legislature. Lawmakers raised the minimum wage, expanded anti-bias laws to cover sexual orientation and gender identity, opened the door to collective bargaining rights for local government employees, and strengthened the state’s enforcement powers against wage underpayment.
But Republicans swept the state’s elections in November, with former private equity executive Glenn Youngkin claiming the governor’s office and the GOP winning a majority in the state House, along with the positions of lieutenant governor and attorney general. Democrats retain a narrow majority in the state Senate, where seats aren’t up for re-election until 2023.
Youngkin pitched himself to voters as an employer-friendly candidate who would eliminate “job-killing regulations,” and he’s voiced opposition to government-imposed vaccine mandates. It isn’t clear how far Republicans can or will go to undo the workplace policies Democrats recently enacted, but business groups...
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