Employment Law Update: New Virginia Employment Laws Now in Effect — What Employers Need to Know
Pay Transparency and Salary History
Virginia has new rules about pay transparency and salary history. Key points include:
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Employers may no longer ask job applicants about their current or prior salary, or use salary history to make hiring or pay decisions.
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All job postings — both public and internal (including promotions and transfers) — must now include a wage or salary range set in good faith.
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Applicants may voluntarily share salary history, but only after receiving an initial compensation offer, and only to support a higher salary.
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Violations can result in civil penalties of $1,000 to $5,000 and potential lawsuits by affected applicants.
New Limits on Non-Compete Agreements
Virginia has placed new restrictions on non-compete agreements in two important ways:
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Employees terminated without cause: If an employer fires an employee without cause, it generally cannot enforce a non-compete agreement unless the employer provided severance or other monetary payment and disclosed that payment when the non-compete was signed. This applies only to agreements entered, amended, or renewed on or after July 1, 2026.
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Health care professionals: Employers can no longer require non-compete agreements with licensed health care professionals, including those licensed by the Boards of Medicine, Nursing, Counseling, Optometry, Psychology, and Social Work. Limited exceptions exist for business sales, repayment of recruitment costs (for employees with fewer than five years of service), and narrowly drafted patient non-solicitation agreements.
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Violations may result in civil penalties of up to $10,000 per occurrence, and affected employees can sue to void non-compliant agreements and recover damages and attorneys’ fees.
Wage and Hour Law Changes
House Bill 238 made sweeping changes to Virginia’s wage and hour laws. Highlights include:
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The definition of “employer” has been expanded to include individuals acting in the employer’s interest, which may create personal liability for supervisors and managers in certain wage disputes.
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The definition of “wages” now broadly includes hourly pay, salaries, overtime, commissions, bonuses, and tips.
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Employers must retain employee pay stubs or pay records for at least three years.
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The statute of limitations for wage claims has been extended to three years, and employees may now bring collective actions.
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In the construction industry, general contractors and subcontractors may now face joint liability for wage violations on projects covered by contracts entered into after July 1, 2026.
Expanded Virginia Human Rights Act
The Virginia Human Rights Act has been expanded in important ways:
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Employers with five or more employees are covered (previously 15 or more).
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Employees have two years (up from 300 days) to file a discrimination complaint with the Office of Civil Rights.
Volunteer Emergency Responder Protections
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Employers may not fire, discipline, or retaliate against employees who miss work because they are actively responding to emergencies as volunteer firefighters or emergency medical services personnel.
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Employers do not have to pay employees for this leave, but must allow them to use available paid time off or sick leave.
Heat Illness Protections
New legislation requires the Safety and Health Codes Board to adopt regulations protecting workers from heat-related illness during both indoor and outdoor work. These regulations will address access to water, shade, rest periods, training, and emergency response procedures.
Future Topics to Monitor
These are just the changes effective today. Whiteford’s Labor and Employment section is closely monitoring additional legislative changes in Virginia, including new paid sick leave requirements (effective July 1, 2027), a paid family and medical leave program (with contributions beginning April 1, 2028), and scheduled minimum wage increases. We will keep you informed as these developments unfold.
If you have questions about how these new laws affect your business, please contact Betsy Davis or your Whiteford employment lawyer. We are here to help you stay compliant and prepared.
The information contained here is not intended to provide legal advice or opinion and should not be acted upon without consulting an attorney. Counsel should not be selected based on advertising materials, and we recommend that you conduct further investigation when seeking legal representation.