New Maine Laws That Went Into Effect January 1, 2021
Some new Maine laws went into effect Jan. 1, 2021, and most of the new laws effect employees and employers.
On January 1, Maine's mandatory paid leave for workers became law, according to govdocs.com. This law lets workers collect one hour of paid leave for every 40 hours worked, up to 40 hours per year.
This is only for businesses that have more than 10 employees.
This is paid leave to be used for illness or emergencies, Govdocs.com stated. Might be needed with the coronavirus still surging.
There was another law that was supposed to start on the first, but has been delayed. That's from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection to ban single-use containers and plastic bags, according to WMTW.
It is well intended and will work one day, but when the shutdowns happened, we all had takeout food and it had to be in containers that would be banned. The ban is now delayed until July 1, the news station reported.
Also on Jan. 1, the state's minimum wage went up 15 cents an hour from 12 dollars to 12.15, according to Mainegov.com. That's a tiny increase compared to the annual dollar increases in previous three years. But going forward the new law is that there will be annual adjustments based on the cost of living index.
Kind boring new laws, unless of course you need some time away and still get paid!