How to Update Your HR Policies When Employment Laws Change

Employment law changes constantly. New scheduling requirements, pay transparency rules, worker classification standards, and leave policies are being passed at the state and local level all the time, and what was compliant a few years ago may not be compliant today.

Most companies don't keep up. They create an employee handbook when they start out, maybe update it once or twice, and then assume everything is fine until something goes wrong. The problem is that by the time you realize your policies are outdated, you're usually already dealing with a complaint, an audit, or a lawsuit.

This post covers how to build a process for keeping your HR policies current, the key areas where laws are changing fast, and how to spot the warning signs that your documentation needs attention.

Why Event Staffing Companies Are Especially Vulnerable

If you're running a traditional office with salaried employees in a single location, staying compliant is relatively straightforward. You have one set of laws to follow and a stable workforce to manage.

Event and gig staffing companies don't have that luxury.

Multi-state operations. If you're staffing events in multiple states or cities, you're dealing with different employment laws in each jurisdiction. California has different rules than Texas, New York City has different rules than the rest of New York State, and you need to be compliant everywhere you operate.

Variable schedules. Predictive scheduling laws specifically target industries with variable and on-demand scheduling, which means event staffing is directly in the crosshairs. These laws require advance notice of schedules, premium pay for changes, and other requirements that traditional businesses don't face.

Gig classification issues. The line between employees and independent contractors is constantly being litigated and legislated. If you use any kind of flexible or on-demand workforce, you need to stay current on how worker classification is being interpreted in your jurisdictions.

High turnover. More workers cycling through your organization means more opportunities for something to go wrong, and more documentation you need to maintain. It also means your onboarding and offboarding processes get tested constantly.

Key Areas Where Laws Are Changing Fast

These are the areas where we've seen the most legislative activity in recent years. If your policies haven't been updated since 2020, there's a good chance they're out of step with current law in at least one of these areas.

Predictive scheduling and fair workweek laws. A growing number of cities and states now require employers to provide advance notice of schedules, offer additional hours to existing employees before hiring new ones, pay premiums for last-minute schedule changes, and provide minimum rest periods between shifts. San Francisco, New York City, Seattle, Chicago, Philadelphia, and the entire state of Oregon all have some version of these requirements, and more jurisdictions are considering them. We wrote a full guide to predictive scheduling laws that covers the specifics.

Pay transparency. More states now require employers to disclose salary ranges in job postings or to applicants upon request. Some also prohibit asking about salary history. If your job postings don't include compensation information or your interviewers are still asking about previous pay, you may be out of compliance. Our post on salary history questions covers the states where this applies.

Hair discrimination and the CROWN Act. Laws prohibiting discrimination based on natural hair and protective hairstyles have been passed in over 20 states plus numerous cities. If your dress code or grooming policies include language about "professional" hairstyles without accounting for these protections, you should revise them. Read more about the CROWN Act and what employers need to know.

Cannabis and drug testing policies. As more states legalize recreational cannabis, laws around drug testing and employment decisions based on cannabis use are changing too. Some states now prohibit adverse employment actions based on off-duty cannabis use or positive tests for cannabis alone. Your drug testing policies may need to be updated depending on where you operate.

Worker classification. The debate over who qualifies as an employee versus an independent contractor continues to evolve. California's AB5 created strict standards that have been adopted or adapted by other states, while federal guidance has shifted back and forth. If you use any kind of flexible workforce, you should periodically review whether your classification practices are still defensible.

Minimum wage increases. Minimum wage laws continue to change at the state and local level, with many jurisdictions now well above the federal minimum. Some areas also have different minimum wages for tipped employees, large versus small employers, or specific industries. Make sure your compensation practices account for the current minimums in every location where you have workers.

How to Build a Policy Review Process

Staying compliant requires a system, not just good intentions. Here's how to build a process that actually works.

Assign ownership. Someone in your organization needs to be responsible for tracking employment law changes and flagging when policies need to be updated. This might be an HR manager, an operations lead, or even the owner in a smaller company. The point is that someone specific owns it, not "everyone" which really means no one.

Set an annual review calendar. At minimum, your employee handbook and core HR policies should be reviewed once a year. Put it on the calendar as a recurring task with a specific deadline. Don't let it slip because things are busy.

Track your jurisdictions. Make a list of every state and city where you have workers, then identify the employment law requirements that apply in each one. When you review policies, check them against each jurisdiction on your list.

Subscribe to updates. State labor departments, the federal Department of Labor, and employment law firms all publish updates when significant laws change. Subscribe to a few reliable sources so you hear about changes when they happen, not six months later.

Build legal review into the process. For major policy changes or when you're uncertain about compliance, have an employment attorney review your documentation. This is especially important when you're expanding into new states or when significant new legislation passes.

Document your reviews. Keep a record of when policies were reviewed, what changes were made, and who approved them. This documentation shows that you're taking compliance seriously, which matters if you ever face an audit or legal challenge.

Red Flags That Your Policies Are Outdated

Sometimes you don't realize your policies are out of date until something goes wrong. Here are warning signs to watch for.

Your handbook references laws that have changed. If your policies still reference old versions of laws or use language that's no longer accurate, that's an obvious sign you need an update. For example, if your handbook mentions a lower minimum wage than what's currently required in your state, that's a problem.

You're enforcing policies inconsistently. When managers start making exceptions to written policies because "that's not really how we do things anymore," your documentation has drifted from your actual practices. Either update the policies to match reality or retrain your team to follow what's written.

Workers or candidates are asking questions you can't answer. If people are asking about predictive scheduling, pay transparency, or other topics and your team doesn't know how to respond, that's a sign your policies haven't kept up with what workers expect.

You've expanded into new states without reviewing local laws. Every time you start operating in a new jurisdiction, you should review your policies against local requirements. If you've added states without doing this, you may have compliance gaps.

It's been more than two years since your last policy review. Given how quickly employment law has evolved in recent years, any policies that haven't been reviewed in over two years are almost certainly missing something.

Resources to Stay Current

You don't have to track every legal development yourself. Here are resources that can help.

State labor department websites. Every state labor department publishes guidance on employment law requirements. Bookmark the sites for every state where you operate and check them periodically.

U.S. Department of Labor. The DOL website has information on federal requirements including FLSA, FMLA, and workplace safety standards. Sign up for their email updates to hear about regulatory changes.

Employment law firms and HR associations. Many law firms publish newsletters and alerts about employment law changes. SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) is another good resource for HR professionals.

Your payroll or HR software provider. If you use payroll or HR software, your provider may send updates about legal changes that affect their platform. Pay attention to these communications.

Legal counsel. If you have an employment attorney, schedule a periodic check-in to discuss any legal developments that affect your business. An hour of their time once or twice a year is a worthwhile investment.

Get the Foundation Right First

Before you worry about staying current with new laws, make sure you have the foundational HR documents in place. It's hard to update policies that don't exist.

If you're missing an employee handbook, employment agreements, NDAs, or termination documentation, start there. We put together an HR Policy PowerPack with templates designed for gig and event companies that you can customize for your business.

For a walkthrough of what each document should include and mistakes to avoid, check out our guide to essential HR policies for event staffing.

Compliance at Scale

Keeping policies updated is one challenge. Enforcing them consistently across a growing workforce is another.

When your employee scheduling, time tracking, and HR documentation live in separate systems, it's hard to make sure everything stays in sync. A policy change gets made in the handbook but doesn't get communicated to the scheduling software. A new state requirement applies to some workers but not others, and there's no easy way to track who's who.

Roosted brings workforce management together in one platform, so your scheduling practices, time tracking, and HR data are connected. That makes it easier to enforce policies consistently and adapt when requirements change.

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