Connecticut Employment Law Updates for October 2026

September 15, 2026

Connecticut Employment Law Updates for October 2026

The following changes to Connecticut employment law take effect on October 1, 2026, and apply to employers of all sizes unless otherwise noted. Key details are below.

PAY TRANSPARENCY
The pay transparency law will be updated to require employers to include a pay rate or range and a general description of benefits in all job postings, including those advertised internally. If an applicant didn’t have access to a job posting with this information, the employer will need to provide it at the applicant’s request, before any discussion of compensation, or before an offer—whichever occurs first.

Under the new law, employers will also be required to provide employees with a general description of benefits at hire, when an employee’s position changes, or upon request.

Action Item
Update any job posting templates to include pay and benefits information by October 1, 2026.

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION NOTICE
Employers will be required to provide employees with a written notice of their right to a reasonable accommodation in the workplace under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The notice will need to be provided to all employees by January 29, 2027, to new employees upon hire, and within 10 days to an employee who discloses a disability. Alternatively, employers can satisfy this requirement by displaying the poster that the state creates in a conspicuous area of the workplace accessible to employees.

The state is expected to issue additional guidance regarding employer distribution and have the sample poster available on its website, though no timeline has been provided for when either will be available.

Action Item
Starting no later than October 1, 2026, provide written notice to employees of their right to a reasonable accommodation under the ADA.

WAGE STATEMENT PAY CODE GUIDE
Employers with 100 or more employees will be required to create and maintain a guide explaining the pay codes used on employee wage statements for overtime and the most frequently used pay differentials (such as on-call pay, holiday or weekend pay, and hazard pay). The guide must include at least 10 pay codes (unless the employer doesn’t use that many), be posted on the employer’s website in specific languages, and identify where employees can direct disputes about hours and pay differential calculations.

Employers can provide the guide to new hires by either sharing the website address at hire and on each wage statement (such as a pay stub) or by providing a written copy of the guide upon hire to each employee in English and their primary language. Employers that don’t have a website aren’t required to create one.

Action Item
No later than October 1, 2026, create a pay code guide and give employees a written copy or provide a website address where they can access it.

MEDICAL CANNABIS LAW EXPANDED
Employers will be prohibited from refusing to hire an applicant or taking or threatening adverse action against an employee based on their status as a qualifying out-of-state patient or caregiver, unless doing so violates a federal law, or is required to obtain federal funding.

EMPLOYEE SURVEILLANCE LAW UPDATED
Employers will be required to give new hires a written statement, before their first day of work, telling them what activities are prohibited and can be monitored without prior notice. Specifically, the statement should explain that prior notice isn’t needed when the employer reasonably believes that electronic monitoring will produce evidence that an employee is engaging in conduct that violates the law, violates the legal rights of the employer or its employees, or creates a hostile workplace environment.

Updated Notice and Posting
Employers will need to update their workplace posting and any individual employee notices (if they provide those) to include the specific locations where electronic monitoring can take place. Employers don’t have to disclose specific locations when the monitoring is done for security or employee safety reasons.

The posting must also be placed at workplace locations where electronic monitoring can occur in addition to the current requirement that the posting be placed in a conspicuous location accessible to employees.

Action Item
If you engage in electronic monitoring of your employees, prepare to notify new hires, and update your notice and posting language and posting practices.

“STAY OR PAY” PROHIBITION EXPANDED
The state’s “stay or pay” prohibition will be expanded to cover all employers. (Currently, the law only applies to those with 26 or more employees.) Stay or pay agreements require employees to repay their employer if they leave employment before a specified date. For newly covered employers, this will only apply to agreements executed on or after October 1, 2026.

Action Item
If you weren’t previously covered under this law and use these agreements, work with legal counsel to review and update those materials to ensure compliance.

LACTATION ACCOMMODATION
Employers will be required to provide reasonable break times for employees to express breast milk or breastfeed in addition to their scheduled breaks. This change effectively aligns the state’s lactation break requirements with federal law, but without allowing for an undue hardship exception.

Action Item
Update your lactation accommodation policy as needed. If you use our Smart Employee Handbook, simply accept the alert when you receive it.

Source: Mineral