Page 183 - An Indispensible Resource for Being a Credible Activist

NEBRASKA

Minimum wage. Because of requirements included in legislation previously enacted, the
State minimum wage was increased to $6.55 per hour on July 24, 2008.
Time off. The State legislature also adopted the Volunteer Emergency Responders Job
Protection Act. Under the Act, employees acting as volunteer emergency responders shall
make a reasonable effort to notify their employers that they may be absent from or report
late to their place of employment in order to respond to an emergency. No employer shall
terminate or take any other disciplinary action against any employee who is a volunteer
emergency responder if such employee is absent from or reports late to his or her place of
employment in order to respond to an emergency prior to the time the employee is to report
to the place of employment. However, an employer may subtract from an employee’s earned
wages an amount of pay the employee would have earned during the time the employee was
away from the place of employment acting as a volunteer responding to an emergency. At
an employer’s request, an employee acting as a volunteer emergency responder who is
absent from or reports late to the place of employment in order to respond to an emergency
shall provide the employer, within seven days of such request, a written statement, signed
by the individual in charge of the volunteer department or some other authorized person,
that includes appropriate information about the date and time of the emergency in which
the employee participated as a volunteer. An employee who is wrongfully terminated or
against whom any disciplinary action is taken in violation of the act shall be immediately
reinstated to his or her former position without any reduction in wages, seniority, or other
benefits and shall receive any lost wages or other benefits, if applicable, during any period
for which such termination or other disciplinary action was in effect. An action to enforce
the act may be brought by the employee.

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Child labor. Legislation was enacted to clarify the conditions and requirements for persons
who are 16 and 17 years of age to train and be employed as firefighters. The legislation
places limits on youth training and employment, including the following: (1) no youth under
the age of 16 shall be employed or permitted to work in firefighting, except when the youth
is enrolled in an explorer program approved by the State Department of Labor; (2) when any
youth is employed or permitted to work in support of firefighting, fire companies must fol-
low Federal orders regulating youth employment in hazardous occupations at all times and
in all places; (3) the supervisory person responsible for following the youth requirements
must be the chief authority of the fire company or his or her designee; (4) youths won’t be
employed at any task or duty in support of firefighting if they have not completed the
required training; and (5) the rules adopted by the commissioner of labor must be followed
by fire companies when employing or permitting 16- or 17-year-old youths to work in sup-
port of firefighting. In addition, the legislation sets minimum training requirements for
youths working in support of firefighting and requires an identification card to be issued
upon completion of training.

166 The H R Toolkit