The Ninth Circuit seemed hesitant Tuesday to unblock a 2-year-old California law that prohibits employers from punishing workers for skipping what are commonly known as captive audience meetings in which companies convey views about political or religious topics, with two judges suggesting that the statute infringes on employers' free speech rights.
The Eleventh Circuit upheld a lower court's preliminary injunction on a Florida law that restricts classroom discussion of race and gender, finding on Tuesday that the law violates the First Amendment's free speech protections.
Regulatory changes in California and New Jersey, high court decisions in Connecticut and Illinois, and new laws in Virginia are highlights of the wage and hour policy activity states have faced in the first half of 2026. Here, Law360 looks at those state developments.