Chicago, LA Latest Cities to Impose Leave, Layoff Mandates

Employers in Chicago and Los Angeles are joining businesses elsewhere in navigating local employment ordinances that seek to protect workers from unexpected job losses, workplace safety concerns, or the pressure to come to work despite personal health risks.

New Risks: The ordinances bring compliance challenges and litigation threats that increase the already major risks for reopening businesses, management-side attorneys say. “Employers are going to need as much flexibility as possible to operate efficiently and profitably,” said Robert R. Roginson, an attorney at Ogletree Deakins in Los Angeles.

Job Protections: The LA city council enacted, among other ordinances, a “right of ...