Employment Laws In Maryland

The attorneys at The Ray Legal Group, LLC, continuously assist employees and employers throughout the State of Maryland and the District of Columbia. When your livelihood or business is at stake, you need an attorney with the experience and dedication to win. Our attorneys have experience tackling tough employment law cases and winning. Clients appreciate our integrity, professionalism, thoroughness and ability to communicate with them.

What Rights Do You Have As An Employee In Maryland?

If you are employed in Maryland, you have access to a broad range of protections and rights.

Employers, no matter their size, always have a certain amount of power over their employees, who depend on them for their livelihood. Employment laws (and employment attorneys!) exist to help rectify that power imbalance and protect employees from abusive employers.

Perhaps the most important of these is the right to protection from discrimination of any kind. This includes protection from discrimination based on sex, race, gender, orientation, and more. If you are fired, passed up for a job, or endure workplace harassment and discrimination for any of these (and more) protected categories, you should talk to an employment law attorney about filing a claim or lawsuit against your employer.

You also have a right to a number of other protections, including the right to a safe and accident-free work environment. If you are injured or harmed in the workplace, you have the right to compensation for the harm you endured and the time you lost from work.

You also have the right to a certain amount of privacy, which is more and more frequently encroached upon, as well as the right to organize and unionize and receive a basic minimum wage, which we will dive deeper into below as the situation for both these rights in Maryland is more complicated than most states.

Is Maryland A Free Work State?

Maryland has not yet followed the trend of “right-to-work” laws, which prohibit unions from imposing membership as a condition for employment. However, it is also an “at will” state, which largely means an employer can dismiss an employee at any time as long as it is not discriminatory.

There are, fortunately, some protections for employees who wish to form a union. Employers are not allowed to require promises from their employees (or vice versa) about joining or leaving unions, and employers are not allowed to retaliate against employees who choose to do so.

Overall, this puts Maryland in somewhat of an undefined position on the question of union formation and support. If you have questions about your right to unionize or bargain collectively, you can always reach out to an employment law attorney for guidance and advice.

If you have been fired and believe it has something to do with your recent union activity or pro-unionization advocacy, you may have a strong case to file a lawsuit against your employer.

What Is The Minimum Wage In Maryland?

In Maryland, the minimum wage you have a right to depends on your employer and type of job. It is also set to change in January of 2024. This is further complicated by the fact that each county in Maryland can do its own adjustments and indexing.

In 2023, under a new set of laws, the minimum wage for large employers was $13.25, $12.80 for small employers, and $3.63 for jobs with tips.

In 2024, this will become a $15.00 minimum for employers of all sizes but will not impact tip-based jobs.

Montgomery and Howard counties have already pushed up their own minimum wage to $15.00 or above for standard and large-sized employers. Each has its own schedule of minimum wages, though these are likely to change in 2024.

If you are confused about what wage you have a right to in Maryland, don’t worry; you are probably not the only one! You can reach out to an employment lawyer with questions about your wage, salary, overtime pay or other compensation questions.