He needed a letter from his employer

Across New Hampshire, small business owners are watching their employees' kids grow up. How nice, right? But it's at the office, because there's nowhere else for them to go.

House Bill 5 49 was reported favorable as amended; the bill creates Bayou Works, a competitive grant program reimbursing employers up to $2,000 per person to train and upskill workers, with sponsors saying no appropriation is requested and the program will be industry supported.

The article highlights the challenges employees face when returning to work after parental leave, describing the transition as a 'pressure cooker' due to the叠加 of personal and professional demands. Sophie Warwick, co-chief executive officer of The Thoughtful Co., emphasizes that employers often overlook the critical support needed during this phase, treating it similarly to vacation leave. Returning parents juggle disrupted sleep, childcare arrangements, and emotional adjustments while re-establishing their professional identity. Effective strategies include intentional communication, structured onboarding, and tailored support to address individual needs. Managers should engage in pre-leave discussions, clarify expectations, and provide flexible solutions to ensure employees feel valued and supported. The piece underscores the importance of creating a clear framework for transition support to prevent burnout and retain talent.

The Senate passed a two-year income tax credit for employers that adopt individual-coverage HRAs (ICRAs), offering up to $400 per covered employee in year one and $200 in year two and limiting statewide credits to $1 million; sponsors said maintenance-of-effort rules protect against employers cutting benefits to claim credits.

Stakeholders told the Labor and Workplace Standards Committee that Senate Bill 61 36 would require the Department of Labor and Industries to publish actuarially indicated workers’ compensation base rates and disclose when the department limits increases, helping employers and policymakers understand rate trade-offs.

Witnesses and a Spokane district court judge told the committee HB 2386 would improve accuracy and transparency in wage garnishments by replacing an outdated statutory answer form with a pattern form better suited to employers whose payrolls fluctuate; industry groups asked for realistic rollout timelines.

Central Minnesota Jobs and Training Services presented CareerForce offerings to Sherburne County leaders — including on-the-job training that covers up to 50% of new-hire wages, an incumbent-worker 'talent development' grant up to $25,000, and local job fairs and youth programs aimed at building the labor pipeline.

Chamber representatives warn that new health insurance mandates drive up costs for businesses.

The Senate Finance Committee adopted a committee substitute for SB 21 (Alaska Work and Save) and forwarded it to the Rules Committee. An amendment by Senator Kaufman to raise the employer threshold from more than 5 to more than 10 employees failed 3–4 after debate about coverage for small employers and program costs.

The Employment Training Panel outlined how multiple-employer contracts (MECs) work, who qualifies to serve as MECs and participating employers, reimbursement rates ($28/hr priority industries; $24/hr non-priority; $11/hr CBT), invoicing rules (advance payments after 8 hours), contract length (two years), and scaling options for HRTP partners.

Proposed changes aim to increase affordable health care access amid rising costs and COVID-19 challenges.

Senate discusses increasing childcare tax credit from 30% to 50% to encourage employer usage.

What is Food and Drinks Skills Wales? This is a Welsh Government funding to offer training to businesses within the food and drinks industry

Utah Department of Workforce Services business-relations staff described employer supports—HR coordination, accommodation planning, networking and local workshops—and listed upcoming employer workshops, mentoring events and career fairs; attendees were invited to use the pwdnetjobsutah.gov listserv for leads and contacts.