House Commerce and General committees advanced an amendment to S.313 that adds five sections to align parental-leave and employment statutes, clarify that elected municipal offices are not employees under wage-and-overtime law, and prohibit noncompete clauses for health-care providers; both committees reported favorable straw polls and the matter moved to the floor.

The Vermont House advanced S.230, an omnibus fair‑employment bill that clarifies parental‑leave rules for teachers, expands survivor protections under the Fair Employment Practices Act, and restricts noncompete agreements for nonexempt employees and certain health‑care contracts; the committee reported the measure favorably and the House ordered third reading.

The House Committee on General and Housing reviewed draft language to add a narrow noncompete ban to S.230, prohibiting agreements not to compete for nonexempt employees and preserving collective-bargaining carve-outs; lawmakers and counsel debated whether to tie the ban to FLSA exempt/nonexempt tests or use a fixed wage threshold.

H.205 would generally prohibit noncompete agreements with specified exceptions, limit 'stay or pay' provisions, and include special protections for health care providers; the committee recommended an amendment and the House ordered third reading after debate and an interrogation about a teacher carve‑out.

The General & Housing Committee reviewed H.459, which would bar employers with 50+ employees from counting workers’ compensation absences against the state Parental and Family Leave Act, amid testimony that the change could protect job rights but complicate employer compliance and return‑to‑work planning.

PEPC staff urged repeal of the VEGI sunset and highlighted program oversight, claimed lifecycle impacts (2007–2023) including $1.2 billion in new capital investment and more than 10,000 jobs; committee debated permanence versus statutory sunsets and asked for further review of enhanced incentives.

DAIL reported that HireAbility’s opioid recovery employment pilot has expanded beyond two sites to five locations and that HireAbility and vocational programs exceeded national averages on several employment metrics in FY25.

Frank Coffey of the Greater Burlington Industrial Corporation told a Senate committee that the Vermont Employment Growth Incentive (VEGI) is a revenue-positive program that spurs capital investment and jobs, and he urged passage of S.225 to remove the program’s periodic sunset.

At a Jan. 28 hearing on H.205, health‑care, labor, banking and business representatives and a chiropractor urged narrower use of noncompete clauses, debated a $100,000 salary threshold and sought clearer definitions for 'executive' status, nonsolicitation notices and proration of stay‑or‑pay agreements.

Vepsi evaluates raising its tax incentive cap by $5 million to support employment growth.

Bill seeks to restrict employer background checks and drug testing without job relevance.