Title 41, Labor and Employment

(A) As used in this section, "employer" means a person or entity that employs one or more employees and includes the State and its political subdivisions. (B) An employer shall provide an employee with reasonable unpaid break time or shall permit an employee to use paid break tim…

(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of the law, an employer may establish a drug prevention program in the workplace pursuant to Section 38-73-500(B) which shall include: (1) a substance abuse policy statement that balances the employer's respect for individuals with the need…

Every person who shall discharge or discriminate in the payment of wages against any person because of his membership in a labor organization shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than fifty dollars or be imprison…

(A) For purposes of this section: (1) "Employee benefit" means anything of value that an employee may receive from an employer in addition to wages. This term includes, but is not limited to, any health benefits, disability benefits, death benefits, group accidental death and dis…

(A) There is a civil right of action for wrongful termination against an employer who discharges an employee authorized to work in the United States for the purpose of replacing that employee with a person the employer knows or should reasonably know is an unauthorized alien. (B)…

(1) The term "labor organization" means any organization of any kind, or any agency or employee representation committee or plan, in which employees participate and which exists for the purpose, in whole or in part, of dealing with employers concerning grievances, labor disputes,…

(A) As used in this section: (1) "Employer" means any person, partnership, for profit or nonprofit corporation, limited liability corporation, the State and its political subdivisions and their agents that employ one or more employees. As used in this definition, "agent" means an…

Any employer who dismisses or demotes an employee because the employee complies with a valid subpoena to testify in a court proceeding or administrative proceeding or to serve on a jury of any court is subject to a civil action in the circuit court for damages caused by the dismi…

No employer may discharge or demote any employee because the employee has instituted or caused to be instituted, in good faith, any proceeding under the South Carolina Workers' Compensation Law (Title 42 of the 1976 Code), or has testified or is about to testify in any such proce…

The use of tobacco products outside the workplace must not be the basis of personnel action, including, but not limited to, employment, termination, demotion, or promotion of an employee.

Every employer in this State who requires prospective employees to complete a job training program conducted either by the employer or on behalf of the employer by an outside organization prior to consideration for employment shall give each prospective employee before beginning …

A Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation must be appointed by the Governor pursuant to the provisions of Section 40-1-40. The director means the chief administrative officer of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation. The department is authorized …

All blanks and forms required by the Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or his designee under provisions of Chapters 1 through 24 must be furnished by the director or his designee.

The Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or his designee may subpoena witnesses, documents, take and preserve testimony, examine witnesses, administer oaths and, under proper restrictions, enter any public institution of the State or any factory, store, w…

The Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or his designee shall enforce the provisions of Chapters 1 through 24 and prosecute all violations of law relating to those chapters before any court of competent jurisdiction.

The solicitor of the circuit or the prosecuting attorney of the city court, upon the request of the Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or his designee, or any of his assistants or deputies, shall prosecute any violation of law which it is the duty of th…

Any person who shall willfully impede or prevent the Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or his designee, his agents or assistants, in the free and full performance of his duties shall, upon conviction, be fined not less than one hundred dollars or more …

The Director of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, or his designee, pursuant to Section 40-1-40, may employ such personnel and prescribe their duties, powers, and functions as he considers necessary and as may be authorized by the statute and for which funds have been authorized in…

The Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, or his designee, shall promulgate regulations with reference to this title as shall be necessary properly to carry out the duties imposed upon the department.

The director of the department or his designee shall visit and inspect at reasonable hours, as often as practicable, all places, sites, or areas where employment comes under the jurisdiction of the department to enforce the provisions of Chapters 1 through 24.

At any construction site involving multiple employers or contractors, the department inspector when citing any such employer or contractor for a violation of any regulation or standard provided by law shall first determine which employer or contractor is in violation and such emp…

The Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or his designee shall enforce all laws of Chapters 1 through 24 in places, sites, or areas, which come under his jurisdiction, and appoint such assistants and inspectors as necessary to carry out his duties. The du…

Wherever in any other chapter of Title 41 the term Commissioner of Labor appears or is used, it is considered to mean the Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or his designee. Wherever in any other chapter of Title 41 the term Department of Labor appears …

A representative of the employer and a representative authorized by his employees shall be given an opportunity to accompany the Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or his designee, his assistant or inspector during the physical inspection of any workpla…

This chapter must be known and may be cited as the "Employment First Initiative Act".

As used in this chapter: (1) "Competitive integrated employment" means work in the competitive labor market that is: (a) performed on a full-time or part-time basis in an integrated setting; and (b) for which an individual is compensated at or above the minimum wage, but not less…

All state agencies and political subdivisions of this State are encouraged to consider adopting a policy that encourages competitive integrated employment for individuals with disabilities.

All state agencies are encouraged to: (1) coordinate efforts and collaborate within and among themselves to ensure that state programs, policies, procedures, and funding support the competitive and integrated employment of individuals with disabilities; (2) share data and informa…

(A) There is hereby established the "South Carolina Employment First Oversight Commission" consisting of nine members appointed by the Governor, five of whom must have a disability or have substantial knowledge of disability issues, and four of whom must be from the business comm…

Within six months after the first meeting required in Section 41-5-150(B), the commission shall establish evidence-based measurable goals and objectives to encourage implementation of this chapter. The commission shall track the measurable progress of state agencies in implementi…

The commission annually shall, before January first, issue a report to the Governor and members of the General Assembly which details progress toward the goals and objectives of the commission and progress toward the full implementation of this chapter. The report also shall iden…

The commission may seek the guidance and expertise of all stakeholders, including individuals with disabilities, organizations that advocate on behalf of individuals with disabilities, providers of services to individuals with disabilities, local government, and business associat…

Employers, community rehabilitation programs, and hospital patient care workers at regional centers shall not use Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to pay disabled employees a subminimum wage. No individual with a disability may be paid less than the federal m…

Beginning on January 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, the Office of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities shall submit a report to the General Assembly concerning the payment of a subminimum wage in South Carolina. The report shall: (1) identify all providers in this State…

It is hereby declared to be the public policy of this State that the right of persons to work must not be denied or abridged because of membership or nonmembership in a labor union or labor organization.

(A) An employer, labor organization, or other person who violates the provisions of this chapter may be assessed by the Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation a civil penalty of not more than ten thousand dollars for each offense. (B) The director shall pro…

An employer, or a single employee of that employer with the permission of the employer, may post in a conspicuous place a notice containing the provisions of Sections 41-7-10, 41-7-20, 41-7-30, 41-7-40, 41-7-70, and 41-7-90 printed in at least fourteen point font. This notice mus…

A labor organization with members that work in South Carolina shall file with the department contemporaneously copies of the documents required to be filed with the Secretary of Labor, pursuant to 29 U.S.C. Sections 401, et seq. as amended.

Any agreement or combination between any employer and any labor organization whereby persons not members of such labor organizations shall be denied the right to work for such employer or whereby such membership is made a condition of employment, or of continuance of employment b…

(A) It is unlawful for an employer to require an employee, as a condition of employment, or of continuance of employment to: (1) be or become or remain a member or affiliate of a labor organization or agency; (2) abstain or refrain from membership in a labor organization; or (3) …

Nothing in this chapter precludes an employer from deducting from the wages of the employees and paying over to a labor organization, or its authorized representative, membership dues in a labor organization; however, the employer must have received from each employee, on whose a…

It shall be unlawful for any labor organization to enter into or seek to effect any agreement, contract or arrangement with any employer declared to be unlawful by Sections 41-7-20 or 41-7-30.

The provisions of Sections 41-7-20 to 41-7-40 shall not apply to any contract, otherwise lawful, in force and effect on March 19, 1954, but they shall apply to all contracts thereafter concluded and to any renewal or extension of existing contracts.

It shall be unlawful for any person, acting alone or in concert with one or more persons: (1) By force, intimidation, violence or threats thereof, or violent or insulting language, directed against the person or property, or any member of the family of any person (a) to interfere…

(A) The Director of the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or his designee shall ensure compliance with this chapter and shall cooperate with an employee in the investigation and enforcement of a meritorious claim against an employer. Hearings may be hel…

An employer, labor organization, or other person who violates a provision of this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, must be punished by imprisonment for not less than ten days nor more than thirty days, a fine of not less than one thousand dollars but not …