House Bill 339, the “Economic Security Act,” is a broad labor, tax, unemployment, workers’ compensation, and retirement bill. It would raise North Carolina’s minimum wage to $22 per hour beginning January 1, 2026, with annual inflation adjustments thereafter, and it would also increase the tipped minimum wage so that tips could no longer be counted as wages after that date. The bill creates a new state equal pay law, expands wage-theft remedies, requires wage notices and recordkeeping, and authorizes stronger civil penalties, damages, and liens for unpaid wages. It also establishes a new paid sick leave entitlement, workplace heat-safety and emergency protections, and anti-retaliation rights for employees who use those protections.
The bill further revises unemployment insurance by increasing the maximum weekly benefit amount and adjusting the duration of benefits based on unemployment rates, while directing a study of coverage for self-employed and app-based gig workers. It adds a workers’ compensation presumption for pandemic infections for certain public safety, health care, and essential workers. In the public sector, it would “ban the box” for state and local hiring by delaying criminal-history inquiries until after a conditional offer and limiting disqualification based on conviction history. It also repeals North Carolina’s statutory prohibition on collective bargaining agreements between government employers and labor organizations.
On the tax side, the bill reenacts the state earned income tax credit and creates a new refundable credit for child and dependent care expenses. It also appropriates $250 million in recurring General Fund money for a 3% cost-of-living adjustment for retirees in the major state retirement systems, including teachers, state employees, judicial employees, legislators, and local government employees. Most provisions are effective immediately or on January 1, 2026, with the retirement increase and related appropriation effective July 1, 2025.
Because there were no committee transcripts or recorded votes provided, there is no documented debate or formal vote history to assess. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears strongly pro-worker and pro-retiree in purpose, with a comprehensive package of wage, leave, safety, and benefit expansions. The breadth of the bill suggests it would have major fiscal and administrative effects on employers, state agencies, and local governments, especially through higher labor costs, new enforcement duties, and expanded employee rights.
The main points of contention likely would be the size and pace of the minimum wage increase, the mandate for paid sick leave, the repeal of public-sector collective bargaining restrictions, and the cost of the retirement COLA and unemployment benefit expansions. Employers, business groups, and some public-sector stakeholders would likely object to compliance costs and liability exposure, while labor advocates, worker-rights groups, and retiree advocates would likely support the bill’s wage, leave, safety, and benefit protections.
The bill would substantially amend North Carolina labor and employment law by rewriting minimum wage, tipped wage, equal pay, paid sick leave, wage payment, wage-theft enforcement, workplace safety, emergency leave, and anti-retaliation provisions in Chapters 95 and 126 of the General Statutes. It would also change unemployment insurance benefits in Chapter 96, add a workers’ compensation presumption in Chapter 97, reenact and expand tax credits in Chapter 105, repeal the public-employee collective bargaining ban in G.S. 95-98, and appropriate recurring funds for retirement COLAs under the state retirement statutes. The bill would directly affect private employers, public employers, employees, tipped workers, retirees, applicants for public employment, and certain essential workers.
No committee discussion or vote record was provided, so there is no formal legislative sentiment to report from hearings or roll calls. The bill’s text indicates a strongly pro-worker and pro-retiree policy direction, with expansive wage, leave, safety, and benefit protections. Its scope suggests supporters would likely frame it as an economic security package, while opponents would likely view it as a significant regulatory and fiscal expansion.
The most likely areas of contention are the $22 minimum wage, the elimination of tipped wage crediting after 2025, mandatory paid sick leave, and the repeal of restrictions on public-sector collective bargaining. The bill’s wage-theft remedies, including liens, enhanced damages, and attorney’s fees, could also draw opposition from employers concerned about litigation risk. Fiscal concerns may arise from the $250 million recurring appropriation for retiree COLAs and from the higher unemployment insurance benefit levels. Supporters would likely emphasize worker protections, pay equity, and retirement security, while critics would likely focus on business costs, administrative burden, and the impact on public finances.