Virginia’s Democratic Trifecta Enacts a Flurry of New Wage and Hour Laws During the General Assembly’s 2026 Session

In the 2025 statewide elections, Virginia Democrats gained control of both chambers of the state legislature and the governorship, securing a governmental “trifecta.” The last time Democrats achieved such a trifecta was in the 2019 statewide elections, and Democrats quickly went to work advancing and enacting a wave of new wage and hour legislation, revamping the Virginia Wage Payment Act and enacting the Virginia Overtime Wage Act, among other things. Just like the last time, Virginia Democrats wasted no time advancing new labor and employment legislation in this year’s legislative session, including a flurry of new wage and hour laws. 

Initially, the governor signed only two of the legislature’s proposals into law, sending recommendations on the remaining bills back for consideration as part of a special session that began on April 22, 2026. The legislature, however, made short work of those recommendations, quickly concurring in the governor’s recommendations to all four bills that she had returned with modification. 

Below is a high-level summary of all of the new wage and hour laws passed in Virginia in 2026.

Changes to Minimum Wage and Overtime Pay

First, Governor Spanberger signed House Bill (HB) 1/Senate Bill (SB) 1 into law. This legislation revises Virginia’s minimum wage statute to incrementally increase the minimum wage to at least $15.00 per hour according to the following schedule:

• January 1, 2026 – December 31, 2026: $12.77 per hour
• January 1, 2027 – December 31, 2027: $13.75 per hour
• January 1, 2028 – December 31, 2028: $15.00 per hour

From January 1, 2029, onward, the legislation calls for additional annual increases set by Virginia’s Department of Labor and Industry (DOLI), though it does not specify the exact amount by which the minimum wage will increase going forward.

Historically, farm laborers and farm employees have been excepted from Virginia’s minimum wage requirements, meaning employers were not required to pay these workers Virginia’s statutory minimum wage. However, HB 20/SB 121, which Governor Spanberger also signed into law, eliminates this exception, and employers will be required to pay Virginia’s statutory minimum wage to farm laborers and farm employees beginning on January 1, 2027. 

Likewise, domestic service workers – such as babysitters, cooks, maids, housekeepers, nannies, nurses, caretakers, handymen, gardeners, home health aides, and personal care aides – have historically been exempt from Virginia’s statutory overtime pay requirement, but HB 27/SB 28 eliminates this exemption. However, under the terms of the statute, HB 27/SB 28 will become effective on July 1, 2028, only if it is reenacted by the 2027 Session of the Virginia General Assembly.

Elimination of Sovereign Immunity for Wage and Hour Purposes

Notably, Virginia’s legislature did not focus exclusively on the private sector. The legislature also turned its attention to the state, its agencies, and its political subdivisions (such as counties and independent cities), which have historically been immune from Virginia’s statutory minimum wage and overtime requirements. Under HB 670, however, the state, its agencies, and its political subdivisions will be subject to the same minimum wage and overtime standards as private sector employers if the statute is reenacted by the 2027 Session of the General Assembly.

Omnibus Labor and Employment Legislation

In addition to these new laws that are each aimed at expanding specific aspects of Virginia wage and hour statutes, Virginia also enacted HB 238, an omnibus bill that amends various portions of the Virginia Code to ensure the state’s wage and hour laws are more employee friendly. 

First, with respect to the misclassification of employees as independent contractors, which has been the subject of increased attention from the federal Department of Labor and from various state governments in recent years, HB 238 expands the scope of available relief, providing successful plaintiffs all the remedies available for violations of the Virginia Wage Payment Act (VWPA). This includes automatic recovery of an amount equal to double the amount of any unpaid wages, plus prejudgment interest and reasonable attorney fees and costs. For “knowing” violations of the law, the VWPA authorizes a court to award triple the amount of lost wages. 

Similarly, this legislation also expands the scope of remedies for minimum wage and overtime pay violations in Virginia, providing full VWPA remedies for those violations as well. In so doing, these amendments make available damages for Virginia minimum wage and overtime violations more expansive than those available under federal law.

Relatedly, the enactment of HB 238 amends the VWPA to reverse a 2025 Virginia Supreme Court decision that found that commission payments are not covered by the VWPA, explicitly amending the statute to make clear that commission are “wages” under Virginia law.

Additionally, HB 238 expands the circumstances under which the commissioner of Virginia’s Department of Labor and Industry may investigate suspected violations of Virginia’s wage and hour laws. The legislation authorizes the commissioner to initiate investigative proceedings upon receipt of a “complaint from an employee or an interested third party, or at the Commissioner’s discretion.” The statute also specifically authorizes the commissioner, or their representative, to “enter the employer’s premises to review records.” If the commissioner determines that there is a good-faith basis to believe that a wage and hour violation has occurred, the commissioner may institute administrative or court enforcement action against an employer, seeking the remedies available under the VWPA.

The provisions of HB 238 become effective on July 1, 2026.

Wage Transparency and Prohibition Against Seeking Wage History in Hiring

Finally, Virginia has now joined the expanding list of states enacting pay transparency requirements and limitations on using individuals’ pay histories in the hiring process. The legislature passed HB 636/SB 215, which prohibits employers from (1) seeking the pay history of prospective employees, (2) relying on the pay history of prospective employees when making hiring decisions, (3) relying on the pay history of a prospective employee to determine that person’s pay upon hire, (4) retaliating against a prospective or current employee because they refused to provide their pay history or because they requested a pay range for an open position, (5) failing or refusing to disclose the pay range for an open position in any posting for that position, and (6) failing to set a pay range for a position in good faith.

The new statute authorizes employees and prospective employees who are aggrieved by violations of this statute to recover actual damages. HB 636/SB 215 becomes effective on July 1, 2026.

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Virginia’s legislature has been active this year in the wage and hour space, and we expect that trend to continue into 2027 and beyond, should the Democrats maintain their trifecta. Indeed, some of the bills initially receiving support from the legislature this term were continued to the 2027 legislative session. Littler will continue to monitor and track developments on these and other pending items.