Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
New Hampshire
Manchester officials and students call on feds to keep Job Corps going
New Hampshire students and elected officials are calling on the Trump Administration to reverse its termination of Job Corps, a free education and job training program for young adults.
Isaiah Martino, 22, was one of several who spoke out at a press conference Monday at the Manchester Community College. Martino dropped out of high school with no job and no place to live. In January, he graduated from Job Corps. Martino called the program a second chance at life.
“I now have my high school diploma and driver’s license. I am a certified kitchen cook. I have a stable job, an apartment, and a car,” Martino, of Manchester, said. “Before going to Job Corps, these were things that I never imagined that I would achieve.”
A federal judge has temporarily stopped the Trump Administration from eliminating the federally funded program, which has about 120 sites nationwide, including one in Manchester – its only New Hampshire location. Job Corps offers youth ages 16 to 24 high school diploma classes, and training programs in nursing, manufacturing and other in-demand fields.
About 250 students are enrolled in the New Hampshire program, and all but a few live on campus. About 115 people work at the Manchester site.
Daria Martin-Bennitt, 17, graduated from Manchester West High School this weekend, a year early, with one goal: She wanted to complete Job Corps’ electrical training program so she could help her family pay bills.
“I was excited to start to learn a trade and to finally be on a path that made sense for me. Now I feel like that’s been taken away from me,” Martin-Bennitt said. “And it’s not just me. There are a lot of people like me who don’t have many options.”
New Hampshire has not joined the federal lawsuit that paused the program’s termination. A message to the state Attorney General’s Office was not returned.
Executive Councilor John Stephen, whose district includes Manchester, said closing the site is not an option. Stephen stopped short of saying New Hampshire should sign on to the lawsuit, saying that is up to Gov. Kelly Ayotte and Attorney General John Formella.
“These youth are not at risk,” Stephen said. “They are at promise, and we need to all stand behind them.”
But Stephen said he is working with state agencies to support the students and employees.
Jason Bonilla, a member of Manchester’s school board and candidate for city alderman, echoed that Monday.
“This is a time for every elected official, no matter what party they are in New Hampshire, to leverage their platforms and speak out against shutting the doors at Job Corps,” Bonilla said. “This is the time to show action and join the fight with our youth.”
What employers are getting wrong, and how to fix it before it becomes a claim
New Hampshire’s employment law landscape heading into 2026 may not be dramatically different from last year, but the real risks lie in implementation missteps. From the initial setting of wages, to calculating and distributing wages, employers will likely find a specific statute and/or labor regulation governing the transaction. Failure to follow these detailed wage and hour laws can result in significant back wages and other penalties being imposed by the state or federal Department of Labor following an audit. Fortunately, however, this area of employment law is relatively easy to master, once you are familiar with the basics.
Notice compliance
One of the most common pitfalls for employers in New Hampshire is misunderstanding the wage and hour notice requirements under RSA 275 and the related New Hampshire Department of Labor Administrative Rules.
At the time of hire, employers must notify employees in writing of their rate of pay and the day and place of payment. This notice is traditionally delivered to employees by way of an offer letter or some sort of “New Hire Rate of Pay” form. (A sample form is available from the New Hampshire Department of Labor website.) What surprises most employers, however, is that Lab. 803.03(f)(6) also requires employers to request and obtain their employees’ signatures on this written notification of wages, and employers must keep a copy of the signed written notification of wages on file. Further, employers must notify employees in writing during the course of employment of any changes to wages or day of pay prior to such changes taking effect, and the employer must obtain the employee’s signature on this subsequent notification as well. (See RSA 275:49; Lab. 803.03.)
Employers are further required to notify employees in writing, or through a posted notice maintained in a place accessible to employees, of:
• employment practices and policies with regard to vacation pay, sick leave and other fringe benefits.
• deductions made from the employee’s payroll check, for each period such deductions are made.
• information regarding the deductions allowed from wage payments under state law. (RSA 275:49; Lab. 803.03.)
Policies regarding vacation and sick leave should inform employees whether or not the employer will “cash out” unused time at year end or at the end of employment, and if so, under what terms. Again, if any changes are made to vacation pay, sick leave and other fringe benefits during the course of employment (all of which are considered “wages” under New Hampshire law), employers must request and obtain their employees’ signatures on the written notification of the change, and must keep a copy of the signed form on file. (Lab. 803.03.) Importantly, notification by way of pay stub alone is not sufficient, and, these requirements apply to both increases and decreases in pay.
Two-hour minimum (reporting pay)
Another frequently overlooked obligation is New Hampshire’s two-hour minimum reporting pay requirement. Under RSA 275:43-a, non-exempt employees who report to work but are sent home early must generally be paid for at least two hours. Weather-related closures, client cancellations or operational slowdown days can trigger this rule. Employers should also note that the New Hampshire Department of Labor currently applies this law to remote-based employees. Consequently, employees who “report to work” at an employer’s request from a home office may likewise have a right to two hours of pay, depending on the circumstances.
Salaried vs. hourly employees
Misclassification of employees as exempt from overtime remains a significant source of compliance exposure. The position’s job duties — not the titles or label such as “salaried” — determine whether an employee qualifies for an overtime exemption.
Employers, particularly in nonprofits, health care and small businesses, unintentionally misapply exempt classifications to roles such as administrative staff, office managers, executive assistants, program coordinators or hybrid jobs that involve significant non-exempt tasks. Over time, as organizational needs evolve and employees take on broader responsibilities, job duties can drift outside of an exemption’s scope.
Best practice is to periodically review job descriptions and actual job duties to ensure continued compliance with exemption criteria, particularly following any significant restructuring or job redesigns.
Peg O’Brien is chair of McLane Middleton’s Employment Law Practice Group. She can be reached at margaret.o’brien@mclane.com.
Local News
“Our family wants to know what happened, who did this and why,” said the family of the victim.
A new photo has been released of the victim in a nearly 30-year-long unsolved murder case, in the hope of finding any new potential witnesses in the cold case, New Hampshire officials said.
“Our family wants to know what happened, who did this and why,” the family of Rosalie Miller said in a press release. “We miss her and want to give her peace.”
Miller was last seen on December 8, 1996 at her apartment in Manchester. At the time of her disappearance, Miller had plans on meeting friends in the Auburn, New Hampshire area, officials said.
Her body was found on January 20, 1997 in a partially wooded spot on a residential lot along the Londonderry Turnpike in Auburn, officials said in the release.
The autopsy report declared Miller’s death a homicide by asphyxiation due to ligature strangulation, N.H. officials wrote.
As part of a new effort to garner public help with the case, an “uncirculated” photo of Miller, 36, is being distributed “in hopes it may jog the memory of someone who saw or spoke with her in the winter of 1996,” Attorney General John M. Formella and New Hampshire State Police Colonel Mark B. Hall announced on behalf of the New Hampshire Cold Case Unit in a joint press release.
Investigators are especially hoping to talk to anyone who was in contact with Miller in December of 1996 or anyone “who may have seen her in the vicinity of the Londonderry Turnpike in Auburn during that time,” officials said in the release.
“We are releasing this new photograph today because we believe someone out there has information, perhaps a detail they thought was insignificant at the time, that could be the key to solving this case and bringing justice for Rosalie and those who loved her,” Senior Assistant Attorney General R. Christopher Knowles, New Hampshire Cold Case Unit Chief said in the release.
The New Hampshire Cold Case Unit encourages anyone with any amount of information to contact the group at [email protected] or (603) 271-2663.
News9 minutes ago
Supreme Court blocks redrawing of New York congressional map, dealing a win for GOP
West15 minutes ago
Oregon Dems block effort to alert ICE before illegal immigrant murderers are released
Midwest21 minutes ago
Terrifying moment caught on camera as road collapse suddenly swallows vehicles at busy intersection
Southwest27 minutes ago
Jasmine Crockett campaign reportedly kicked Atlantic writer out of rally for being a ‘top-notch hater’
Southeast33 minutes ago
Atlanta-area police blast parents over vodka martini packed in school lunch: ‘That is NOT apple juice’
Florida1 year ago
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Connecticut2 years ago
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
Oregon2 years ago
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
Virginia2 years ago
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana1 year ago
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
News9 minutes ago
Supreme Court blocks redrawing of New York congressional map, dealing a win for GOP
News10 hours ago
Map: Earthquake Shakes Central California
Politics11 hours ago
Gas prices could jump as Middle East tensions threaten global oil supply
World12 hours ago
Pakistan calls troops, orders 3-day curfew as 24 killed in pro-Iran rallies
News12 hours ago
US says Kuwait accidentally shot down 3 American jets
-
World5 days agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Massachusetts5 days agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Denver, CO5 days ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Louisiana1 week agoWildfire near Gum Swamp Road in Livingston Parish now under control; more than 200 acres burned
-
Technology1 week agoYouTube TV billing scam emails are hitting inboxes
-
Politics1 week agoOpenAI didn’t contact police despite employees flagging mass shooter’s concerning chatbot interactions: REPORT
-
Technology1 week agoStellantis is in a crisis of its own making
-
News1 week agoWorld reacts as US top court limits Trump’s tariff powers