New hiring laws in North Carolina for 2027: the new State Human Resources Act, PEO rules, retaliation complaints and what employers check next

As of November 2026, North Carolina passed few new hiring rules for private employers in 2026, and none we found takes effect in 2027. The changes that matter are narrow: from October 1, 2026, S.L. 2026-40 replaced the State Human Resources Act with a new Chapter 126A for state government jobs; since June 22, 2026, S.L. 2026-13 changes how Retaliatory Employment Discrimination Act (REDA) complaints are filed and answered; since July 7, 2026, S.L. 2026-48 removes the tangible net worth test for professional employer organizations; and since August 11, 2026, S.L. 2026-59 lets barbershops and salons hire shampoo and blow-dry staff without a license. The bigger 2026 and 2027 items for most North Carolina employers are federal: Form I-9 edition dates, the end of automatic work permit extensions and the EEOC's withdrawal of its criminal records guidance.

North Carolina added no pay transparency, salary history, AI hiring or private-employer ban-the-box law. Every item below is a session law of the 2025-2026 General Assembly, linked to its text on the General Assembly's site. The standing checklist (Division of Employment Security and Department of Revenue accounts, the NC-4, new-hire reporting, E-Verify) is in our North Carolina hiring hub; this page is the dated list of what is new.

Which North Carolina hiring laws changed in 2026, and what changes in 2027?

North Carolina session laws and the federal rules that apply to North Carolina employers, sorted by date.

What changed in REDA complaints?

REDA protects employees who file workers' compensation claims, wage and hour or safety complaints and other listed activities. S.L. 2026-13, approved June 22, 2026 and effective when it became law, rewrote G.S. 95-242. A complaint to the Commissioner of Labor must now include, among other things, the respondent's human resources contact, the complainant's supervisor at the time, the protected activity, any workers' compensation Form 18, a description of the retaliatory action and the date of the most recent one. It may be filed through the Department of Labor's website form, by mail or by email within 180 days, and a complainant who files a partial complaint gets 30 days to complete it.

Two changes help employers. "Within seven days of receipt of the complaint, the respondent may submit a position statement outlining affirmative defenses," and "extraneous materials submitted along with the complaint shall not be considered in the investigation and shall be destroyed." The act also adds G.S. 95-246 so deadlines are counted under Rule 6 of the Rules of Civil Procedure. Make sure the HR contact you give the Department, and the one on your workers' compensation paperwork, is monitored, because the seven-day window is short.

What does the new Chapter 126A mean for state government hiring?

S.L. 2026-40 "becomes effective October 1, 2026." It enacts Chapter 126A, the North Carolina Human Resources Act, for executive branch employees and local employees paid in whole or part from federal funds, and repeals Chapter 126. Article 5 covers recruitment and hiring: agencies post permanent and time-limited jobs in open competition unless the agency head decides otherwise under Commission policy, and select "from the pool of the most qualified candidates using fair and valid selection criteria." G.S. 126A-54(b) adds that an agency "may use skills based hiring to determine whether a person meets the minimum qualifications based on demonstrated competencies, instead of solely based on education, experience, or credentials." Agencies may also hire directly from the most-qualified pool of a recent posting.

This follows a 2025 law, S.L. 2025-34, which told the State Human Resources Commission to remove four-year degree language from position descriptions where it is not necessary and let agencies collect references later in the process. Section 5.1 of S.L. 2026-40 keeps the old Chapter 126 in place for specified matters that began before October 1, 2026, such as pending grievances. Recruiters who place candidates into state roles should read each posting's minimum qualifications closely, since experience can now stand in for a degree more often.

What changed for public schools, UNC and community colleges?

Two acts became law over the Governor's veto on June 24, 2026, both effective when they became law. S.L. 2026-20 (new G.S. 115C-76.210) bars public school units from compelling "students, teachers, administrators, or other school employees to affirm or profess belief in divisive concepts" and from engaging in listed discriminatory practices, defined to include "excluding an individual from employment, except as allowed under federal law," based on a federally protected classification. S.L. 2026-21 (new G.S. 116-417) applies similar rules to UNC campuses and community colleges and adds that they may not maintain a unit "named diversity, equity, and inclusion" or "employ or assign an employee whose duties" include promoting discriminatory practices or divisive concepts. Search firms recruiting for these institutions should expect job titles and duties to be written to fit the acts.

Which licensing and PEO changes affect who you can place?

• PEOs. Section 68 of S.L. 2026-48, approved July 7, 2026 and effective when it became law, rewrote parts of the PEO Act; the Department of Insurance's notice says it "repealed the tangible net worth requirement for Professional Employer Organizations." The $100,000 bond and extra security for negative working capital remain in G.S. 58-89A-50. What this means for a client choosing a PEO is in employer of record in North Carolina.
• Salons and barbershops. Section 7 of S.L. 2026-59, approved August 11, 2026, exempts "persons who are employed by barbershops and whose duties are expressly confined to the shampooing or blow drying of hair" from barber licensing, with a matching exemption for cosmetic art shops, subject to sanitation rules.
• Massage establishments. Section 8 of the same act says a person who provides only stretching services needs no massage and bodywork license, and an establishment may employ or contract with such a person.
• Licensed transfers from neighboring states. A 2025 law, S.L. 2025-61, has since October 1, 2025 given licensure recognition to people licensed in certain neighboring states who move to North Carolina, with exceptions such as health care practitioners licensed under Chapter 90, architects and CPAs. Section 69 of S.L. 2026-48 adjusted the list.

What did North Carolina not change in 2026?

• E-Verify. The North Carolina Border Protection Act, S.L. 2026-19, became law over veto on June 24, 2026, but it covers state agency cooperation with federal immigration officials, state-funded benefits and UNC, not private employers. The private-employer rules are in E-Verify requirements in North Carolina.
• Pay ranges and salary history. No law passed; see North Carolina pay transparency and North Carolina salary history rules.
• Criminal history. No private-employer ban-the-box law; see North Carolina background check laws. With the EEOC guidance rescinded on October 28, 2026, a job-related review using the Green factors from the 1975 Eighth Circuit case (the nature and gravity of the offense, the time since it and the nature of the job) remains a sound way to decide and document, and Title VII and the FCRA's adverse action steps still apply.
• Non-competes are still governed by G.S. 75-4 and case law; see North Carolina non-compete law.

What should North Carolina employers do before January 1, 2027?

1. Name a monitored contact for REDA complaints and calendar the seven-day position statement window.
2. Check Form I-9 versions: paper forms should be the 01/20/25 edition or the 08/01/23 printing that expires 05/31/2027, and electronic systems should show the 05/31/2027 version.
3. Review reverification dates for employees on work permits in the affected categories, since a timely renewal no longer extends the card automatically.
4. Remove references to the 2012 EEOC guidance from background check procedures, and record a job-related reason for each decision.
5. Update salon and spa job descriptions if you now hire unlicensed shampoo, blow-dry or stretching staff.

What does this mean for staffing agencies in North Carolina?

Little changed at the state level for staffing firms: no licensing, pay range or new E-Verify duty was added. PEOs and the clients that use them should note the July 7, 2026 change to the financial requirements, and agencies placing into state agencies, public schools or UNC should read postings against the new Chapter 126A and the June 2026 acts. The federal paperwork applies to every temporary worker an agency employs. See our North Carolina staffing agency guide; other states' 2027 changes are in new hiring laws for 2027.