The California Legislature passed and Governor Newsom signed several new laws covering topics ranging from COVID-19 to leaves of absence to data reporting. Most of these laws take effect January 1, so now is a good time for...more
12/14/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Arbitration ,
Board of Directors ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
California Family Rights Act (CFRA) ,
Child Abuse ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Diversity ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Governor Newsom ,
Health and Safety ,
Independent Contractors ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Labor Commissioners ,
Leave of Absence ,
Minimum Wage ,
Misclassification ,
New Legislation ,
Notification Requirements ,
Pay Data ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Secretary of State ,
Sick Employees ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws ,
Successor Liability ,
Unpaid Leave ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workers' Compensation Claim ,
Workplace Safety
As states and localities begin to relax shelter-in-place requirements and allow businesses to reopen, the coronavirus pandemic presents new challenges for employers. In addition to operational and logistical questions...more
4/29/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
DFEH ,
Duty of Confidentiality ,
EFMLA ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
EPSLA ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Flexible Work Arrangements ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Medical Testing ,
PHI ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Rehiring Issues ,
Sick Leave ,
State and Local Government ,
Workplace Safety
With the spread of COVID-19 and the rapidly evolving federal, state, and local government response, it can be difficult for employers to keep up with their rights and obligations. This week, California’s Governor Gavin Newsom...more
3/24/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Layoffs ,
Notice Requirements ,
San Francisco ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
Unemployment Insurance ,
WARN Act
The California Legislature and Governor Newsom have passed a sizable list of new laws governing the workplace in 2020. Employers are, once again, advised to evaluate their workplace rules and practices to insure they keep...more
12/30/2019
/ ABC Test ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Arbitration Fees ,
Breastfeeding ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Dependent Care Assistance Program (DCAP) ,
DFEH ,
DLSE ,
Dynamex ,
Employee Privacy Rights ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hairstyle Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Janitorial Services ,
Labor Commissioners ,
Mandatory Arbitration ,
Misclassification ,
New Rules ,
No-Rehire Provisions ,
Organ Donation ,
OSHA ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Retroactive Application ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
State Labor Laws ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Statutory Penalties ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Illness and Injury Reporting
All employers should be aware that their use of mandatory employment arbitration agreements is prohibited in California effective January 1, 2020 under recently signed Assembly Bill No. 51 (AB 51).
Under current California...more
On January 1, 2020, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), a consumer-friendly privacy law inspired by the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, is set to take effect. The CCPA is aimed towards bolstering...more
10/3/2019
/ California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Retention ,
Data Security ,
Data Use Policies ,
Employee Privacy Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Records ,
Job Applicants ,
Notice Requirements ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Popular ,
Privacy Laws
A California court has held that employees required to call their employers before a shift to determine whether they are assigned to work may be entitled to reporting time pay on days when they are not actually put to work....more
2/14/2019
/ Appeals ,
Call-In Pay ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
IWC ,
Mercantile Industry ,
On-Call Employees ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Orders ,
Work Schedules
California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed into law several bills that will have significant impact on employers’ workplace obligations. Effective January 1, 2019, the new laws will restrict nondisclosure agreements and...more
10/11/2018
/ Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Board of Directors ,
Breastfeeding ,
Cal Code of Civil Procedure ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
DFEH ,
Diversity ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
FEHA ,
Governor Brown ,
Governor Vetoes ,
Hostile Environment ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Popular ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Release Agreements ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Secretary of State ,
Section 998 ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Settlement Offer ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws ,
Summary Judgment
Employers which use background checks in their hiring process without obtaining written authorization may wish to review their practices. The California Supreme Court has rejected an argument that employers could not...more
Last week, in Troester v. Starbucks, a unanimous California Supreme Court held that California labor statutes and wage orders do not incorporate federal de minimis work exceptions. Yet, the Court declined to define when, if...more
7/31/2018
/ Appeals ,
CA Supreme Court ,
De Minimis Claims ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Labor Code ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Reversal ,
Starbucks ,
State Labor Laws ,
Summary Judgment ,
Timekeeping ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour
The California Fair Employment and Housing Council has published new regulations that increase protections from national origin discrimination, including expanding the definition of “national origin.” The regulations will...more
The California Supreme Court established a new three-part test to determine whether a purported independent contractor should be classified as an employee covered by California’s Wage Orders. Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v....more
5/7/2018
/ ABC Test ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Classification ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Orders
In Alvarado v. Dart Container Corporation of California, the California Supreme Court clarified how a flat sum bonus – a bonus that is independent of the number of hours worked by an employee – must be enhanced to comply with...more
The California Court of Appeal has held that the California Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notice (WARN) Act requires that employers notify employees of temporary layoffs, even if anticipated to last less than six...more
Governor Jerry Brown has signed into law AB 1506, a bill that will allow employers to cure two types of technical itemized wage-statement violations to avoid the risk of costly Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) suits....more
California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed into law A.B. 1897, significantly expanding the potential liability of employers who use labor contractors, subcontractors, or staffing agencies for workers. Effective January...more
California Governor Jerry Brown has signed into law the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014. The new law requires almost all California employers to provide paid sick time to most full-time and part-time...more
On July 21, 2014, a California Court of Appeal held that overtime exempt status is not undermined by requiring employees to use accrued leave for absences of less than half a day. ...more
On July 14, 2014, the California Supreme Court clarified the commissioned employee exemption from overtime under California law. In Peabody v. Time Warner Cable, Inc., the court confirmed that calculations necessary to...more