There is widespread agreement that vaccinations provide our greatest chance of defeating COVID-19. Numerous myths about the vaccine, however, could raise unfounded fears and hamper rollout efforts. Employers face additional...more
Why it matters -
The April 1 deadline is looming for California employers, who are facing amendments to the state's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), including the creation of an affirmative duty to "prevent and...more
California Sick Leave Law Gets Updates -
Why it matters:
California's Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act just took effect on July 1 but Governor Jerry Brown has already signed into law tweaks to the statute....more
8/10/2015
/ Accrued Benefits ,
Administrative Interpretation ,
Amicus Briefs ,
Appearance Policy ,
Back Pay ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Cheerleaders ,
Classification ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
DLSE ,
Economic Realities Test ,
EEOC v Abercrombie ,
Employee Rights ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Governor Brown ,
Healthy Workplaces Healthy Families Act 2014 ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Commissioners ,
Misclassification ,
New Guidance ,
New Legislation ,
NFL ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
Suitable Seats Lawsuits ,
Title VII ,
UPS ,
Wage and Hour
DOL Proposes Major Overhaul of Overtime Rules:
Why it matters -
Expanding the scope of employees eligible for overtime, the Department of Labor (DOL) released its long-awaited new rules revising the white collar...more
7/23/2015
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Class Certification ,
Classification ,
Comment Period ,
Conciliation ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Fox Searchlight Pictures ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Internships ,
IRS ,
Mach Mining v EEOC ,
Misclassification ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
NPRM ,
Over-Time ,
Primary Beneficiary Test ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Section 6722 ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Tax Penalties ,
Trade Preferences Extension Act (TPEA) ,
Unpaid Interns ,
W-2 ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
The Impact of National Same-Sex Marriage for Employers -
Why it matters:
How will employers feel the impact of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges? The landmark ruling that the Fourteenth...more
7/13/2015
/ Appeals ,
Class Certification ,
Classification ,
Coerced Patronage ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
DOMA ,
Due Process ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Protection ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure ,
FedEx ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
FRCP 23(b)(3) ,
Indemnification ,
Independent Contractors ,
IRS ,
Misclassification ,
NLRA ,
Obergefell v. Hodges ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Reimbursements ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
SCOTUS ,
Selfies ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Spouses ,
Title VII ,
Uber ,
Unpaid Wages ,
US v Windsor ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wages ,
Wrongful Termination
Joint Employers Can Be Liable for Employee Misclassification in California:
Why it matters -
Liability under the California Labor Code extends to joint employers that are aware of a willful misclassification of an...more
6/29/2015
/ Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Class Action ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Discrimination ,
Earned Sick Time ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Hostile Environment ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint and Several Liability ,
Joint Employers ,
Minimum Wage ,
Misclassification ,
OSHA ,
Paid Leave ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
SCOTUS ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Sick Leave ,
Transgender ,
Tyson Foods ,
Wage and Hour
Actual Knowledge by Employer Not Necessary for Title VII Religious Discrimination Claim, U.S. Supreme Court Rules -
Why it matters:
In a closely watched case, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with a teenage applicant to...more
6/15/2015
/ Abercrombie & Fitch ,
Class Action ,
Disability ,
EEOC v Abercrombie ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
FEHA ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Mootness ,
On-Call Employees ,
On-Duty Meal Period Waivers ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
SCOTUS ,
Security Guards ,
Settlement ,
TCPA ,
Text Messages ,
Texting ,
Title VII ,
Wage and Hour
Coming Soon to an In-Box Near You: An EEOC Charge -
Why it matters:
Employers, take note: the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has initiated the rollout of its electronic complaint program, the first...more
5/28/2015
/ ACT Digital ,
Employee Tracking ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fast-Food Industry ,
FEHA ,
Minimum Wage ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
OSHA ,
Smartphones ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Safety
U.S. Supreme Court: Security Screenings Not Compensable -
Why it matters: In a closely watched case, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously reversed the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to rule that the time spent by...more
1/26/2015
/ Amazon ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
FEHA ,
Integrity Staffing v Busk ,
Internet Retailers ,
NLRB ,
On-Call Employees ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Retailers ,
SCOTUS ,
Security Checks ,
Wage and Hour
EEOC’s Wellness Challenge Feeling Under the Weather -
Why it matters: The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) efforts to challenge employer wellness programs hit a snag when a federal court judge in...more
12/1/2014
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Arbitration ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Conde Nast ,
D.R. Horton v NLRB ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
GINA ,
Honeywell International ,
Iskanian ,
Murphy Oil USA ,
Ralphs ,
Unpaid Interns ,
Wellness Programs
State Voters Pass Paid Sick Leave, Wage Increases -
Why it matters: The polls have closed and the votes are in: The midterm elections will have a significant impact on employers across the country as voters in multiple...more
11/21/2014
/ Arbitration ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Facebook ,
Halliburton ,
Independent Contractors ,
Iskanian ,
Minimum Wage ,
NLRB ,
Paid Leave ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Sick Leave ,
Social Media ,
Trucking Industry ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wellness Programs
Why it matters -
In a new regulatory notice, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) reminded regulated firms not to prohibit the exercise of whistleblower rights in settlement agreements with employees and...more
DOL Grants Could Signal More Misclassification Actions -
Why it matters: Employers have faced a tidal wave of litigation over the alleged misclassification of employees as independent contractors, with workers ranging...more
10/30/2014
/ ADEA ,
Adverse Employment Action ,
Age Discrimination ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
FedEx ,
FEHA ,
Medical Examinations ,
Misclassification ,
NFL ,
Strategic Enforcement Plan
EEOC Sues Over Transgender Discrimination -
Why it matters: In its first cases alleging bias against transgender employees, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed suit against a Florida eye clinic and a...more
10/20/2014
/ Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
IRS ,
NLRB ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Social Media Policy ,
Title VII ,
Transgender ,
Unpaid Interns ,
Wage and Hour
The Need to Correctly Classify Employees -
Why it matters: Providing a $1.25 million lesson in the importance of correctly classifying employees, the Oakland Raiders settled a lawsuit brought by the team’s cheerleading...more
California Enacts Paid Sick Leave -
Why it matters: Employers in California must now provide three paid sick days per year for workers, pursuant to a new law going into effect on July 1, 2015. The controversial...more
9/19/2014
/ Ban the Box ,
Cell Phones ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
FedEx ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Job Applicants ,
Misclassification ,
New Legislation ,
NLRB ,
Paid Leave ,
Reimbursements ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
Sick Leave
High Court’s Fall Docket Includes Major Employment Issues -
Why it matters: While the 2013-2014 U.S. Supreme Court term may be over, the justices have granted certiorari in two major employment cases slated for the...more
7/24/2014
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Certiorari ,
Disability ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
FEHA ,
Mining ,
NLRA ,
NLRB
Recess Is Over: Supreme Court Strikes NLRB Appointments -
Why it matters: Striking a blow to the President and the National Labor Relations Board, the U.S. Supreme Court held that three recess appointments made by...more
7/10/2014
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Canning v NLRB ,
Disability ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Facebook ,
LGBTQ ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Recess Appointments ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
SCOTUS
Appellate Court Tosses Employee’s Seating Suit -
Why it matters: An employer won a rare victory in a suitable seating case when a California appellate court affirmed summary judgment in a suit brought by a sample...more
Telecommuting May Constitute A Reasonable Accommodation Under The ADA -
Why it matters: Telecommuting may constitute a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of...more
5/15/2014
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Apple ,
Arbitration ,
eBay ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Google ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Intel ,
Intuit ,
Pixar ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Telecommuting
California Employers Face Rise In PAGA Suits -
Why it matters: California employers are facing a proliferation of suits filed under the State’s Private Attorney General Act (PAGA): new data reveals that the number of...more
EEOC Stats on Enforcement and Litigation, Plus BOL Reports on Union Numbers -
Why it matters: What was the most common type of discrimination charge filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in fiscal year...more