Along with signing into law a variety of employment-related bills in the 2023–2024 legislative session, Governor Gavin Newsom also vetoed numerous bills that would have further affected California employers. Here is an...more
Governor Newsom recently signed into law numerous bills that will affect California employers come January 1, 2024. Here is a quick overview of some of the new law that are relevant for employers....more
11/7/2023
/ Accrued Benefits ,
Arbitration ,
Cannabis Products ,
Drug Testing ,
Governor Newsom ,
Marijuana ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Notice Requirements ,
Off-Duty Employees ,
Paid Leave ,
Reproductive Healthcare Issues ,
Retaliation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Violence
On September 30, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Senate Bill (SB) No. 235, which adds new rules for initial disclosures of information in discovery.
Specifically, the new law amends California Code...more
On October 8, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed Senate Bill (SB) No. 731. If enacted into law, SB 731 would have required employers to provide at least 30 calendar days’ advance written notice before requiring...more
On October 10, 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill (AB) No. 933. The new law provides further protection to individuals who are victims of sexual offenses and are sued under state defamation law....more
10/12/2023
/ Assault ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Civil Code ,
Crime Victims ,
Defamation ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Governor Newsom ,
Litigation Fees & Costs ,
New Legislation ,
Privileged Communication ,
Punitive Damages ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Treble Damages ,
Vulnerable Victims
On October 8, 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed Assembly Bill (AB) No. 1356, which would have required employers to provide workers with earlier notice in the event of a mass layoff. Specifically, AB 1356 would have amended...more
On October 8, 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Senate Bill (SB) No. 497—also referred to as the Equal Pay and Anti-Retaliation Protection Act. SB 497 amends California Labor Code Sections 98.6, 1102.5, and 1197.5...more
On October 7, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) No. 700 into law, expanding California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act to protect applicants from discrimination based on prior cannabis use, with...more
10/10/2023
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Cannabis Products ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Criminal Convictions ,
Drug Testing ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Policies ,
Fair Chance Act ,
FEHA ,
Governor Newsom ,
Job Applicants ,
Marijuana
On October 4, 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) No. 616 into law. SB 616 amends California’s paid sick leave law to expand mandatory paid sick leave from three days or twenty-four hours to five days or forty...more
On September 28, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) No. 1228 into law, repealing the FAST Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act (FAST Recovery Act) (AB 257) and replacing it with a...more
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) No. 428 on September 30, 2023. The new law expands California’s workplace violence restraining order law to protect against certain kinds of workplace harassment as...more
California is one step closer to becoming the first state to enact legislation banning caste-based discrimination. Senate Bill (SB) No. 403 adds caste to the list of characteristics protected by the California Fair Employment...more
The California Legislature is poised to make it even more difficult for hospitality and business service providers to operate in California. Senate Bill (SB) No. 723 amends California Labor Code Section 2810.8, which provides...more
6/29/2023
/ Construction Industry ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employer ,
DLSE ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Pending Legislation ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Right of Recall ,
State Labor Laws ,
Sunset Provisions
On September 29 and 30, 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom signed more than one hundred new pieces of legislation, several of which directly affect California employers. In addition to several California Division of...more
10/4/2022
/ Cal-OSHA ,
Call Centers ,
Contraceptive Coverage Mandate ,
Contraceptives ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Handbooks ,
FEHA ,
Governor Newsom ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws ,
Unpaid Leave ,
WARN Act ,
Workplace Hazards
On January 25, 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom and California legislative leaders announced they have reached an agreement to require employers again to provide COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave (SPSL), which...more
On January 6, 2022, California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) updated its answers on the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) isolation recommendation found in its guidance, “COVID-19...more
On October 7, 2021, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) No. 331 into law. SB 331 is known as the “Silenced No More Act.” It amends California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1001 and the California Fair...more
On June 17, 2021, at the end of yet another chaotic day in administrative rulemaking, California’s new COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) finally became effective. The ETS bring substantial changes to the COVID-19...more
6/18/2021
/ Administrative Review Board ,
Cal-OSHA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Rule ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Executive Orders ,
Governor Newsom ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Notice Requirements ,
Reasonable Prevention Procedures ,
Social Distancing ,
State and Local Government ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On May 19, 2021, on the eve of a vote by the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board to adopt proposed substantial changes to the existing Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS), Deputy Chief of the...more
On April 16, 2021, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) 93 into law. This new statute creates California Labor Code Section 2810.8 and requires that employers in certain industries make written job offers...more
4/20/2021
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employees ,
Covered Employer ,
DLSE ,
Employee Retention ,
Entertainment Venues ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hotels ,
Janitorial Services ,
Job Offers ,
Layoffs ,
New Legislation ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Rehiring Issues ,
State Labor Laws
Beginning March 29, 2021, California employers with more than 25 employees nationally will have to pay their California employees with up to 80 hours of COVID-19–related paid leave. On March 19, 2021, Governor Gavin Newsom...more
On September 28, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 2992, which amends California Labor Code Sections 230 and 230.1 and prohibits an employer from “discharging, or discriminating or retaliating against, an...more
On September 30, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 1512, which amends California Labor Code Section 226.7 by authorizing employers to require certain unionized private security officers “to remain on the...more
On September 17, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill No. 1383, which repealed the current California Family Rights Act (CFRA) and eliminated the California New Parent Leave Act, replacing those statutes with a new...more
On September 17, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 685 into law, enacting California Labor Code Section 6409.6 and amending other state statutes. As explained further below, Section 6409.6 obligates...more