In a victory for employers seeking summary judgment in employment discrimination cases, the Ninth Circuit held that discriminatory remarks that merely quote third parties—including pejorative phrases—do not create a genuine...more
Welcome to EO Radio Show - Your Nonprofit Legal Resource. Charities, foundations, and their founders often request help addressing employment practices and compliance questions. In this episode, host Cynthia Rowland is joined...more
Please join us at our 2024 Employment Law Symposium. The afternoon program promises invaluable insights that will keep you and your talent team at the forefront of California employment law trends....more
1/5/2024
/ California ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Regulations ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Severance Agreements ,
State Labor Laws ,
Webinars ,
Workplace Investigations
In 2023, California has adopted several new employment laws either introducing new employee protections or codifying existing practices into state law. With these changes, employers will need to examine and adjust some of...more
12/7/2023
/ Bereavement Leave ,
California ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Labor Regulations ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Legislation ,
New Regulations ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Reproductive Healthcare Issues ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Violence
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a new pay transparency act that will require significant changes in how employers draft job postings and how they report pay data to the state. Given the scope of the changes, many...more
10/26/2022
/ California ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Job Applicants ,
New Legislation ,
Pay Data ,
Pay Transparency ,
Reporting Requirements ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
The California Legislature passed and Governor Newsom signed several new or amended employment laws covering topics ranging from non-disparagement and separation agreements, the California Family Rights Act, and warehouse...more
12/7/2021
/ ABC Test ,
Adverse Employment Action ,
Agricultural Workers ,
Amended Legislation ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Cal-OSHA ,
California Family Rights Act (CFRA) ,
Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employer ,
DFEH ,
Disabilities ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Emotional Support Animals ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Exceptions ,
Former Employee ,
Health and Safety ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Independent Contractors ,
Janitorial Services ,
Mediation ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Notice Requirements ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Personnel Records ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Quotas ,
Record Retention ,
Separation Agreement ,
Settlement Agreements ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Theft ,
Warehouses ,
Wildfires ,
Workplace Safety
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
In a year of extraordinary events, this election has been more divisive and controversial than any other in recent history. Many employers are grappling with how they should manage political expression in the workplace. An...more
10/27/2020
/ Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Freedom of Expression ,
Labor Code ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Political Expression ,
Political Speech ,
Private Right of Action ,
Protected Activity
As unlimited vacation policies increase in popularity, California employers must be careful to avoid legal pitfalls in drafting and implementation. In the first California appellate decision to address unlimited vacation...more
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
Employers who have laid off workers in recent weeks due to the shelter-in-place orders should be aware of little-known requirements regarding final paychecks....more
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
If you are scrambling to comply with the new California sexual harassment training requirements, we have some good news: with some exceptions, employers have another year to put those plans in place. Under prior law, which...more
10/24/2019
/ Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Deadlines ,
DFEH ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Seasonal Workers ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Staffing Agencies ,
State Labor Laws ,
Supervisors ,
Temporary Employees ,
Time Extensions
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
On September 18, 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law AB5, codifying the ABC test for distinguishing employees from independent contractors and expanding its application beyond California’s Wage Orders....more
9/20/2019
/ ABC Test ,
Dynamex ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gig Economy ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
New Legislation ,
Retroactive Application ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Orders
California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed into law the nation’s first bill banning discrimination based on an employee’s hairstyle. Senate Bill 188, otherwise known as the Crown Act, expanded the definition of race under...more
7/30/2019
/ Disability Discrimination ,
Dress Codes ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
FEHA ,
Gender Identity ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hairstyle Discrimination ,
New Legislation ,
Race Discrimination ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Sex Discrimination ,
State Labor Laws
Employers who use background checks in their hiring processes are likely aware of the various requirements under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and analogous state statutes. They must provide clear disclosures and...more
6/21/2019
/ Background Checks ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Credit Reporting Agencies ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Purposes ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Physicians ,
Prior Authorization ,
Split of Authority ,
State Law Claims
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
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