The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) has issued its anticipated model Workplace Violence Prevention Plan (for non-health care settings). As we previously noted here, SB 553 added California...more
As 2024 quickly approaches, so, too, do many new obligations and restrictions for employers with California employees. Below, we summarize significant changes to hiring and workforce management, litigation, wage and hour,...more
California’s Business and Professions Code (the “Code”) has long been the nation’s strictest law on restrictive covenants, essentially prohibiting employee noncompetition agreements except in limited circumstances....more
10/27/2023
/ Confidential Information ,
Contract Terms ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Labor Reform ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Notice Requirements ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
State Labor Laws
Governor Gavin Newsom recently signed into law SB 616, which increases the amount of paid sick leave that employers must provide under the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014 (the “Act”)....more
After more than a year of administrative activity pertaining to California’s Fair Chance Act (FCA), the California Civil Rights Council issued final modifications to the FCA’s regulations (the “Revised Regulations”). The...more
This year, California was one of many states to enact legislation restricting noncompetes. California has long had the strictest noncompete law, and employee noncompetes are already void under California Business and...more
The California Office of Administrative Law has approved the California Division of Occupational Health and Safety’s (Cal/OSHA) COVID-19 Prevention Non-Emergency Regulations (Non-Emergency Regulations). As a result, on...more
California is one of a growing list of states requiring employers to make certain pay transparency disclosures to employees and applicants. California employers already had an obligation to provide pay scales to job...more
This year has yet again been busy for the California Legislature and Governor Gavin Newsom, as they enacted several significant changes to hiring and workforce management, wage and hour, COVID-19, and other employment laws....more
12/13/2022
/ California ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Governor Newsom ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Leave ,
Popular ,
State Labor Laws
The California legislature has presented S.B. 1162 (“the Bill”) to Governor Gavin Newsom. If the Governor signs the Bill into law, California will follow the lead of jurisdictions like Colorado and New York City by requiring...more
On February 9, 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB-114, effective February 19, 2022, which requires employers to provide workers with up to two weeks (80 hours) of supplemental paid sick leave related to COVID-19. ...more
2/17/2022
/ California ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Governor Newsom ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Paid Leave ,
Sick Leave ,
State and Local Government ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
In connection with the new Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) that went into effect on January 14, 2022, the California Division of Occupational Health and Safety (Cal/OSHA) has released the following COVID-19-related...more
On January 6, 2022, the California Division of Occupational Health and Safety (Cal/OSHA) announced that it would follow the revised guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for quarantine and...more
1/13/2022
/ Cal-OSHA ,
California ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Occupational Exposure ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
This year, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law a number of bills affecting California employers. Major changes in the coming year include...more
As we previously reported, on June 9, 2021, the California Occupational Safety and Health (“Cal/OSHA”) Standards Board (“the Board”) withdrew its prior proposed revisions to the Division of Occupational Safety and Health’s...more
Effective May 3, 2021, the California Department of Public Health issued COVID-19 Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People, applicable to non-health care settings, in response to the Interim Public Health...more
5/14/2021
/ Best Practices ,
Business Continuity Plans ,
California ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health and Safety ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Popular ,
Public Health ,
Risk Management ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
While state legislatures focused much-needed attention on pandemic-related legislation throughout most of 2020, many continued to alter their employment laws in significant ways, or simply had previously passed laws scheduled...more
1/27/2021
/ Ban the Box ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Gender Identity ,
Independent Contractors ,
Marijuana ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Popular ,
State and Local Government
Effective November 30, 2020, California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (“Cal-OSHA”) has adopted broad emergency regulations on COVID-19 workplace prevention. These requirements remain in effect for 180 days and...more
This year, Governor Gavin Newsom signed numerous employment-related bills passed by the California Legislature. Major changes affecting employers with California operations in the coming year include...more
In recent years, wage discrimination has been a hot topic and with it, the question of whether employers may rely on a worker’s salary history to justify a pay disparity between male and female employees. In a 2018 case...more
7/25/2020
/ Disparate Impact ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay ,
Equal Pay Act ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Gap ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Wage and Hour
California generally requires that, when employees accrue vacation time during their employment, any accrued but unused vacation time must be paid out at the end of employment. ...more
The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (“DFEH”) has published responses to Frequently Asked Questions (“FAQs”) and other information to provide guidance to employers regarding employment-related issues...more
California administrative agencies recently published information to guide both employers and employees on employment-related issues raised by the 2019 novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19. The Division of Labor...more
This year, Governor Gavin Newsom signed numerous employment-related bills that landed on his desk. Among the major changes that will affect employers with California operations in the coming year are the following...more
10/25/2019
/ ABC Test ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Corporate Counsel ,
DFEH ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
New Legislation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
California recently enacted an emergency amendment (SB 778) to California Government Code Section 12950.1, extending the deadline for California employers to comply with the state’s new anti-harassment training mandate. Under...more